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College of Agriculture > Office of International Agriculture > Research > Eastern Europe Programs

Eastern Europe Program

College of Agriculture's Eastern Europe Program builds bridges between the U.S. and Eastern Europe. To fulfill this mission, we draw on the strengths of various departments in the College of Agriculture and other colleges at the University, and partner with public and private organizations in Alabama and the U.S. to promote relations with Eastern Europe by

  • facilitating educational exchange including exchanges of faculty, staff, and students;
  • promoting collaborative research and research activities;
  • facilitating activities related to teaching and training;
  • fostering an understanding of history, cultures, and values;
  • serving as a catalyst and resource for the promotion of economic, governmental, and civic pursuits; and
  • increasing mutual interest and understanding.

Eastern EuropeTies to Eastern Europe

Faculty in the College of Agriculture have had a variety of short-term visits and consultations across Eastern Europe.

The USDA-FAS Scientific Cooperation Research Program has connected Auburn researchers with colleagues in the Slovak Republic, for example. More recently, activity in CoA has been focused on Hungary.

 

College of Agriculture Academic Activities in Hungary

Over nearly two decades, the Auburn University College of Agriculture has had an active involvement in Hungary. The late Dr. George Young cooperated regularly with the University of West Hungary at Mosonmagyaróvár with Dr. Imre Tell. They shared scientific interests and Dr. Young lectured and consulted with in their Agricultural Economics Department for many years before his untimely passing.

The College of Agriculture conducted several study tours to West and Central Hungary in the late 1990s with the cooperation of Dr. Tell and others in Hungary. Those study tours included not only agricultural visits of significance but historical sites important to central and eastern Europe.

For several years, Dr. Luther Waters has taught in the Erasmus Mundus program, a European Student Exchange program, at Szent Istvan University. Recently, several faculty from the College agriculture as well as the College of Education have visited Szent Istvan University and Mosonmagyarovar and some limited academic activities have started.

In the last decade, Faculty and staff from the College of Agriculture have been invited to come to Hungary to teach and develop cooperative academic programs across a wide range on disciplines. In 2009, Dr. Norbert Wilson visited several universities in Hungary, renewing ties with the university and disciplinary colleagues. Dr. Wilson also made a similar visit to Szent Istvan University in Gödöllo.  Further, Dr. Brian Parr (Agriscience Education) visited two Szent Istvan campuses in May 2009 and has developed a partnership with Professor Peter Bainkai at the Godollo campus. This project is a collaboration among students in Dr. Parr’s agriscience teaching methods course and six undergraduate students in Godollo. The international student groups have collaborated to develop instructional materials that compare the aquaculture industry of Alabama to that of Hungary. This project is facilitated by the web-based Axilior alliance scholarly network.

Hungary Map

 

Research and Collaboration with Eastern Europe

The U.S. State Department supports research and language scholarship in Eastern Europe and the former Republics of the Soviet Union.

The USDA-Foreign Agriculture Service supports cooperations and exchanges. FAS coordinates scientific and trade capacity building exchanges in developing and middle income countries through a variety of programs involving the academia and other U.S. government agencies.  Through these programs, FAS supports cooperation between American and foreign researchers and policy-makers through activities directed at the development and adoption of new technologies, and enhancement of agribusiness and trade in foreign markets. Participating countries benefit through a variety of activities including both short and long-term visits of U.S. and foreign scientists, collaborative research projects and training.

IST-World is one portal for finding colleagues and institutions in Europe.