The E-newsletter of the International Relations Office Issue 2 | October 2013

INSIDE THIS ISSUE

Spotlight on our staff 2

UGPN 2

Bioscience Research 4-5

Pyongyang/Extreme Travel 6

Surrey Satellites at work 7-8

Student stories 9-11, 13

FAHS International news 12

EURAXESS 13

Dear Colleagues

Welcome to the second edition of Global Surrey, the newsletter that showcases international activities at the University of Surrey. In the current issue we feature international research partnerships; the experiences of student and staff undertaking mobility; and the award of an honorary degree to Professor Adnei Melges de Andrade, former Vice Rector for International Relations at the University of São Paulo. In addition, two of the more intriguing items include the production of a video to celebrate the links between Santander and the University sector and which has won the prize of Jenson Button’s racing helmet; and the experience of living and working in Pyongyang, North Korea which offers an interesting insight into a country which very few people get to explore.

We hope that Global Surrey encapsulates many of the wonderful things that are happening at the University and gives you a flavour of the multiple international links that are contributing to our global reputation.

Best wishes

Vincent C EmeryPVC (International Relations)

What is the term that describes the breaking-off of a mass of ice from a glacier or iceberg that produces a separate detached piece? (Answer on page 13)

Introduction from the Pro Vice-Chancellor (International Relations)

2 www.surrey.ac.uk

Associate Deans (International) – the faculty linchpins of Surrey’s international strategy

Malcolm von Schantz wearing the laurel

crown of a Swedish Doctor of Philosophy.

See Fun Facts on page 5

Spotlight on our staff

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

Global Surrey discussed with Annette Kratz, Head of Europe and International Mobility, her role in the International Relations Office and at Surrey.

What does your job involve?

I am responsible for all European programmes at Surrey that are in the teaching and learning area and do not involve direct research collaboration, e.g. Jean Monnet,

Erasmus and the Lifelong Learning Programme in general. This will all be amalgamated under Erasmus+ from 2014 to 2020, which will present us with the challenges of working not only with European partners but also with companies and international universities. The other

part of my job is encouraging as many Surrey students as possible to take up the opportunity of studying or working abroad as part of their degree. It is great to see the number of work placements all over the world that students are undertaking and the range of universities they are attending in Europe. I strongly believe that all students should have the chance to undertake a period of mobility during their degree, as they invariably come back a changed person. This also applies to staff – both teaching and administrative - and that has been my other main focus – to get all staff to think about undertaking an Erasmus staff exchange.

How did you come to be at Surrey?

I joined the University of Surrey a year ago from Keele University in Staffordshire, but I grew up in Surrey, having lived in West Molesey and Kingston and attended school in Chertsey, after moving here from Germany. I have spent most of my life in the West Midlands, having studied at Aston

University, spent two years in France (Paris and Lyon) and worked in Germany and France for short periods. It is a pleasure to return to Surrey and apart from the house prices I definitely made the right move.

Any other interesting facts or things people might not know about you?

I am a very keen squash and tennis player – that does not mean good, just keen, but it was great to be asked to play for the Ladies’ doubles team, and to at least have contributed a little to Surrey Sports Park going up in the Aldershot and District league. It has been a great way of getting to know people, both staff at Surrey and people form the local area. I also attempt to play golf, but my handicap is not getting any better. I think the difference between a moving and a still ball still needs a lot of research!

Annette Kratz

Dr Malcolm von Schantz served as AD(I) for FHMS from 1 September 2009 to 31 August 2013, including five months as Interim Pro Vice-Chancellor (International). Here, he reflects on his four years in this role.

Each of Surrey’s faculties has an Associate Dean (International) (“the ADI”), who supports implementation of the International Strategy at faculty level. Working closely with their Faculty Deans, Associate Deans (Teaching and Learning), Associate Deans (Research), the PVC (International Relations), the IRO and other university support services, they help deliver Surrey’s international activity in a coordinated and cross-cutting way. The ADIs are:

FAHS: Prof Marie Breen-SmythFBEL: Dr Jane Hemsley-BrownFEPS: Prof Paul SmithFHMS: Prof Johnjoe McFadden As the retiring doyen of Associate Deans (International), it is with considerable sadness that I take my leave after four years, although I am very pleased to pass the baton to Professor Johnjoe McFadden,

who will be taking over the post with great energy and new ideas, and a greatly enhanced platform for bringing them forward. During my tenure as interim PVC(IR) for five months last year, I was delighted to see the appointments of Prof Vince Emery as Pro Vice-Chancellor (International Relations) and Dr Annette Kratz as Head of Europe and International Mobility. Together with the rest of the IRO team and the ADIs, they will provide both the continuity and innovation that will be required over the years ahead. During the last four years, we have accomplished a great deal. The UGPN is now safely established as an entity to be reckoned with, and is growing in worldwide recognition. I am hopeful that the gradual but steady expansion that I have envisioned for the UGPN over the next few years is underway. Our international activities will form a significant part of the

REF submissions that are currently being prepared. One of the things I am particularly proud of is Surrey’s wholehearted engagement with the Science Without Borders scheme, which brings us both Undergraduate and PhD students from Brazil--probably the most dynamic current market and an emerging leader in many areas of research.

