As part of the celebration of the 30th anniversary of the sister-state relationship between Iowa and Hebei, and in recognition of the significant and growing economic ties between Iowa and China, Governor Terry Branstad led a delegation of business, community, and educational leaders to China this past week. In addition to Governor Branstad and Ms. Debi Durham, Director of the Iowa Economic Development Authority, members of the delegation represented interests as diverse as agriculture, law, manufacturing, and higher education. A large group from the Iowa Sister States non-profit was also present, on their first trip abroad as a group, to mark the 30th anniversary of the relationship.

Do international collaborations make for better science, or better scientists? This was one of the key questions raised at an event I attended this week, the first “Global Research Funding Forum,” hosted jointly by International Affairs and the Office of Research and Economic Development at the University of North Texas.

A warm welcome to all of you for the 2012-13 academic year. In this brief note, I’d like to share a few thoughts on International Programs’ goals for the coming year as well as updates on activities and organizational changes.

Why should the president of the University of Iowa—an institution serving the people of the state—travel so far from Iowa? The international connections we have established are an integral part of the future successes of the University, and this trip is an important investment to advance these successes for the benefit of the University and the entire state of Iowa.

Today, as never before, the University of Iowa must function as a global institution in order to fulfill its core missions of teaching, research, and public service in Iowa. As business leaders across the state recognize, what we think of as local is fully tied to global processes and trends.

Last spring, our College of Pharmacy hosted Prof. Nguyen Van Hung (MD, PhD), Associate Professor and Chairman of the Department of Pharmacy and Family Medicine Unit at Haiphong Medical University in Vietnam. It is not unusual, of course, for us to host visiting faculty from abroad: in fact, we have visitors on campus from abroad on a weekly basis, perhaps even on a daily basis, throughout the academic year. What made Hung’s visit special was that he was in residence for the entire spring semester as a Fulbright scholar, working on long-term goals for pharmacy education and practice in Vietnam. Another thing that made it special is that his visit began discussions toward what promises to be a comprehensive, deep partnership between the University of Iowa and his home institution, Haiphong Medical University.

With the summer months behind us and the start of another academic year, I would like to welcome you back to campus and extend my best wishes for an exciting and productive fall semester.

Our offices have been buzzing with orientation and advising activities for another large class of international undergraduates and with UI students exploring global study opportunities as part of their UI experience. As faculty members return to the classroom to take up teaching and mentoring duties, and as the collaborative work of IP’s programs and centers once again gets under way, I continue my work with Provost Butler and with leadership in the colleges, departments, and divisions across campus to set priorities, establish goals, and face new challenges as we begin the 2011-12 academic year.

The blogs and the press have been fast and furious in following the fast-paced and unprecedented changes in both Tunisia and Egypt over the past several weeks. Indeed, there has been so much going on, and so much processing of events in the media, that it has kept me quiet, reading accounts or glued to the TV rather than commenting on what has been happening in the world. I have found a few truly insightful pieces, and was impressed by the reporting in the NY Times last Sunday about the difficult discussions and awkward statements from the White House and the Department of State.