Higher Education and Development for Archaeology and Environmental Health Research
SUNY at Stony Brook
Monthly Report: August 2004
Objective 1: Administration
- SBU announced several Campus Communications
outreach efforts on behalf of SBU's USAID-Iraq program, including:
Official Launch of the SBU
USAID-Iraq Program website.
SBU - HEAD Environmental Health Project Website online
Science Coalition Feature
Story.
Featured on SBU's
home page and all-campus Monday Memo.
Website updates are announced on the Iraq Crisis Network listserv.
Objective 2: Archaeology Project
- Assistant Director J. R. Pournelle traveled to Baghdad 27
July-16 August, inspected status of work, met with and briefed new USAID
HEAD program officers, conducted a 100% review and reconciliation of
outstanding invoices with general contractors, and ensured commencement of
work at Mosul University.
- Pournelle also created a publicly available PowerPoint
show of the first six months of project progress at: http://www.stonybrook.edu/usaidhead/SUNYHEADProgress/SUNYHEADProgress.pps.
2.1.2 Activity: Refit Department Libraries
(L)
Librarian’s workstation at Baghdad University department of Archaeology. (R) Baghdad U. Dept of Archaeology Chair, at new library training lab.
- Local contractors completed
installation of reading room computers and the librarian’s
cataloguing/circulation/scanning/printing station at Baghdad University’s Dept. of Archaeology. The facility will allow students and faculty to reproduce
scarce reading material for classroom use and study, and to perform online
searches for specialized journal articles.
- Construction of divider
partitions, installation of climate control, and internal wiring to create
a reading room for the archaeology library at Mosul U. is complete.
- In Amman, Asst. Dir. Pournelle
inspected a library computer lab installation, corrected deficiencies that
had prevented full functionality as an online training lab, met with program
officers and IT contractors, created sysadmin guidelines, and concluded
contractor meetings to insure execution of an ongoing lab maintenance
program.
2.2 Activity: Equipment and Facilities Rehabilitation to Support
Instruction
IT
engineers install a VSAT for internet and telephone connections on the roof of Baghdad University’s Department of Archaeology, connecting routers and a PBX manage the new
internet network and telephone system.
- Task A: Upgrade Dept. of
Archaeology Facilities, Baghdad. Issues regarding generator delivery
were resolved and delivery accepted.
- Task B: Establish IT
capacity to support libraries, teaching and research, Baghdad. Engineers
completed VSAT, PBX, router, and server installation, activated internet
and telephone connections, installed 60% of networked equipment, and
completed 50% of the computer lab setup.
- Task C: Establish IT
capacity to support libraries, teaching and research, Mosul. Facilities
renovation was completed and IT and telephone installation begun.
2.3 Activity: Instruction in Iraq; Task A: Summer Workshops
- The second session of the faculty/postgraduate Summer
Workshop in Amman, Jordan concluded on 26
August, and all participants returned safely to Iraq. See Final Report
4.5.1 Activity: Library, Archaeology; Task B: Purchase and Ship Books
- At SBU, sorting of 1,999
volumes comprising the A. Kirk Grayson library is complete, and books have
been transported to the shipping yard pending transportation inspection.
Of these, 827 volumes are destined for the Baghdad U. Dept. of
Archaeology, 708 volumes for Mosul University, and 68 volumes for
digitization. Final disposition of the remainder is pending.
- OCLC completed cataloguing and
shipped to the holding yard 246 volumes destined for Baghdad U., comprising copy 1 of the materials received from David Brown Company. Cataloguing of a duplicate
set for Mosul U. is ongoing.
Objective 3: Environmental Health Project
3.1.1.B Task: Establish three national Environmental Health Educational
& Resource Centers
- Site preparation is continuing at each of the EHERC
locations to create usable space to house the Centers’ in house
laboratories, library and other technical and educational activities.
Pictures
showing ongoing preparations at the Baghdad EHERC.
3.4.4 Training of Environmental Health Specialists in Iraq
- Extensive discussions have been conducted with our Iraqi
partners about the locations and timing of the training course.
- A list of participants has been provided by the Centers in
Iraq.
- A meeting took place with the Dean and the Vice Dean of
the School of Professional Development/SBU to discuss and make agreements
on issues regarding accreditation, registration and continuation of the
educational program.
- Course books have been purchased and will be shipped to Baghdad once shipping has been consolidated.
3.4.5 Delivery of Environmental Lab equipment.
- Equipment to test for environmental exposure to lead
including all necessary supplies and kits have been purchased and will be
shipped to Iraq as soon as they are delivered. This equipment is needed to
for a study on children’s’ exposure to environmental lead which will be
conducted through the three Centers in Iraq.
- SBU lab scientists and scientists from partnering
institutions have submitted additional requisitions for the purchase of
laboratory equipment that will be coordinated for shipping in September to
the three Centers.
3.4.7 Mini grants
- A significant number of proposals for mini grants have
been received and are in review by the Iraqi Center leadership and the SBU
review committee. The award of the grants is anticipated to be completed
shortly.
4.1 Information and Communication Tools
- The coordinators at each of the EHERC are currently making
their final determinations regarding the requirements for the purchase of
computers and communication systems When they have made their final
decisions the specifications will be reviewed at SBU and their purchase
will be coordinated in Iraq.
4.5 Library Resource Development
- A majority of the books have already been purchased for
the Centers’ libraries. The material is being sent to a consolidation
facility and will be shipped to Iraq as soon the process is completed.
Additional Activities
- Drs. Hailoo and Marqus attended a meeting in Washington DC with the Iraqi Minister of Health on the evening of 10-August. The Minister
highlighted the constraints and obstacles to the reform of the Iraqi medical/environmental
health systems and brainstormed with the SBU HEAD leaders on how best to
facilitate change.
Drs. S. Marqus and W. Hailoo
with Dr. Alaa Alwan, Iraqi Minister of Health (Center).
- On 11-August Drs. Hailoo and Marqus attended a symposium sponsored
by the Institute of Medicine and the USDOD. Present were representatives
from USAID, WHO and IOM as well as members from the educational and
scientific community. The Minister of Health spoke on ways to help
organize health reform in Iraq through the training of Iraqi doctors in public
health specialties in particular with regards to the environment.
·
The Long Island Business News, a prominent Long Island, N.Y. publication, printed a front page article titled “Road to Recovery” featuring Dr. Hailoo and
described the SBU/USAID, Environmental Health Project in Iraq to help with the reconstruction efforts. The article focused on the establishment of the three Environmental
Health and Education Research Centers (EHERC). Dr. Hailoo stressed his concerns
about the high incidence of cancer related to environmental pollution and the
need to create the resources to study and manage these problems.
Officers:
Archaeology
Environmental Health
This site last updated on 10/15/2004 by J. Pournelle