The Pro Vice-Chancellor (IR) Vince Emery notes: “Malcolm’s commitment to the

international strategy at Surrey and his support for the UGPN has really made a difference and he leaves a solid foundation on which the new FHMS ADI can build”.

Prof Adnei Melges de Andrade accompanied by (L) Malcolm von Schantz and (R) Vince Emery

UGPN Partner receives Surrey Honorary Doctorate by Malcolm von Schantz

Participants at UGPN Interdisciplinary

Doctoral Seminar, São Paulo, July 2013

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

The second Interdisciplinary Doctoral Seminar, held at the University of São Paulo from 21-28 July, this year focused on Water Management and Security. Led by Dr Jonathan Chenoweth from Surrey’s Centre for Environmental Strategy, five doctoral students and three academic staff from Surrey attended the seminar, with similar numbers attending from the University of São Paulo and North Carolina State University.

The seminar consisted of student and staff presentations on their research and a number of external speakers giving presentations on a diverse range of related topics. Additionally, there were some interesting site visits to places such as the International Centre on Water Reuse on the São Paulo city centre campus of USP, a tour of the Itaqueri Watershed near the regional city of São Carlos, the National Institute of Space Research in São José dos Campos, and the Centre for Marine Biology near the coastal town of São Sebastião. A full range of topics was covered in the lectures ranging from regulatory frameworks for water through to the human health effects of endocrine disruptor chemicals in drinking water.

The seminar was structured to ensure that there was a good balance between academic content and social activities that were critical for ensuring that long-term links were established between the different participants. In the words of one of the Surrey PhD. students who attended: “I believe we all enjoyed every single moment of those eight days in Brazil, and I must admit that it was one of the best seminars/conferences I have ever attended”. The seminar was clearly an overwhelming success.

UGPN Interdisciplinary Doctoral Seminar on Water Management and Security by Jonathan Chenoweth

www.surrey.ac.uk 3

University Global Partnership Network

Professor Adnei Melges de Andrade, a “founding father” of the UGPN, was awarded the degree of Doctor of the University Honoris Causa by the University of Surrey on 17 July 2013. Dr

Malcolm von Schantz, outgoing Associate Dean (International) for FHMS, reflects on Prof Andrade’s career and his relationship with Surrey.

One of the key planks of the University’s international strategy was the formation two years ago of the University Global Partnership Network (UGPN), together with North Carolina State University and the University of São Paulo (USP), South America’s leading university. The University of São Paulo is a huge institution with over 20,000 employees, but there is one of them without whom today’s close relationship would not have existed. Professor Adnei Melges de Andrade is a graduate of the University of São Paulo, and has served it in several prominent positions over a long career. But he is not only a Paulista and a Brazilian, but a true citizen of the global academic community. As Executive Vice-President for International Relations, he has strengthened his institution’s international outlook with great wisdom and integrity. He has forged links with many large and famous institutions worldwide, but one of the closest ones is enjoyed by the relatively small but ambitious University of Surrey.

We were delighted to be able to honour Adnei in the year of his retirement from a long and extraordinarily distinguished career

with the degree of Doctor of the University Honoris Causa. The award was presented to Adnei by the Pro-Chancellor, Baroness Bottomley on 17 July. In his acceptance speech, Adnei said: “It is my belief that internationalisation is a challenge for universities, representing separation between those who accept the challenge and give their students the opportunity to grow in a globalised world, and those institutions that just observe the facts. The latter will be always in debt to their students and their body of researchers. An institution closed in their own terrain, with few or no international partners, denies to their researchers the oxygenation of multilateral research and the students will lack an understanding that the world has lost frontiers.

“I am very proud to have been, with colleagues of the University of Surrey, at the conception of the University Global Partnership Network, which despite being still young, has a record of excellent results in collaborative research and student exchange.”

Generating International Consensus Guidelines for Infectious Diseasesby Vincent Emery, Chair of Translational Virology

Perspectives in Bioscience at Surrey: Two researchers describe international collaborations that result in high impact outputs

The appropriate management of infections following surgical procedures is essential. In recent years, in my own area of interest, there has been increasing use of international panels of experts to spend time distilling the information in the literature and to bring their own experience and expertise to create consensus guidelines with appropriate confidence levels which can be deployed internationally. My own area of interest is Cytomegalovirus, a member of the herpesvirus family, which for most people is a benign infection. Like all the herpesviruses, following initial infection it can remain dormant in the body. However, under certain conditions, especially when patients receive immunosuppression for organ transplantation, the virus is no longer controlled by the immune system and, therefore, reproduces itself to cause more significant damage to a range of organs and, in some cases, can lead to death.

