News & Stories

The catalyzing potential of J-WAFS seed grants

“A seed grant for a risky idea that is mission-driven goes a long way.” These are the words of Fadel Adib, an associate professor of media arts and sciences and of electrical engineering and computer science and a 2019 recipient of a two-year seed grant from the Abdul Latif Jameel Water and Food Systems Lab […]

Call for Proposal: J-WAFS Solutions Program

The J-WAFS Solutions program aims to help MIT researchers commercialize breakthrough technologies and inventions by transforming promising ideas at MIT into innovative products and cutting-edge spinout companies. ($150,000 per year, one year.) J-WAFS Solutions has the mission of moving water and food technologies from labs t MIT into the commercial world, where they will improve […]

MIT Graduate Fellowship Opportunity: 2021 CIS Summer Study Fellowship

Doctoral students may apply for summer support for dissertation research or writing that has an international component. Support may be requested either for fieldwork and/or archival research, or for home-based research and write-up. Grants will not exceed $3,500. The main criteria for determining which proposals will be funded are: 1 – the importance of the research question and the quality […]

Visiting undergraduates collaborate with MIT PhD students on research through MIT GOV/LAB mentorship pilot

How can the structure of academia be changed to make it more equitable? This question was posed by an audience member at a December 2020 panel discussion on systemic racism in higher education hosted by the MIT Communications Forum and co-sponsored by Radius at MIT and the MIT Governance Lab (MIT GOV/LAB). Harvard University computer […]

Reducing inequality across the globe and on campus

At a young age, Orisa Coombs pledged to use her engineering knowledge to reduce inequality. The summer after her first year of high school, she found herself grappling with the harsh realities of systemic racism after the death of Michael Brown. Brown’s death altered Coombs’ world view and reshaped how she approached her own role […]

The sound of a global MIT

Every year MISTI generates thousands of stories. Students pack their bags and board planes heading anywhere from Beijing to Bogota. Their experiences are often life-changing; they engage in experiential learning opportunities with the world’s leading companies, organizations, and research groups. For MIT-Africa Program Managing Director Ari Jacobovits, capturing the voices behind these stories was critical. […]

Foreign policy advice: Don’t look back

President Joe Biden’s administration represents a fresh start for the U.S. in foreign affairs. But as experts observed at an online MIT panel on Wednesday, the U.S. cannot just reset foreign policy to the last time Biden worked in the White House, as vice-president in the Obama administration. Too many things have changed, too dramatically, […]

2020 MIT Water Summit brings international audiences together to discuss resilience

Earlier this semester, the MIT student group The Water Club gathered to discuss topics for their eighth annual MIT Water Summit. Given the dramatic challenges of 2020, the group knew this year’s decision was particularly weighty. Commenting on the process, Laura Chen, a junior in chemical engineering and director of the 2020 Water Summit, recalled, […]

MISTI pilots conversations in energy

While fall typically sees MIT International Science and Technology Initiatives (MISTI) programs gearing up to facilitate international summer internship and research experiences for MIT students, this year’s changing global circumstances presented challenges to making in-country internships happen — but they also offered new opportunities for students to engage with organizations and leaders overseas. Combining MISTI’s […]

Shaping universities to be engines of economic development

Universities perform best as engines of economic development when they systematically exchange knowledge with their partners in industry and government, according to a new book co-authored by an MIT professor and former university president. At the moment, this “exchange” too often operates like a one-way street, the authors write, with universities sending graduates and research […]