Texas A&M at Qatar empowers Pakistani students at inaugural U.S.-Pakistan Women’s Council Future of Women in Energy Scholars program
Published Aug 09, 2022.jpg)
Seventeen Pakistani students participated in the inaugural U.S.-Pakistan Women’s Council Future of Women in Energy Scholars program, hosted by Texas A&M University at Qatar, a Qatar Foundation partner university.
The program was sponsored by the U.S.-Pakistan Women’s Council, a public-private partnership between the U.S. Department of State and Texas A&M University, that seeks to increase women’s economic participation in Pakistan by promoting women’s entrepreneurship, employment, and access to educational opportunities. In addition, USAID, the U.S. Department of Energy, the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, and the U.S. Embassy in Qatar provided significant support for the program.
The young women represented nine universities from four different cities in Pakistan and were proficient in a wide range of academic disciplines including chemical engineering, electrical engineering, biotechnology, software engineering, geophysics, environmental engineering, mechanical engineering, geography, and earth and environmental sciences. More than 80 qualified young women studying at 30 different universities across 14 cities in Pakistan applied to the program.
Welcoming the students, Dr. Ioannis G. Economou, Senior Associate Dean for Academic Affairs and Graduate Studies, said, “We are at a crucial moment in our mission to enhance the energy sector — not just in Qatar, but on a global scale. Providing reliable, efficient, and affordable energy systems that don’t adversely impact the environment is the need of the hour. We are thrilled to host this exceptional group of young women, who will forge new paths in building new technologies and developing new solutions to the challenges that we are facing today.”
.jpg)
During their time in Doha, the students participated in courses that covered a variety of topics including natural gas processing, laboratory safety, geothermal energy, renewable energy, wind energy, and solar thermal energy. In addition to classroom coursework, the students conducted experiments in Texas A&M Qatar’s state-of-the-art laboratory facilities, heard from influential female alumni working in the energy sector, met with the award-winning Afghan Girls’ Robotics Team, and visited research facilities located within Education City, including the Qatar Environment and Energy Research Institute at Hamad Bin Khalifa University and Qatar Science and Technology Park. The students also attended a Women in Energy Roundtable hosted by the U.S. Embassy in Doha, which featured women from the American Chamber of Commerce, ConocoPhillips, and ExxonMobil.
The Doha segment of the program was organized by the Office of Academic Affairs. Dr. Konstantinos Kakosimos, associate professor of chemical engineering, directed the technical part of the program, and organized the visits to industrial partners, and Rola Abou Ghaida was in charge of all the logistics of the program.
Following their two-week program in Qatar, the students returned to Pakistan for a two-week familiarization trip to engage with key Pakistani public and private-sector organizations in Islamabad and Lahore to learn about Pakistan’s energy sector. In total, they visited 18 of some of the most prominent private and public energy sector entities in Pakistan using cutting-edge technology and received presentations on Pakistan's energy situation and challenges. The scholars also met with technical experts, business leaders, education leaders, and government officials and had a chance to learn more about career opportunities in their fields.
One student had this to say of the program: “Interacting with women leaders and alumni of Texas A&M University was a highlight. They raised the issues, the ground realities about women working in the energy field, the hurdles they face and how they still manage to succeed. The Pakistan portion of the program further highlighted the position of women in the STEM field. This entire program has made me and all the other women scholars more motivated to make our mark in the energy sector of Pakistan.”