The latest international consensus guidelines for the management of Cytomegalovirus after solid organ transplantation have just been published in the journal Transplantation. The panel was led by two of my long-term international collaborators from Harvard Medical School and the University of Alberta and involved a substantial amount of work behind the scenes prior to the consensus guidelines meeting, dealing with areas such as diagnostics, immunology, prevention, treatment, drug resistance and management in paediatric settings. The participant list was impressive with 42 representatives from 15 different countries (including USA, Canada, Brazil, UK, Finland, Czech Republic, Argentina, South Africa, Australia, Germany and Norway) coming together at a venue just outside Montreal for two days of intense discussion, debate, sometimes disagreement, but eventually reaching a strong consensus as to how best to manage this particular virus infection after solid organ transplantation.

The value of such guidelines should not be underestimated, not least in health care systems where reimbursement of health care costs from private insurers is the norm, and where best practice guidelines are often used to decide whether a particular course of management will be reimbursed. In addition, they can form an important plank for medico-legal cases where patients have been inappropriately managed and have suffered as a consequence of their infection. However, the most important use is in providing practical guidelines to clinicians and infectious disease doctors who often have to manage complicated cases with multiple infections and a range of other co-morbidities. The important issue for any guidelines is that they are perceived by the community as useful and consulted regularly – I think the

Electron micrograph of the CMV virus

Kidney transplant

Smart Materials for Rapid Protein Profiling and Disease Diagnosisby Sub Reddy, Department of Chemistry

The UGPN has offered two rounds of funding for bilateral or trilateral research projects between UGPN partners. Working with the University of São Paulo (USP) and North Carolina State University, Dr Sub Reddy’s Group at Surrey is developing hydrogel-based molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for the memory imprinting of proteins and for protein biosensor development.

Continued... on page 5 Continued... on page 5

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

4 www.surrey.ac.uk

Dr Sub Reddy’s Group is developing hydrogel-based molecularly imprinted polymers (MIPs) for the memory imprinting of proteins and for protein biosensor development. The molecular imprint remains as a memory effect in the gel after the target protein is removed, and the remaining cavity exhibits highly selective rebinding of the target protein. The MIP essentially behaves as an antibody-mimic. Dr Reddy is developing MIPs as low-cost, easy-to-produce alternatives to antibodies in biological tests (e.g. for cancer diagnosis).

The trilateral team, funded by the UGPN Research Collaboration Fund, consists of Dr Reddy from Surrey, Dr Thiago Paixão (electronic tongue expert) from USP and Prof Roger Narayan (microfabrication expert) from NC State. They are developing novel pattern recognition and microelectrode-based platforms integrated with MIPs for the simultaneous and rapid determination of multiple proteins indicative of diseases. A rapid test of this kind, based on taking a small blood, saliva or skin-prick sample from the patient, would allow the healthcare professional to make an on-the-spot diagnosis, thus allowing a care regime to be rapidly instituted rather than waiting, sometimes days, for results via routine laboratory samples. The work has been conducted largely by a collaborative team of PhD students: Hazim El-Sharif (Surrey), Ligia

www.surrey.ac.uk 5

Electrochemical MIP-based biosensor for rapid protein fingerprint profiling

2013 international consensus guidelines for managing Cytomegalovirus after solid organ transplantation will be viewed in this way and there is strong evidence that the previous consensus guidelines, which I was also involved in formulating, have had a significant impact on the management of Cytomegalovirus in transplant centres across the World.

Professor Vincent Emery is Professor of Translational Virology in the Faculty of Health and Medical Sciences, and holds an Honorary Professorship at University College London.

Generating International Consensus Guidelines for Infectious DiseasesContinued

Smart Materials for Rapid Protein Profiling and Disease DiagnosisContinued

FUN FACTA total of 78 Nobel Prizewinners have studied, taught and researched at MIT since it was founded in 1861.

FUN FACT In Sweden, academic dress is tails for men, black dress for women. The headgear is dependent on the Faculty – Medicine and Engineering have top hats; Divinity a wreath of oak leaves; and Doctors of Philosophy are crowned with laurels. Apparently it’s all down to a terrible misunderstanding going back several centuries. When academic ceremonies were established in Scandinavia, they misunderstood “ baccalaureatus” to mean crowned with laurels.

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

Bueno (USP) and Ryan Boehm (NC State), as well as one post-doctoral researcher (Dr Maiara Salles, USP). The UGPN funding has facilitated the mobility of the postgraduate researchers to the collaborating laboratories, enabling them to learn new research techniques from each other and to produce new interdisciplinary results.

The year-old collaboration has allowed considerable cross-fertilization of expertise in smart polymers as well as electrochemical sensor, pattern recognition and microfabrication techniques and has culminated in a paper being submitted to Biosensors and Bioelectronic, as well as results being presented at International meetings. Dr Reddy has also submitted a networking grant to the Royal Society to continue the collaboration.

There are major implications from the results of this UGPN-funded trilateral collaboration to develop low-cost, portable and rapid sensors in the fields of medicine (disease diagnostics), food (eg. fruit ripeness and food deterioration sensors) and the environment (e.g. water purity, viral infection of plants and livestock). Integration of MIPs onto microelectrodes is key to the miniaturisation of sensor devices for ease of portability and use, for example in the GP’s surgery, and the minimisation of patient sample volume required (e.g. blood, saliva or urine) for tests. A second paper in development is focused on this aspect. In addition, the technology and collaboration is key to the development of multi-analyte in field tests for a range of important analytes including protein disease markers, viruses, bacteria and toxins.

