In a time of social distancing, the AIR Centre is bringing people back together by launching a series of online networking meetings that will take place every Friday, from 1pm to 2 pm UTC. During these relaxing Networking Fridays, researchers, technology innovators, representatives of multilateral organizations, government officials, and social entrepreneurs will present to and discuss with the audience their current work and, most importantly, explore ways of future collaboration. Our goal is to keep our network active, connected and informed of interesting activities going on around the Atlantic region. Places are limited, so please register here. Let’s inspire each other and thrive through all this together.

The Networking Fridays Webinar series started on April 24th with Gregory Jenkins, Professor of Meteorology and Atmospheric Science at Penn State University and Director of AESEDA – Penn State’s Alliance for Education, Science, Engineering & Design with Africa, who shared with the audience his work to improve observations and predictions on air pollution in West Africa by bringing together Earth observation, numerical modelling and innovative low cost sensors. The session was moderated by Jerry Miller, President of Science for Decisions, a consulting practice founded to ensure that solid science is available to inform decisions that impact people and places around the globe.

Gregory Jenkins is a native of Philadelphia and is currently a professor in the Department of Meteorology at Penn State University and director of the Alliance for Education, Sciences, Engineering and Development in Africa (AESEDA) in the office of global programs. He received his BS in Physics from Lincoln University and his MS and PhD degrees in Atmospheric and Space Sciences from the University of Michigan. After receiving his PhD he spent 2 years at the National Center for Atmospheric Research in Boulder Colorado as a post-doc fellow. In 1996, Dr. Jenkins joined the faculty at Penn State University in the department of Meteorology and joined Howard University in the department of Physics and Astronomy and the Howard University Program in Atmospheric Sciences (HUPAS) in 2003. He was the director of HUPAS from 2004-2007 and chair of the department of physics and astronomy from 2007 through 2010. He was a recipient of the NSF Career award and was selected as a Fulbright Senior Research Fellow in 2003/2004. Dr. Jenkins has taken part in NASA African Monsoon Multidisciplinary Analysis field campaign in Cape Verde and Senegal. He has published in numerous journals and is the recipient of the 2007 Alumni merit Award from the AOSS department in the College of Engineering at the University of Michigan. He is member of the HistoryMakers and was named a fellow of the American Meteorological Society in 2014. His areas of research are in weather, climate and air quality of West Africa.

We will continue with the Networking Fridays Webinar series in the upcoming months. Stay tuned. Full calendar and registration form are available here. Expect some very exciting afternoons, or mornings or evenings, depending on where you are…

If you need any additional information please send an email to Jose Luiz Moutinho.