Newswise — The president of Senegal, panel discussions on issues ranging from alternative energy to the future of health care, and a forward-looking address by University of Delaware President Patrick Harker will be featured during the first-ever University of Delaware Forum to be held on Saturday, May 10, on the campus in Newark, Del.
The Forum will kick off at 9 a.m. in historic Mitchell Hall with an opening keynote address by Abdoulaye Wade, president of the Republic of Senegal. A statesman, practicing lawyer and professor of both law and economics, Wade long was a champion of multi-party democracy and his election in 2001 ended four decades of Socialist Party rule.
As president, Wade has emphasized the importance of education and communications technology as a means of development as a member of the global community. He has said this is a century of expertise and technological competence and is working to develop his nation's infrastructure while building ties with the United States and Western business leaders.
Wade is a proponent of the proposed United States of Africa, believing that failure to achieve unity will weaken the continent.
In 2005, he received UNESCO's Houphouet-Boigny prize for Peace and Democracy, joining such world leaders as Nelson Mandela, Jimmy Carter and Yitzhak Rabin. He also has been awarded the French Legion of Honor, the Gender Award of the African Women Jurists' Association and the first International Telecommunications Union prize for communications development.
Wade's address will be followed by several morning panel discussions, moderated by faculty members and joined by leaders from business, government, the University and the community. A second set of distinguished panelists will discuss key issues in the afternoon. Topics are the future of public education, the future of health care and the life sciences, women leaders in business, alternative energy, climate change, asset management and retirement planning, corporate governance, and arts and humanities education.
Also, those attending the Forum will also have a chance to see the University's new Exelon Trading Center, a simulated trading floor for business students, in action. Other activities will include an international food fair on The Green, a presentation by students involved in the Engineers Without Borders program and informative tours of the campus.
The day's events will conclude with a closing keynote address by UD President Patrick T. Harker, "State of the University: Charting Our Path to Prominence." Harker, who in July became the institution's 26th president, will discuss the results of a recent, comprehensive strategic planning initiative and share his vision for the University's future.
A reception in the Bob Carpenter Center will follow Harker's talk, with performances by the UD Chorale, directed by Paul Head, associate professor of music, and by the Faculty Jazz Ensemble.
For updates and more information, visit the web site [http://www.udel.edu/forum], where guests also can register online. For questions or to register by phone, call (302) 831-2214.
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