6 www.surrey.ac.uk

Professor Ian Wells has been a Visiting Professor in the Department of Computing since 2005, having been awarded Surrey’s first ever PhD in computer science in 1990 and serving as a part-time lecturer from 1999-2011. Somehow he managed to do all that while serving as a clinical scientist for the NHS for 35 years, retiring in 2011. Small wonder then that he and his wife Helen had to postpone their Gap Year for a few decades….

Debris from former expeditions on Stonington Island

Some of the PUST architecture is quite dramatic

Continued...

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

Polar bears, Penguins, Pyongyang and a Professorship... or how to have an unusual Gap Year

As one approaches a certain age the question “What are you going to do when you retire?” begins to creep into conversation, and my wife and I would reply “Take the Gap Year we missed out on as students because it had not yet been invented”. When the time came we felt ours should include both extreme travelling for ourselves and taking our professional skills into an equally challenging location for the benefit of others.

Our travel goal was ‘pole to pole’ - inspired by the book and television series - and in July last year we flew well beyond the Arctic Circle to Svalbard to join a small expedition ship heading as far north as sea and ice conditions would allow. There were frequent landings using 8-person boats, and highlights included getting close to polar bears and walrus, watching icebergs calve off glaciers and crossing 80º N to reach Moffen Island, which is, quite literally, the ‘end of the earth’. We loved the desolate but hauntingly beautiful landscape and the almost total absence of any signs of human activity.

In February this year we flew south to Ushuaia and joined a similar expedition ship for a longer voyage, crossing Drake’s Passage and then working down the west coast of the Antarctic Peninsula. The goal this time was to cross the Antarctic Circle and continue further south if possible - in fact we reached Marguerite Bay and eventually turned around just below 68º S. There were many similarities when compared with the Arctic, but also some differences - penguins instead of polar bears, many more seals and, sadly, huts and debris almost everywhere we landed.No sooner were we back from the Antarctic then we were on our travels again, heading for Beijing and then on to North Korea. Our destination was the Pyongyang University of Science & Technology (PUST) where Ian had been invited to teach artificial intelligence

and Helen was able to give guest lectures (on penguins and information management - but not at the same time!) and help with English classes. The PUST campus is on the outskirts of Pyongyang and is modern (it opened in 2010) and is surprisingly well equipped. All students and faculty staff live on campus, and the facilities include a canteen, staff lounge, campus shop and library as well

as offices, teaching rooms and lecture theatres. There are several large computer laboratories for undergraduates, and both graduates (who have their own laptop computers) and staff have more-or-less unrestricted internet access. All teaching is in English, partly to help with attracting visiting academic staff and partly to prepare the students for studying or working abroad. Life in North Korea certainly has its challenges, including living on a diet of white rice and spiced vegetables, but it can also be hugely rewarding. The students we taught were very bright, observant, incredibly hard-working, remarkably well informed on all manner of unexpected subjects - and had a great sense of humour. Although material for lectures has to be approved in advance there are virtually no restrictions on what can be discussed at meal times and in voluntary English classes in the evening. The North Korean staff we got to know were delightful and deeply grateful to those who are prepared to come to their country to help them despite its negative image in the Western press.

Contrary to what one reads in the media we found Pyongyang to be a beautiful city where one drives along wide open streets lined with trees and flowers and passes parks with statues and fountains - but with no advertising, graffiti, litter or traffic jams. The local market was always packed with people and goods (everything from fruit and vegetables to uniforms and high-heeled shoes) and there did not appear to be obvious shortages in any of the shops we frequented. Although we visited a number of different parts of the city, and were at times able to wander on our own, we did not see any evidence of either deep poverty or excessive wealth.

There were also opportunities to travel further afield - we joined a day excursion to Kaesong and the DMZ and it was most instructive and moving to see the infamous border from the North Korean side and hear their version of events. We were encouraged to take photographs almost everywhere, even from a moving coach, but “only beautiful please”.

www.surrey.ac.uk 7

Driving in downtown Pyongyang ... like Beijing but without the traffic

Continued...

by Jim Lynch

Jim Lynch is Professor at the Centre for Environmental Strategy. Together with Surrey colleague Professor Sir Martin Sweeting, Director of the Surrey Space Centre and colleagues at UCL and the University of Leicester, he published an article in Nature in April 2013 on the use of satellites to monitor deforestation. This is a summary of that article.

Boating on the Taedong river with parks and the Juche Tower on the far bank

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

Although there are real and serious concerns about North Korea in the West these appear far removed from the ordinary people and everyday life. It is also a land full of surprises: boating on the Taedong River, pizza restaurants with karaoke and bright pink stalls selling ice cream on street corners to name just three!

Our two months at PUST passed all too quickly, and at a small ceremony at the end of term we were both formally welcomed into the ‘university family’ and Ian appointed an adjunct professor - so we are obviously expected back! We are planning to return in 2014 and would certainly recommend this opportunity to others with a specialist subject to teach and a sense of adventure ...

