A world of opportunity:
Internationalization at the U of S
SPECIAL FEATURE SECTION

A dean’s thoughts on international partnerships

Excerpts from a recent speech by Dean of Agriculture Dr. Ernie Barber:

...Why would the University of Saskatchewan, and particularly the College of Agriculture, be interested in developing international partnerships?  ...Why would we be interested in Mongolia...?

We talk of partners, but which ones do we pursue?  The College of Agriculture is, and will continue to be, a favorite to receive invitations from developing countries.  Which ones do we accept and nurture?

...We talk about partnerships, yet clearly there is an economic imbalance in any partnership between the U of S and a university in a developing country.   Mongolia has a limited ability to bring financial resources to the partnership.  …We talk about partnerships, yet sometimes can’t move beyond a relationship where we force-feed our own technologies.  There is plenty of evidence against approaching a partnership from this simplistic vantage point – we give and they take.   ...We have to look at the front end of projects for ways in which we can learn from our international partner at the same time as they are learning from us.

I believe the College of Agriculture and the U of S want and need an international presence.  The whole world is bound by a common destiny.  As Pastor Dr.  George Ninan, of St. Andrew’s College, has pointed out, the events of Sept. 11, and since, have demonstrated that even the most powerful are vulnerable, that there is a limit to the power that even the most powerful can exert.  We increasingly realize that we are all on this spaceship together and we all have some responsibility to work toward a more even sharing of the world’s resources, including knowledge.  We can use our international initiatives as a part of an expression of this responsibility.

For us in the College of Agriculture, I think the major benefit will be the development of our students as international citizens.  Some examples include, faculty members who are involved in international projects bring the learning from their international contacts and experiences back to the classroom at the U of S.  Foreign students come to the U of S, they mix with our students and they influence the way our students think about things.  Our students travel to other parts of the world and in so doing broaden their perspectives, perhaps come to a better understanding of their own strengths and weaknesses.  Finally, faculty from other places come here, they enrich us with their approach to thinking about a subject from their unique perspective...

Articles Index

Next Article

Home · About Us · Issue dates · Submissions · AD Information · Back Issues · Headline Index · OCN Policies