Research project
NEWAL Network for Water and Life
NEWAL is a network of education and research partners in West Africa (Ghana, Ivory Coast, Liberia, etc.) and ten university partners in Switzerland.
The overarching goal of NEWAL is to promote and strengthen networking and scientific exchange between the institutions involved at the interface of water and life. NEWAL offers new opportunities for cooperation for research and university institutions in Switzerland and West Africa through transdisciplinary and transcultural exchange, for example in the form of webinars, student exchange programs or project work. The main activity is a 2-week seasonal school at the partner university KNUST in Ghana with participants from all partner countries.
Through this program, lecturers come together and develop training content and materials together. Students work together in international, intercultural and interdisciplinary groups and link their study projects, bachelor's or master's theses with the school's topics in the areas of water, wastewater, agriculture, environmental protection and health. They also have the opportunity to apply together for a project award to implement their ideas. This gives them the chance to make an active contribution to SDG6 (Sustainable Development Goal) with their projects.
More information on the NEWAL Website
Duration: 13.05.2021 - 31.12.2024
Funding:
Swissuniversities Development and Cooperation Network (SUDAC)
Partner:
- Bern University of Applied Science (BFH)
- Bowier Trust Foundation Switzerland (BTFS)
- Centre Suisse de Recherches Scientifiques en Côte d’Ivoire (CSRS), Abidjan
- Ecole Polytechnique Fédéral de Lausanne (EPFL)
- Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi
- Stella Maris Polytechnic University (SMPU), Monrovia
- Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH) Zürich
- Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (Swiss TPH)
- United Methodist University Monrovia
- University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW)
- University of Basel, Swiss Peace Foundation
Team:
Dr. Dorothee Spuhler
UMTEC Institut für Umwelt- und VerfahrenstechnikProjektleiterin, Dozierende globale Zusammenarbeit, Wasser & Abwasser
+41 58 257 17 11dorothee.spuhler@ost.ch

Prof. Dr. Michael Burkhardt
UMTEC Institut für Umwelt- und VerfahrenstechnikProfessor, Institutsleiter UMTEC
+41 58 257 48 70michael.burkhardt@ost.ch

Participating Institutes:
UMTEC Institut für Umwelt- und Verfahrenstechnik
SPF Institute for Solar Technology
IBU Institut für Bau und Umwelt