Surrey contributes to monitoring deforestation

An image from the UK-DMC2 satellite shows forest in the Brazilian Amazon in red and cleared areas in green (detail in inset).

Illegal logging in Indonesia costs billions

Tropical deforestation contributes 12% of total anthropogenic carbon dioxide emissions. Illegal logging is costing nations tens of billions of dollars each year. Governments are making headway on agreements to stop this destruction but so far there is no coherent plan to monitor tropical forests on the scale or timescales necessary.

Incentives are being negotiated for states to implement the United Nations REDD+ framework (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and Forest Degradation), extended to include conservation, sustainable management of forests and the enhancement of forest carbon stocks.

In order to bid for the substantial funding associated with REDD+, the University joined a consortium led by DMC International Imaging, itself a subsidiary of the University spin-out Surrey Satellite Technology Limited. REDD+ funding will not only provide an inventory of forests but also improve the livelihood of people associated with them. While satellites provide the only means of viewing vast areas regularly – the tropics cover half Earth’s land area – basic decisions

have yet to be made on which Earth observing systems should be used and how forest data should be monitored, reported and verified. In a paper recently published in Nature magazine, authored by Prof Jim Lynch (CES and Director of Forestry, DMCii)

and Prof Sir Martin Sweeting (SSC and Chairman of SSTL), with colleagues from the University of Leicester and University College London, the case was put for using satellite imagery to tackle the problem.

They believe an early warning system is needed to allow authorities to react quickly to stop illegal logging. Two strategies are necessary to achieve this. The first is a means to monitor global forests on a daily basis, requiring a new set of tropical orbiting radar satellites that can see through clouds. The second is a plan for existing satellites to assess forest carbon stocks several times a year, to account for seasonal variations.

Over a billion people, many in the tropics, depend on forests for their livelihood. Through lost concession rights, taxes and carbon credits, Governments are losing between US$ 30-100 bn each year due to illegal logging. The release of stolen wood onto the market is estimated to depress timber prices by 16%.

Continued...

Continued...

8 www.surrey.ac.uk

FUN FACT Kericho County in Kenya is home to the best Kenyan tea; Kenya’s biggest water catchment area, the Mau Forest; and some of the world’s best long-distance runners including the legendary Kipchoge (“Kip”) Keino.

FUN FACTCairo University has 257,200 students, of whom 96% are undergraduates, while the academic staff body at the University is 28,148.

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

by Martin Sweeting

Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd working with Kazakhstan

In 2010 Surrey Satellite Technology Ltd (SSTL) was contracted by Astrium to supply a medium resolution imager satellite (Kaz-MRES), as part of an overall contract which also includes an Astrium high resolution imager satellite (Kaz-HRES), to Kazakhstan Gharysh Sapary (KGS), a Kazakh space company.

The Kaz-MRES spacecraft is based on the SSTL-150 platform and will fly a Jena Optronik medium resolution imager. The spacecraft is currently in the final stages of assembly and test in SSTL’s Guildford cleanrooms, and has a design lifetime of 7 years. The platform has been previously flown on SSTL missions such as TopSat, Beijing-1, CFESat, Sapphire and the five-spacecraft RapidEye constellation.

Under the contract, SSTL has also provided a comprehensive training programme for 16

Kazakh engineers who spent 18 months in Guildford receiving hands-on training in spacecraft engineering and attending courses on the theoretical aspects at the Surrey Space Centre at the University of Surrey.

SSTL is also supplying the ground segment to KGS – the antenna and the Ground Control Complex, including the Data Processing Centre – and will contract for the launch, scheduled for 2014.

Following on from the success of this programme, earlier this year SSTL signed a contract with Ghalam LLP (a joint venture between KGS and Astrium) to develop a new 50Kz platform. This contract includes an option for a cubesat carrying a payload for ionospheric research to be jointly developed by SSTL, Ghalam LLP and The Surrey Space Centre.

Optical and radar satellites working in different spectral domains are capable of monitoring all these characteristics. But international bodies and governments have been slow to formulate and agree common guidelines for doing so. Without the right technologies in place and globally accepted standards, billions of dollars could be wasted on projects that do not deliver.

The EU has focussed on a policy of preventing illegal logging, rather than specifying how forestry information should be collected by countries signed up to its 2005 Forest Law, Enforcement, Governance and Trade programme. This has led to a proliferation of incomparable methods.

To spot illegal logging, coverage needs to be even more frequent: at least four times a week, with data analysed far more quickly than it is today, when it can take months. If we are to protect tropical forests we must go beyond mapping damage long after the fact to offering early warnings.

Remote sensing satellites operate in two spectral regimes – optical and radar. Optical sensors in different colours are sensitive to vegetation greenness, fractional tree cover, forest type and vegetation density. They can cover millions of km2 in a single image while resolving detail of 20 metres on the ground, or 1 km over a smaller area.

Radar systems can penetrate cloud. Microwave backscatter from leaves is picked up by Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) satellites. Although historically expensive (costing £250-500M each in orbit), within the next year a new generation of cheap radar mini-satellites, such as the UK’s NovaSAR-S range (£45m launched and insured) will be built by SSTL.

