Dean Ganim discusses his recent trip to Kosovo, and CIMBA's graduation ceremony that took place in Iowa City for the first time since COVID began.

In the most recent Iowa delegation trip to Kosovo, UI representative Russ Ganim, associate provost and dean of International Programs, visited multiple partner universities and advanced plans for a large grant application through USAID. 

This spring, 24 University of Iowa students are serving on global virtual teams with peers in Kosovo as part of a Tippie College of Business course focusing on the international business environment. 

New linkage creates opportunities for sharing expertise

What defines a nation, or a state? What’s the meaning of sovereignty, and how do communal or religious identity figure into demands for self-determination? The world community in 2016 appears to be a fractured place with aspirations to statehood like those we’ve seen in South Sudan and Palestine, as well as civil disruptions and realignments like those between Crimea, Ukraine, and Russia. Amidst all of this there are non-state actors like ISIS challenging sitting governments and established states. The 2016 Provost’s Global Forum, The Nation, the State, and the Global Redefinition of Self-Determination, will address these questions and more during a series of lectures and panel discussions on October 13-15. A highlight of the forum will be the October 15 WorldCanvass, which will be held for the first time in Des Moines at the John and Mary Pappajohn Education Center, from 5-6:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public and begins with a reception at 4 p.m.

Leaders from the University of Iowa and the Kosovo Ministry of Foreign Affairs gathered in Des Moines earlier this month to sign an agreement that creates an externship program abroad for UI law students. The externship is available to any UI law student who has completed at least one year of law school, takes place at the Kosovo Ministry of Foreign Affairs and involves international law research.