UAE delegation with UofH marine scientists and senior administration in front of the Helmsley Charitable Trust Mediterranean Sea Research Center.

Marine scientists from the Leon H. Charney School of Marine Sciences hosted a delegation of senior officials from the Emirati Ministry of Education led by UAE Education Minister H.E. Hussein Ibrahim Al Hammadi. The visit to UofH marine research facilities follows the signing of an academic agreement between the University of Haifa and Zayed University in the United Arab Emirates that will foster joint research on environmental issues and student and faculty exchanges.

Highlights from the visit included a discussion with Prof. Dan Tchernov (Head, Mediterranean Sea Research Center of Israel) on the importance of deep-sea research amid growing climate change concerns, and a demonstration of the university's underwater robotic capabilities led by Dr. Yitzhaq Makovsky (Department of Marine Geosciences and The Hatter Department of Marine Technologies). Professors Israel Finkelstein (Director, School of Archaeology) and Deborah Cvikel (Maritime Civilizations) presented the remains of a recently excavated Bronze Age cargo ship and intact cargo that included 1,500-year-old urns with inscriptions in Arabic. Dr. Moran Zaga (Ezri Center for Iran & Persian Gulf Studies), Baruch Marzan, VP for Internationalization and Sustainability, and President Ron Robin joined the delegation.

We are delighted to have the opportunity to collaborate with you…Through education, tolerance, and advocating for peace, we can live together. – H.E. Hussain bin Ibrahim Al Hammadi, Minister of Education, UAE

The sea is a source of food, water, and energy both for Israel and the UAE. As we continue to contend with today’s climate change challenges there is no doubt that the sea holds the key to our shared future on this planet. – President Ron Robin

University of Haifa submitted its Sustainable Development Goals Report to the United Nations as part of its commitment and shared vision to support environmental and social sustainability research and education. Our university is the first in Israel to commit to focusing on the UN’s 17 SDGs through research, teaching, public engagement, and operations.

Access to new data compels us to become active partners in global efforts that confront the major challenges facing humanity and our planet. By fostering shared language and steering institutional and individual decision-making, we aim to develop solutions to improve the health of our planet and reduce poverty, hunger, and discrimination. Our goal is to promote a shared language and steer institutional and individual decision-making so that solutions can be found to improve our planet's health and reduce pollution poverty, hunger, and discrimination. Our living laboratories on Mt. Carmel, the city of Haifa and near the sea will contribute to global understanding and positively impact future generations. – Rector Gur Alroey

Khaleej Times magazine has published a special issue on Israel-UAE relations in trade, tourism, health, food security, energy and the environment, including an interview with President Ron Robin on future opportunities for development of joint knowledge. University of Haifa's agreement with Zayed University is one of the first academic MOUs signed between the two countries and will include collaborations in fields ranging from marine sciences to wheat genomics and religious studies.

The UAE and Israel are both young nations, and thinking creatively is part of our DNA. It gives us a powerful common denominator to accomplish great things.– President Ron Robin

Marcus Rees-Roberts (MinstF(Dip))  has been appointed to head fundraising operations at the University of Haifa UK. Marcus brings extensive philanthropic experience to us from Imperial College London where he served as Director of Development for the Faculty of Natural Sciences. He met with staff and faculty on a recent visit to UofH campuses on Mt. Carmel, the Lorry I. Lokey City Campus and the Hatter Department of Marine Technologies at Shikmona. Welcome Marcus.

A UofH study led by Prof. Shira Zelber-Sagi (Head, School of Public Health) found that people who consume large quantities of ultra-processed foods are 1.5 times more likely to develop high blood pressure and high blood lipids. It also significantly increases the risk of inflammation among those with non-alcoholic fatty liver. "These results underscore the importance of eating homemade food and minimally-processed foods, like seeds, nuts, unsweetened milk products, fish, chicken, and unprocessed meats," noted Prof. Zelber-Sagi. The findings were published in Liver International.

Early risers and late sleepers have different gut bacteria, according to a recent study.  "We already know that there are some genetic differences between late-night 'owls' and early bird 'larks', but research on fruit flies in our laboratory inspired us to explore the impact of gut bacteria on human chronotypes," explains Prof. Eran Tauber (Department of Evolutionary and Environmental Biology). Tauber conducted the research with Prof. Tamar Shochat (Head, Cheryl Spencer Department of Nursing), and researchers from the Technion.

According to an exclusive NBC News report commemorating the 83rd anniversary of Kristallnact, 2020 was the third worst year of Anti-sematic incidents in America. Clinical psychologist and UofH lecturer Dr. Rony Alfandary cautioned that Anti-sematic incidents are especially traumatic for Holocaust survivors and can trigger deep anxieties. Dr. Alfandary's new book, “Postmemory, Psychoanalysis and Holocaust Ghosts: The Solonica Cohen Family and Trauma Across Generations”, examines a collection of letters written by members of a Jewish family between 1923 and 1942, and the impact of trauma on future generations of the same family.

China's Belt and Road Initiative aims to build two new trade routes to connect China with the rest of the world. A recent event hosted by the Haifa Center for Maritime Policy and Strategy headed by Prof. Shaul Horev, attracted dozens of students and faculty from the Center and the Department of Asian Studies. Prof. Isaac Kardon of the US Naval War College delivered a fascinating lecture on the implications for ports along existing maritime trade lanes, including the Haifa Bay Port. Leading up to the event, Prof. Kardon met with representatives from Israel's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Transportation, and the Director of the Shanghai International Port in Haifa to learn more about the situation and the Israeli position on the issue.