As discussions continue this year, policy-makers need to back the right satellites and strategies to monitor and save the world’s forests, and Surrey clearly has a role to play in that.

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

Students from SII DUFE experience life at the University of Surrey

www.surrey.ac.uk 9

An impressive Poster Exhibition held at the University on 4th September 2013 marked the culmination of the summer placements completed by Surrey’s 41 Science without Borders students. Some students had worked in local companies and organisations, including Surrey County Council, Thames Water, Unilever, the Yehudi Menuhin School, an energy consultancy (Xodus Group), two film companies (the Community Film Unit and Boko Creative) and a local veterinary practice (Fitzpatrick Referrals). Other students undertook research projects on campus, including research into bioethanol production, Vitamin D deficiency, exercise and appetite,

and much more. Santander Universities sponsored prizes for the best posters, with the assessment being made by a panel consisting of members of the Pro Vice-Chancellor’s International Advisory Board (Dr John Burgess, Dr David Dent, Professor Paul Stone) and chaired by the PVC (IR) Professor Vince Emery. Commenting on the high quality of the posters, Prof Emery said:

“We were very impressed with the posters the students had produced and with the eloquent way in which they spoke about their placement experiences. After much deliberation, we decided that the posters of Guilherme Makki, Fernanda Matta and Alexandre de Castro deserved to win the prizes. I would like to thank them and all the students for their excellent work.”

The topics of the prize-winning posters were:• Guilherme Makki –How to drive a car

automatously around a track• Fernanda Matta - Selenium Analysis of

Brazil Nuts• Alexandre de Castro – Design of a website

to aid selection of final year student projects The prizes were awarded by Dr Juliana Bertazzo, who co-ordinates the Science without Borders programme at the Brazilian Embassy in the UK and Mr Nick Butler, regional director of Santander Universities. During lunch participants and guests were entertained by SWB Student Rogerio Scheidemantel, who spent his summer placement at The Yehudi Menuhin School. Rogerio played a selection of South American dances on the piano.

Science without Borders is a Brazilian Government programme that aims to enable 101,000 Brazilian students to study abroad. If you have any questions about the programme, please contact Peter Shelley (p.shelley@surrey.ac.uk) in the International Relations Office.

DUFE Study Tour

A group of 26 students from Surrey International Institute - Surrey’s campus at Dongbei Institute of Finance and Economics in China - spent a busy, enjoyable and fact-packed week at Surrey from 22-26 July 2013. Accompanied by two members of staff, the students were hosted by Surrey’s International Relations Office and FBEL.

During their study tour the students experienced a mix of academic, cultural and fun events including a visit to Polesden Lacey. The week culminated with a round-campus quiz where the students broke out into small groups to answer a series of questions about the University of Surrey requiring them to undertake a campus-wide search for the information. Each student was then awarded a certificate of attendance by Professor Vince Emery, Pro Vice-Chancellor (International Relations) and Dr Jane Hemsley Brown (Associate Dean (International) in the Faculty of Business, Economics and Law). Professor Emery noted “it is great to see such a large group of students from SII DUFE experiencing the Surrey campus and I hope that it will stimulate them and their friends and colleagues back in Dalian to make the University of Surrey programmes their preferred choice”.

In addition, the Party Secretary at SII-DUFE De Lei Xioping who accompanied the group of students gave a presentation concerning her role in student cultural and welfare support and illustrating the warmth SII_DUFE students feel towards Surrey.

Participants in SII DUFE Study Tour

Brazilian Students Shine at Science without Borders Poster Exhibition

L-R: Alexandre de Castro; Nick Butler; Guilherme Makki; Juliana Bertazzo, Vince Emery; Fernanda Matta

Visitors and judges review SWB Posters

The 2012/13 SWB Cohort

10 www.surrey.ac.uk

A Year in Parisby Hannah Storey

Hannah, a French and Translation student, has just finished her placement year in Paris.

She told Global Surrey about her experiences.

Do this again!

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

Hi! I’m Hannah and I started my year abroad in September 2012 at a photo gallery and agency called Photo12. It was a small company with a team of about eight people, supplying photographs for magazines, books and newspapers from their database. They also display collections of work by photographers and artists in their gallery in the 4th Arrondissement, Le Marais. My job as a placement student was to translate the photo database information from French to English to make it more accessible to the growing number of international customers. There were a wide variety of collections - from black and white WWI and WWII images, to sketches of birds, to collections from the Cannes Film Festival. It was a wonderful opportunity for me to learn new vocabulary and to extend my language skills.

After six months I moved to RTE International, a subsidiary of the national electricity transmission network, where I spent another five months. Here my role as stagiaire was to translate documents such as PowerPoint presentations, contracts, training documents and tools catalogues for projects and training placements in English-speaking countries. I found this very interesting and enjoyed learning how the company worked, especially when I attended weekly team meetings. In both companies I gained great insight into the professional world, including translation, administration and people skills I can use in my professional career in the future, as well as vastly improving my French language skills.

