As the Mountain State’s flagship, land-grant institution, West Virginia University is dedicated to improving the lives of West Virginians. At the same time, as a major research institution, WVU’s reach is global and its faculty travel the world in pursuit of knowledge and discovery.

That global reach will be in the spotlight at an International Research Symposium scheduled for 9 a.m. – 3 p.m. on Friday, Oct. 12, in room 101 of the National Research Center for Coal and Energy on WVU’s Evansdale Campus.

Sponsored by WVU’s Environmental Research Center, Peace Corps Master’s International program, Office of International Programs, and Office of Graduate Education and Life, the symposium will gather scholars from a host of disciplines to share their expertise with colleagues and the public. Topics will range from sustainable living in Mexico to the music of Ghana to the geological history of Mongolia.

Faculty from WVU’s Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Design, Eberly College of Arts and Sciences, Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, and the College of Physical Activity and Sport Sciences will present at the event.

“A key goal of WVU’s 2020 Strategic Plan for the Future is to promote global engagement and awareness, and this symposium will showcase some of the many ways WVU is realizing that goal,” said Todd Petty, associate professor of wildlife and fisheries resources and one of the event’s organizers.

“Our objective with the symposium is to highlight the diversity of research being conducted by WVU scholars in locations around the world.”

Symposium participants will also meet the second cohort of students in the Peace Corps Master’s International program, which combines graduate education and preparation for service as a Peace Corps volunteer. Keynote speakers Dave and Sonya Greegor, returning Peace Corps volunteers, will present details of their recent work on sustainable lifestyle projects in Mexico.

The symposium is free and open to the public. For more information, contact Petty at 304-293-2278 or jtpetty@mail.wvu.edu. For a full schedule of symposium speakers, please visit http://peacecorps.davis.wvu.edu/home/symposium.

-WVU-

dw/9/27/12

CONTACT: David Welsh, Davis College of Agriculture, Natural Resources, and Design
304-293-2394, dwelsh@wvu.edu

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