This year Emory MDP students attended the annual International Conference on Sustainable Development (ICSD) hosted at Columbia University.  This conference is held in partnership with the Global Association of Master’s in Development Practice. The theme of ICSD was “Moving Forward: The SDGs in Practice” and was held just one year after the official adoption of the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The conference intended to bring individuals into the dialogue on finding solutions to the complex challenges of sustainable development. ICSD hosted students and academia from around the world, professionals from the private sector, civil society members, top scientists, and world leaders from politics to government to the UN.  

Emory MDP was proud to have 10 students attend the conference alongside its Director, Dr. David Nugent. Four of these students had opportunities to present the results of their summer field practicum. Andie Tucker (‘17) was a speaker in a panel session where she presented a paper entitled “Developing a Local Framework for Teen Girls’ Empowerment in KwaMhlanga, South Africa”. The sessioin was followed by a Q&A where audience members were able to ask the presenters questions about indigenous innovations for education and training. Andie's research was carried out with the Manaleni Achievement Center (MAC), an after-school center for disadvantaged youth in KwaMhlanga, South Africa. Rachel Lastinger (‘17) also worked with MAC in South Africa and presented a poster entitled “Defining Masculinity in KwaMhlanga, South Africa: Engaging Youth Males in the Conversation on Gender”. Sarah Turkaly (‘17) displayed a poster entitled “Impacts of the Talking Book: Evaluating Access to Audio Information in Northern Ghana“, in which she discussed research conducted for the CARE Pathways to Empowerment Program, a multi-country initiative that seeks to empower women through sustainable livelihood innovations. Ruofei Chen (‘17) discussed her experience with the Global Health Impact Project, an interdisciplinary project sponsored by Emory Global Health Institute (GHI) and Social Enterprise @ Goizueta, in a poster entitled “Global Health Impact Projects - Unidos con Los Robles (Jinotega, Nicaragua)“. Dr. David Nugent served as a moderator for one of the panel sessions entitled  “Innovation in Technology and Governance for Agriculture Food Security & Nutrition”.

In addition to presenting research and attending lectures, Emory MDP students enjoyed networking with practitioners and scholars from all over the world. Gabriela Artasanchez (‘17) shared how she enjoyed “expanding [her] network and meeting MDP students from different universities. It was great to see how MDP is gaining strength and recognition globally”. The experience was a rewarding one for all of the students involved as they were able to gain insight into the current environment of sustainable development practice as well as gain vision for their future careers and future collaboration opportunities. It was also exciting for Emory MDP students to experience how their research is aligned with and working towards the SDGs.