Although this was a year for gaining professional work experience, it wasn’t all

work and no play! I was able to experience French culture and made the most of my weekends off (and the endless amount of bank holidays!) in Paris to go and visit places. If you are under 26 years old, most places In Paris are either free or reduced in price and I definitely made the most of this, visiting the Arc de Triomphe seven times over the year! I was also lucky enough to experience the Christmas Markets on the Champs Elysées, a show at the Moulin Rouge, Roland Garros Women’s Semi Final, the Bastille Day fireworks off the Eiffel Tower and the final stage of the Tour de France, as well as taking on the personal challenges of running a 10km race round the centre of Paris, a 15km race around the gardens of the Château de Versailles, and the Paris Half Marathon.

This year has truly been life-changing in that it has given me a chance to experience a new country, city and culture and to improve my language and professional skills. Without a doubt, I would do it again, no question! I would also highly recommend it to other students because it gives you the opportunity to learn things you cannot learn in a classroom. A placement year gives you the key experience in the real world that employers want to know about when you apply for jobs.

Now, to move on to the big challenge of final year and the dissertation! Fingers crossed for me!

Students!Find out how you can enjoy a semester or year abroad at the

StudY and WoRK aBRoad FaiR

Wednesday 13 November 2013

14:00 - 17:00

SPLASH – Library and Learning Centre

For more information contact: s.hedley-boxall@surrey.ac.uk

Languages for Global Graduates at Surrey

www.surrey.ac.uk 11

Since 2009 the School of English and Languages has been offering language classes for all students of the University. This programme, known as Global Graduate Award in Languages (GGA), forms part of the University’s internationalisation strategy and aims to encourage student mobility. It provides Surrey students with the linguistic skills and cultural knowledge required to compete on the global market and prepares them for study and work periods abroad.

by Christa Saller, Programme Director

A New Country, a New Meby Aimee FeloneAimee writes about her experience as an exchange student in Florida

In 2012-13, GGA offered 28 different modules in 10 different languages: Arabic, Chinese Mandarin, English (advanced), French, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Russian, and Spanish. We received over 1,300 applications and were able to enrol just short of 1,000 students into a total of 58 classes.

The programme is constantly evolving and responding to student interests and it

also reflects the international links of the University. In support of the establishment of the UGPN, GGA expanded the Portuguese courses for beginners and post-beginners. In autumn 2013 Korean will be offered for the first time. As another innovation for 2013, GGA is proud to announce the introduction of British Sign Language to the programme.

Aimee and fellow Surrey student Yiya Mao at a UCF “ international meet-up”

Aimee’s last day on exchange in America

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

The University of Surrey was always going to be my first choice of a place to study, not solely because of its excellent teaching and location, but also because it was one of the few universities that gave me the opportunity to simultaneously explore two of my greatest passions– Literature and Travelling. This opportunity manifested itself not only inside the lecture theatre but also outside of those walls too. The chance for a year studying abroad was the connection between my two passions; the thought of exploring a new culture whilst still immersed in education was to me ideal. Whilst at Surrey I have been able to combine my ever-growing desire to explore new corners of the world whilst maintaining a focus on my degree, as the classes I choose to take will ultimately mould my career. Studying at the University of Central Florida (UCF) wasn’t just perfect because of the beautiful

weather, the local pool and the palm trees (although that all helped); it was perfect because of the exposure it gave me to literature and life itself in a new context.

Moving to a new country, a foreign land where your norms no longer exist, doesn’t just involve the physical movement from continent to continent across numerous varying time zones, but rather – and perhaps most importantly - a change in your perspective and assimilation to a new way of life. I quickly found myself readjusting to a new climate, teaching style and even found that the mediation of social interactions had to be reconfigured. Americans don’t necessarily tend to understand the stand-offish nature inherent to most Londoners. So whilst I was pushed outside of my comfort zone, I had to remind myself that this was not only an environment that I chose to

put myself in, it was an environment that I should and could learn from in both academic and non-academic terms. This was as much a personal journey as it was an educational one.

As I was privileged enough to have free rein when selecting my classes, I chose again to venture out of my comfort zone. Choosing classes in ‘Anthropology’ alongside others such as ‘Women Writers of Colour’ and ‘Harlem, Haiti and Havana’ exposed me to differing schools of thought and differing ideas on culture. I was bombarded with different cultures again both inside and outside of the classroom, and it was this varied collection of experiences that for me typified what my time in Florida was.

UCF presented me with the chance to dive head first into American culture (cue the football, basketball and baseball games, UCF traditions and of course American food!). It gave me opportunities to discuss my own international experiences in local high schools, sit in on symposiums with international speakers, and progress in my studies - all under the care of insightful tutors, kind mentors and new-found friends. If my international year abroad has taught me one thing, it is that when opportunities arise, no matter how varied or unlike ones you’ve ever come across, grab them with both hands, as you will most likely never be in that same place again.

