Freedom from Want, a new magazine produced and published by the ASEAN Regional Center of Excellence on Millennium Development Goals (ARCMDG at AIT), reached the public in early April 2011 in print and online.

The Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) donated 200,000 Thai Baht to the Government of Japan towards reconstruction activities following the disasters that struck Japan on 11 March 2011. The donation was handed over by Prof. Said Irandoust, President, AIT, to the Ambassador of Japan, H.E. Mr. Seiji Kojima at the Embassy of Japan, Bangkok on 20 April 2011.

African business executives, politicians, government officials and thought leaders concluded the first day of Africa and South East Asia Business Forum (AFRICSEA) 2011 on April 19 convinced that Africa’s social and economic potential matches its vast physical size. Wise South-East Asian investors would do well to tap into exploding business opportunities by partnering with Africa today, speakers told over 200 delegates in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

Dr. Haneef Mian, an alumnus of the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT), has been appointed the Ledcor Group Applied Research Chair in Oil Sands Environmental Sustainability at Northern Alberta Institute of Technology (NAIT), Canada.

Asian Institute of Technology (AIT) moved closer towards establishing a satellite campus in Vietnam, with a delegation headed by the Vice Chairman of the People’s Committee of Ho Chi Minh City, Mr. Hua Ngoc Thuan, offering land and “all support” to AIT to help establish a full-fledged AIT-Vietnam campus.

Mr. Navaneethan Navaratnam, an AIT alumnus from Environmental Engineering and Management (EEM) field of study, has been awarded with the “2011 Radebaugh Award by the Central States Water Environment Association (CSWEA), United States.

Nepal Education Foundation-Consortium of Colleges (NEF-CCN), Nepal is keen to offer joint programs with the Asian Institute of Technology (AIT). These include a two-stage Bachelor’s and Master’s programs, and a five year unified Bachelor-Master’s degree.

Blekinge Institute of Technology (BTH), one of Sweden’s top higher learning institutes, recently played host to AIT, represented by Dr. Jonathan Shaw, Director of AIT Extension, for discussions on building a dual-degree Master’s programme that will be attractive for students from Asia, Europe, and North America, to be launched in 2012.

Viewing the concept of “green economy” with skepticism, Mr. Uchita de Zoysa, Chairman of Global Sustainability Solutions (GLOSS), made an ardent plea for ensuring that sustainable development and climate sustainability remain the bedrocks of the development debate.

As the lights dimmed and the spotlight shone, a bevy of AIT’s finest performing artists took to the Conference Center auditorium stage last Friday night to sing, dance and entertain for the sheer love of performance and to show solidarity for the victims of the recent catastrophe in Japan.