Lessons from Liberia: Building Global Partnerships Through Materials Science Outreach
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https://doi.org/10.1007/s11837-020-04312-3 Ó 2020 The Minerals, Metals & Materials Society
Lessons from Liberia: Building Global Partnerships Through Materials Science Outreach Aeriel D. Murphy-Leonard Introduction
Aeriel Murphy-Leonard
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“The future depends on what we do in the present,” as the great Mahatma Gandhi once said. Similar to Gandhi, I too believe the access we provide to science and engineering resources in the present will shape global policies, inventions, and technology in the future. Though Africa has the richest reserves of metals and minerals in the world, there are only six accredited, collegelevel materials science/metallurgy programs on the entire continent, while the United States has more than 100 programs at colleges in every part of the country. Unfortunately, while being a global leader in the extraction and export of minerals and metals, Africa has, to date, provided few contributions WRWHFKQRORJLFDODGYDQFHVDQGVFLHQWL¿F LQQRYDWLRQVLQWKH¿HOG0DQ\VWXGHQWV in Africa are unable to access universitylevel opportunities in materials science due to geographic constraints compounded by economic barriers. 7KHVHGLVSDULWLHVOHDGWRDJOREDOGH¿FLW of talent and loss of potential innovations in materials science. It is my main goal and passion to create a pipeline to materials science for students on the FRQWLQHQWRI$IULFDVSHFL¿FDOO\LQ:HVW Africa. /LEHULDLVDVPDOO:HVW$IULFDQ country overlooking the Atlantic Ocean with very close ties to the U.S. In the early 1800s, the American Colonization Society created a settlement of freed African American slaves on the continent of Africa in a region now known as Liberia. From that moment on, Liberia reigned as one of the wealthiest and most prosperous African countries. However, more recently, a 14-year civil war and the Ebola outbreak of 2014 have decimated the country.
Motivation and Goals of the L-SWE SUCCESS Camp The Liberian education system has VX൵HUHGJUHDWO\IURPORQJSHULRGVRIFLYLO unrest compounded by school closures due to Ebola. These issues, coupled with strong cultural beliefs that encourage families to invest in the education of young boys at the expense of young girls, have left very few women in the pipeline to collegiate success. In fact, women account for less than 10% of the engineering student population at the University of Liberia. An exploratory study performed by the University of Michigan Chapter of the *UDGXDWH6RFLHW\RI:RPHQ(QJLQHHUV 80*UDG6:( DWWKH8QLYHUVLW\RI Liberia revealed that a major threat to the retention and success of women in engineering was the lack of a supportive network. This, along with gender-based discrimination, creates a hostile and unfriendly classroom environment for IHPDOHVWXGHQWV:LWKWKLVNQRZOHGJH 80*UDG6:(DQGIHPDOHHQJLQHHULQJ students in Liberia founded the Liberian 6RFLHW\RI:RPHQ(QJLQHHUV /6:( WR create a peer-supported community among female engineering students in Liberia. 7KHSHHUWRSHHUSDUWQHUVKLSEHWZHHQ6:( DWWKH8QLYHUVLW\RI0
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