LACES (Language and Culture Exchange Scheme)

12 www.surrey.ac.uk

FAHS International Mapping Project

by Miriam Wlasny

International News from the Faculty of Arts and Human Sciences (FAHS)

Many of our academic staff make connections and cultivate relationships with universities, NGOs and companies around the world. Led by AD(I) Marie Breen-Smyth, the FAHS International Mapping Project set out to obtain data on these international connections. Thanks to the fantastic cooperation of all involved we have gathered information across the faculty about international research projects resulting in the publication of high-quality social research as well as staff and student exchange agreements which facilitate the exchange of ideas, strengthen inter-cultural dialogue and raise the University of Surrey’s profile and impact around the world. We are thrilled to soon be able to display the extent of our international network and connections to the academic community and the wider public using interactive mapping software.

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

by Julia Ker, School of English and Languages

LACES Language Café(photo by Zhenbin Zhang, visiting student from Kyushu Institute of Technology in Japan)

LACES, the University’s Language and Culture Exchange Scheme, is an online network allowing students and staff to find a language partner who speaks the language they would like to learn or improve and in return offer assistance in their own language. We currently have over 50 language groups and approximately 500 LACES members. Students and staff can join their respective free of charge.

Last year a donation from the Annual Fund allowed us to organise Language Cafés and as a result many partnerships, groups and friendships were formed. We have also welcomed the Pre-sessional (English language course) students with a Summer Language Café this year, enabling them to practise their English skills and meet new students in preparation for the new academic year. We are planning to continue the Language Cafés this year and we welcome you all to join us! You can sign up to LACES and find further information about the scheme at: www.surrey.ac.uk/englishandlanguages/study/laces

School of English and Languages hosts the first wave of international students for 2013-14

by Sarah Michelotti, School of English and Languages

In early July 2013 the School of English and Languages greeted over 200 enthusiastic international students arriving for their pre-sessional English language programme at Surrey. This is an intensive, rigorous course, which puts pressure on the students and the team of tutors who help them achieve their study goals. Fortunately, there are also opportunities to relax. The students had trips to Oxford and Brighton, soaking up the atmosphere of the city of ‘dreaming spires’ (Harry Potter is also of great interest at Christchurch College!) or the Royal Pavilion. In the evenings they took part in sports events, film nights and were able to acquaint themselves with the haunted buildings in Guildford.

These students will now be well prepared to start their degree programmes. They will have improved their academic writing, know how to get the most out of lectures and seminars, and will be familiar with the workings of the Library, SurreyLearn, the laundry and even the best offers at Tesco’s. Come October, they will be able to get down to the serious task of studying in their departments without the anxiety of those initial weeks spent settling into a new environment.

FUN FACT The University of Bologna is the world’s oldest University, founded in 1088 - some 143 years before the Royal Charter was granted to the University of Cambridge in England.

Surrey Student Union President wins signed Jenson Button racing helmet

GLOBAL SURREY October 2013

University of Surrey joins EURAXESS

ANSWER TO PHOTO QUESTION ON PAGE 1: The term that describes separation of a mass of ice, creating a new iceberg, is: “calving”.

Through the Santander Universities Network, Santander supports the international activities of over 60 UK universities. In July of this year, Santander announced a competition in which they asked partner universities to let them know what the relationship

with Santander Universities means to their institution and to higher education as a whole. The prize was the racing helmet worn by Jenson Button at the British Grand Prix. Here, Em Bollon talks about the winning video she submitted to the competition.

www.surrey.ac.uk 13

Admittedly I’ll find any excuse to write some lyrics, sing, attempt to rap and star in a music video, but the opportunity to win something worth thousands of pounds that could be sewn into the student experience here at Surrey, seemed ridiculous to pass up! Santander Universities organised a competition whereby partners should explain what the relationship with them means to their institution and higher education as a whole, with the prize being Jenson Button’s racing helmet. They wanted creativity, and creativity is our middle name…

The lyrics tell of the University of Surrey’s unique partnership with Santander Universities, the global network, my personal experience as Students’ Union President, and the future of our relationship including

an impact on higher education as a whole. Based around Will Smith’s Miami, the video is the third in a creative partnership between myself and film editor Andy Land, a Tonmesiter graduate from Surrey. It follows on from a series including my Vice-President and President campaign videos.

At the Students’ Union we are honoured to have won the unanimous vote of the judging panel and have been told that all the UK Branch Managers, “had a great time trying to sing along to the video! Everyone felt that the entry perfectly captured how the university, Student Union and Santander Universities work together in partnership”. We are now in the process of arranging a date for our award to be presented to the Students’ Union here on campus.

To see Em’s video, and links to her others, visit: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-OFlZTRdPLA

EURAXESS provides access to a range of information and support services for European and non-European researchers wishing to pursue research careers in Europe. It has four strands:

1. Services We can assist you in planning your move to a foreign country or your move to the UK. EURAXESS can help with issues such as accommodation, visa and work permits, schools for your children and medical care.

2. Rights EURAXESS provides information regarding the European Charter for Researchers and the Code of Conduct for the Recruitment of Researchers.

3. Jobs On the EURAXESS website there is information on job vacancies, fellowships and funding opportunities throughout Europe.

4. Links An interactive web service to keep researchers linked. There are forums, email alerts and newsletters as well as networking events.

Please visit the website for more information: http://www.surrey.ac.uk/library/researcher/pgr/euraxess.htm

UNIVERSITIES