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In a visit to FIU, the head of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) said the organization is “working hard to tap into the enthusiasm” present on college campuses and announced several new initiatives designed to increase participation among students, professors and researchers in solving the world’s most complex problems.
Dr. Rajiv Shah, USAID administrator, made his remarks in an address to students, faculty and university leaders in a whirlwind visit to Modesto A. Maidique Campus Friday, Sept. 21.
“On campuses across the country and the world, you’re expressing a surge of interest in tackling global challenges,” he said. “Public health, international education, global politics, development economics… since 2006, there has been a 34 percent increase in the number of degrees conferred in these areas across the country.”
Shah announced the creation of a new fellowship opportunity for professors, researchers and students from FIU and “other leading American institutions” to work at USAID.
The fellowship, which will enable individual offices at USAID to partner directly with students and researchers, is an acknowledgement that the agency doesn’t have all the answers.
“Today at USAID we’re increasingly focused on harnessing the creativity and expertise of this broad development community to solve challenges that were once thought intractable,” said Shah. “We call it open-source development, and it reflects our desire to literally open development to problem-solvers everywhere, from students on campus to CEOs of major corporations.
“If we’re going to tackle our greatest challenges, then we have to employ a much bigger definition of development to get us there,” he continued.
Shah also announced the creation of USAID Fall Semester, an initiative that includes new opportunities and resources for students to serve in development.
“Ultimately, we hope we can be a resource to you as we work together to expand opportunity and improve human welfare around the world,” said Shah, who praised FIU’s current USAID projects involving disaster mitigation, water resource management (GLOWS) and Haiti, as well as past projects training journalists across Latin America and strengthening the capacity of justice systems in Latin American countries.
Said Shah, “You guys get it.”
For more information on these programs and others, check out the following links:
Innovations Fund for the Americas
Presidential Management Fellows
100,000 Strong in the Americas
Fellowships: Send an email to USAID’s Anna Gohmann at agohmann@usaid.gov.
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