Ministry of Mining,International Universities take extra mile in Geographic Survey
Kondwani Dombola-Deputy Director,Geological Survey Department, Zomba, Malawi
Ministry of Mining,International Universities take extra mile in Geographic Survey…..
By Andrew Mwanandiye Tembo……
To enhance global collaborative efforts in education and outreach of scientific results, and implication for regional hazards due to continental rifting in the southern East of Africa,Minister of mining and Northern Arizona University among other international universities organized a workshop in Blantyre.
The four days workshop commenced on 25 July and ended on 28 same month and it aimed at Strengthening interdisciplinary and international collaborations to facilitate the formation of new collaborations, particularly for early-career scientists mostly students in geosciences, and that has included African and US scientists.
Through the workshop which is called Southern East Rift System (EARS),Malawi Geological Survey Department under mining ministry,University of California, Darvis and Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution will synthesize recent scientific results on continental rifting in the (EARS)and discuss future projects, and foster new collaborations.
Speaking in an interview,Deputy Director for Geological Survey Department in the ministry of mining Kondwani Dombola said it is high time to let communities understand the concept and map a comprehensive future towards changes in the environments.
“Over the past 10 years, a number of new scientific studies focused on the weakly extended and magma-poor southern part of the EARS have emerged a provision of new and surprising insights into the onset of continental breakup” Said Dombola.
“scientists from Africa, United States and elsewhere will share and synthesize the results of these recent studies to achieve a more comprehensive understanding of continental stretching and associated hazards in the southern part of the East African Rift System” He added.
And representing other international organizers Northern Arizona University (NAU),professor Donna Shillington commended the organizers for the workshop,citing the interactions and attendance of people as positive moves in bringing awareness to general public.
” I am happy to see a large number of the participants in the workshop, this is a good move and it is so courageous ,we have met a lot of people from African countries and others from outside Africa ,this has given us Hope for a collaborative positive out come,”Highlighted Professor Shillington.
According to Geographical studies results ,Malawi Rift System is located towards the southern ends of the magma poor in the western branch of East Africa Rift System (EARS) hence
Contributions from scientists working on other parts of the EARS and other rifts globally.
The workshop was funded by an NSF grant awarded to Northern Arizona University.
