University of Central Asia Students Return from Prestigious Glasgow Winter School
Eight students from the UCA joined peers and professors from institutions across Europe and Asia for a unique, multidisciplinary exploration of one of the most pressing challenges of our time: the relationship between humans, nature, and emerging technology.
The Winter School in Scotland offered more than 60 international students the opportunity to take part in collaborative design-led projects under the overarching theme of “Radical Stewardship: Creating the Landscape of Care.”
This place-based learning was held at the GSA Highlands Campus at Altyre Estate in Forres, home to Clan Cumming for 800 years and the site of unique forests, biodiversity and ancient peatland habitats.
Other participants came from GSA (Glasgow and Forres), KISD (Cologne), Elisava (Barcelona), the Bratislava Academy of Fine Art and Design (Slovakia), and top Chinese institutions such as CAFA, Tsinghua University, and the Guangzhou and Luxun Academies of Fine Art.
This year was the third year that UCA students have participated in the program due to the initiative of Communications and Media Director Dr Soheil Ashrafi.
The students - Finn Macdonald, Manizha Turdieva, Nafisa Khudonazarova, Rauf Alibakhshov, Saadat Orozova, Yekaterina Shubina, Altynai Turgun, and Faridun Karabozov - worked exhaustively over the week-long program reimagining responses to climate change, biodiversity loss, and technological disruption. Participants were encouraged to think critically across cultures and disciplines - from design and engineering to computer science, communication, and social theory.
“This is where the planet puts its brightest young minds to work,” said Professor Gordon Hush, Head of GSA’s School of Innovation and Technology. “The creativity, tenacity, and expertise of the next generation are being directed toward solving the huge ecological issues facing our world - from forest fires and crop failures to rising sea levels.
Reflecting on the 3rd GSA’s Winter School, Dr Ashrafi, Assistant Professor of Communications and Media at the UCA Naryn campus, commented: “Despite our contextual differences we are in the grip of common socio-ecological problems, and the Winter School has been a stimulating platform to think shared, situated, and applied responses to them. It is also an opportune moment to recognise and celebrate the fruitful and continuing partnership between GSA’s School of Innovation and Technology and UCA over the years.”
The Winter School is an international and cross-cultural experience aimed at undergraduate, Masters and PhD students from around the world. This annual event brings together students and professors of design, engineering, computer science and social sciences to explore a contemporary challenge (combining ecological, technological and social dimensions) through an intensive project experience.
UCA acknowledges and celebrates its enduring partnership with School of Innovation and Technology, looking forward to exciting future collaborations.
