The UO Global Expo, an endeavor by the Office of International Affairs (OIA) and its Global Studies Institute (GSI), is putting the finishing touches on nearly 160 videos that will be part of an interactive display during the upcoming World Junior Track and Field Championships next month.
The Excellence Map is essentially a touch-screen digital map of the world, inviting visitors to learn about faculty and student research conducted across the globe. The year-long project has been a collaboration between OIA and faculty, and students at the School of Journalism and Communication.
“This is an exciting project on a scale that has not been attempted previously,” said Dennis Galvan, vice provost for International Affairs. “The interactive map illustrates UO’s global excellence by showing the diversity of our campus population and the global impact of our top-tier, international research.”
Video stories include M. Jackson, a doctoral candidate in geography who works for National Geographic in arctic areas. The stunning arctic videography provides a backdrop to her commentary on her research work. “The colder it is, the happier I am,” she said.
Nelson Ting, a UO biological anthropologist talks about his work with virus transmission in endangered species in Uganda. When describing how working on his NIH-funded work has been the first abroad trip for some students, he said “to experience other cultures and to get that view of diversity is very important.”
Music professor Pius Cheung describes his percussion work in Hong Kong, Europe and other areas of the world, and the observations that can only be experienced. “There are just some things you can’t learn from reading; you just have to live it,” he said.
For SOJC’s assistant professor and manager of media partnerships Ed Madison, the opportunity to work on the project was a large-scale request for a student team, but he was confident they were up for the challenge.
“Our students are pleased to contribute to documenting the excellence of UO scholars. Working on the productions offers students a second level of learning by providing an opportunity to hone professional skills,” Madison said.
“We hope that once our events are over, we will be able to repurpose this wonderful web application for UO marketing, development and public outreach,” said Chakris Kussalanant, director of marketing and communication for International Affairs and the project leader.
The UO Excellence Maps will be located at Global Scholars Hall (GSH), Living Learning Center (LLC) and inside the TrackTown USA tent at Hayward Field beginning on July 18.
To view the stories visit the UO Global Research Channel.
- by Julie Brown, Public Affairs Communications