Effat University, Saudi Arabia’s first private non-profit women’s university, and QS (Quacquarelli Symonds), producers of the widely respected QS World University Rankings, joined forces to organize a special edition of “QS in Conversation,” a three-day event at the Jumeirah Carlton Tower in London, from Feb. 7-9.
The event was held under the theme “International Rankings and World Migrant Scholars.” Discussion and debate topics on the conference agenda covered the perspective of students and professors on various aspects of internationalization and university rankings.
Heading the roster of speakers was Prince Turki Al-Faisal bin Abdul Aziz Al-Saud, member of Effat University’s board of founders and board of trustees, and chairman of the board of directors of King Faisal Center for Research and Islamic Studies, Saudi Arabia.
Other eminent speakers included Lord David Howell, chair of the International Relations Committee in the House of Lords, UK; Mandy Mok, chief executive officer of QS Asia, Quacquarelli Symonds, Singapore; Mohammed El-Gomti, chairman of the Foundation for Science, Technology, & Civilization, UK; Dr. Ahmed Al-Kuwaiti, from the Deanship of Quality and Academic Accreditation at Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University, Saudi Arabia; and Dr. Imtiaz Ahmad, assistant professor at the Electrical and Computer Engineering Program at Effat University, Saudi Arabia.
Dr. Haifa Jamal Al-Lail, president of Effat University, delivered the welcome address and showed a video overviewing Effat University and its academic and professional success. Her speech also highlighted the role of Muslim scholars and the first migrant scientists and thinkers to spread knowledge around the globe.
“The scale of international scholastic mobility has been rapidly growing in recent decades, in step with broader trends of globalization and the growth of higher education,” said Dr. Al-Lail. “As a leading and progressive academic institution for women, Effat University is aligned with these international trends and our partnership in organizing ‘QS in Conversation’ is part of our commitment to ensure that Effat University plays a leading role in highlighting women’s empowerment on the world stage.”
Effat University partners with Quacquarelli Symonds for ‘QS in Conversation’
Effat University partners with Quacquarelli Symonds for ‘QS in Conversation’
Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet advances climate resilience in Bangladesh
The Jameel Observatory Climate Resilience Early Warning System Network, an initiative co-founded by the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Community Jameel to reinvent climate change adaptation in vulnerable communities into a proactive, integrated and evidence-based process, announced the launch of its Adaptation Fortress initiative, transforming existing cyclone shelters and providing protection from heat waves in Bangladesh for the first time.
The first Adaptation Fortress is under construction in Satkhira district, southwest Bangladesh. If this pilot is successful, the initiative will open a pathway, with additional funding, to scaling up to 1,250 Adaptation Fortresses providing heatwave relief to half a million of the region’s most vulnerable residents.
More than 30 million people live in southwestern Bangladesh. Between 2019 and 2021, including in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, multiple cyclones hit the region, devastating land, homes and entire communities. The threats posed by climate change — rising sea levels and more extreme weather — mean that people living in this region are likely to face similar crises in the years ahead. In addition to cyclones, extreme heat is a growing threat, putting people at risk of dehydration and heatstroke. In 2024, the UN found that heat waves caused nationwide school closures for two weeks, with some schools closing for six to eight weeks due to the combined impact of heat waves and flooding.
In Bangladesh, the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet has used its mid-century climate projections and analysis of local human systems to design a pilot for a multi-purpose, multi-objective structure called an Adaptation Fortress.
By engaging extensively with local communities, the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet, which includes among its partners BRAC, a global nongovernmental organization established in Bangladesh, is demonstrating a new model of climate adaptation that repurposes schools that are also cyclone shelters to serve as sanctuaries during extreme heat events.
The climate resilient shelter model is the first of its kind in Bangladesh and serves as a blueprint for infrastructure development across South Asia. Designed to protect the most vulnerable community members during government-declared heat emergencies, Adaptation Fortresses feature solar power generation and battery backup systems to ensure the shelter is resilient to outages during extreme heat conditions. The site also includes rainwater harvesting capacity and is designed so that excess energy generated when air conditioning is not in use is made available for community use.
Mohammed Abdul Latif Jameel KBE, founder and chairman of Community Jameel, said: “The Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet’s construction of this first pilot Adaptation Fortress marks a milestone for Bangladesh and the region. It lays the foundation for a proactive response to cyclones and heat stress — emergencies that the team has projected will become frequent events, threatening the lives of millions in Bangladesh. By adapting infrastructure today, we are building the resilience needed for tomorrow.”
Professor Elfatih Eltahir, lead principal investigator of the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet, said: “Bangladesh built a vast network of cyclone shelters that have been effective in protecting vulnerable populations. For the first time the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet is introducing the concept of shelter from heat waves as well as cyclones in southwest Bangladesh. This integrated and proactive initiative will significantly improve climate resilience in a region with some of the highest risks from climate change.”
Dr. Deborah Campbell, executive director of the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet, said: “Bangladesh is getting hotter and will experience more frequent and severe heat waves, leaving many people very vulnerable to heat stress and lacking the resources to adapt. The Adaptation Fortress initiative will provide shelter for the most vulnerable community members in southwest Bangladesh and has the potential to serve as a model for similar proactive climate resilience infrastructure development across Bangladesh and South Asia.”
Dr. Md Liakath Ali, principal investigator of the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet at BRAC, said: “BRAC is proud to partner with the Jameel Observatory-CREWSnet in pioneering the Adaptation Fortress initiative, an important step toward protecting vulnerable communities from the growing risks of extreme heat in coastal Bangladesh. By transforming existing cyclone shelters into multi-purpose, climate-resilient infrastructure, we are demonstrating how locally grounded solutions can address emerging climate hazards while strengthening community well-being. Alongside the pilot, we are committed to engaging policy makers so that future heat and climate risks are integrated into national planning processes. The lessons from this initiative will not only support communities in the southwest, but also inform long-term, scalable strategies for resilience across the country.”
