University of Wyoming students and faculty members will have new opportunities to study abroad and conduct research along with universities in Tunisia following the signing of new agreements last week.

A delegation from UW, led by Center for Global Studies Director Caroline McCracken-Flesher, traveled to the North African nation to sign four separate memoranda of understanding with the Universities of Tunis, Sfax and Jendouba, and the National Institute of Agronomic Studies of Tunisia and the National Institute of Agricultural Research of Tunisia.

The agreements build upon a 20-year partnership between Tunisia and Wyoming through the U.S. Department of State's State Partnership Program. They will facilitate sharing knowledge and expertise; conducting joint research; increasing student and faculty exchanges; and building academic and cultural ties between Tunisia and UW.

"It was a privilege to represent UW at a historic moment in the partnership between Tunisia and the state of Wyoming," McCracken-Flesher says. "The partnership has been led by the Wyoming National Guard and is now expanding to areas of mutual interest that we will pursue through the university and relevant state agencies. With our shared histories of recognizing women's rights and our current challenges in land and water, we are natural partners."

Joining McCracken-Flesher were Anne Alexander, assistant dean in the College of Business; Professor Bart Geerts, of the Department of Atmospheric Science; John Koprowski, dean of the Haub School of Environment and Natural Resources; Professor Scott Seville, senior associate dean in the College of Agriculture, Life Sciences and Natural Resources; and Nick Robinson, administrative associate in the Global Engagement Office.

During the visit, the UW delegation met with counterparts and discussed teaching, work and research in the humanities; science, technology, engineering and mathematics; agriculture, smart agriculture, water security, including cloud seeding and wastewater reuse; and cultural heritage and ecotourism.

Joey Hood, the U.S. ambassador to the Republic of Tunisia, joined for a signing ceremony along with representatives of Tunisia's Ministry of Higher Education and Scientific Research; and the Ministry of Agriculture, Water Resources and Fisheries.

In the next stage, McCracken-Flesher says, "We are looking forward to exchanging students and to working with our Tunisian colleagues on specific challenges such as water scarcity, sustainable and productive use of land, and conservation and tourism. We hope that faculty from Tunisia will soon be with us in Laramie to meet the wider university and explore our state."