Environmental News
Environmental News from Boulder, Colorado
CU: The Brazilians are coming! (to study science)
Feb 17th
undergraduates study at CU-Boulder
100,000 Brazilian students, fully funded by Brazil’s booming economy, want to share knowledge
The University of Colorado Boulder welcomed 19 students from Brazil this semester as part of the new Science Without Borders Program and Brazil’s initiative to place and fully fund outstanding students abroad to supplement their studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics, or STEM.
The students are among approximately 650 Brazilian undergraduates who have been selected to study on U.S. campuses with funding for their tuition, fees and housing from the Brazilian government’s Science Without Borders Program. The program, announced last year, provides scholarships to Brazilian undergraduate students for one year of study at one of more than 100 host colleges and universities, including CU-Boulder. Scholarships are given primarily to students in the STEM fields. After two semesters and an on- or off-campus internship, the students will return to Brazil to complete their degrees.
“Science Without Borders interested me because I wanted to know what it was like to study and live on campus and to learn in a different environment,” said Victor Sabioni, an aerospace engineering student from the Universidade de Federal de minas Gerais in Belo Horizonte. “I am taking two classes that are not offered at home, and everything is great so far.
“The campus is amazingly beautiful and everyone has been so welcoming and polite. CU couldn’t be better. It’s like heaven with homework.”
The Science Without Borders Program at CU-Boulder is offered through a partnership between the College of Arts and Sciences, the College of Engineering and Applied Science and the Division of Continuing Education.
“The students are studying with their peers, living in university housing and experiencing life in Colorado and the U.S.,” said Anne Heinz, dean of Continuing Education and associate vice chancellor for outreach and engagement. “Several of the students already have indicated an interest in returning to CU-Boulder for graduate school.
“CU-Boulder students, whether they’re from the San Luis Valley, San Francisco or São Paulo, will benefit from the enriched classroom conversations and experiences enabled by these programs,” she said. “These collaborations foster our future as a global society, and we look forward to CU-Boulder’s continued participation in this program.”
An additional cohort of students is scheduled to arrive later this year for programs beginning in the summer and fall.
The Science Without Borders Program is part of a larger Brazilian government initiative to grant 100,000 scholarships to Brazil’s best students to study abroad at the world’s best universities. The program is sponsored by the scholarship foundation of Brazil’s Ministry of Education, Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior. The program is administered by the Institute of International Education, an independent nonprofit specializing in international exchange. The institute has been working closely with the ministry and with CU-Boulder and other U.S. universities to place the students in study programs that best meet their academic needs.
“We are pleased to be partnering with the government of Brazil and with the U.S. host campuses to implement this important program,” said Allan E. Goodman, Institute of International Education president and CEO. “At a time when Brazil’s economy is expanding rapidly, and Brazil and the United States are forging unprecedented ties in trade, energy and scientific development, we look to higher education as another area where our two countries should seek much stronger cooperation.”
Boulder County schedules oil and gas hearing
Feb 16th
Boulder County, Colo. – The Board of County Commissioners will hold a public hearing on March 1 to consider terminating, renewing or otherwise amending the temporary moratorium that has been placed on Boulder County’s processing of applications for oil and gas development in the unincorporated county.
As part of this proceeding the commissioners will consider the need for staff to continue evaluating, drafting and processing appropriate amendments to the Boulder County Comprehensive Plan and Land Use Code governing future oil and gas development.
What: Public hearing on oil and gas development in unincorporated Boulder County
When: Thursday, March 1 at 4 p.m.
Where: Commissioners’ Hearing Room, Boulder County Courthouse, third floor, 1325 Pearl St., Boulder
The hearing will also be streamed live at www.bouldercounty.org/government/pages/hearings.aspx.
The commissioners will first hear presentations from county Land Use, Parks and Open Space, Transportation, and Public Health staff on their roles in overseeing oil and gas development in unincorporated Boulder County. The presentations will include information on past and anticipated future drilling statistics and trends, observed impacts of oil and gas operations, application of current regulations, and concerns about future trends, impacts and regulatory needs.
Residents and other interested parties will then have time to comment (three-minute limit per individual speaker). Comments may be also submitted to commissioners@bouldercounty.org.
On Feb. 2 the commissioners approved a temporary moratorium on the processing of the required development plans for local oil and gas permits under the county Land Use Code (Resolution 2012-16) and released a statement detailing their concerns about the potential for significantly expanded oil and gas drilling within the county.
Visit www.bouldercounty.org/live/property/pages/oilgas.aspx for more information.