CCI was honored to recently host Dr. Rovshan Abbasov on our Tallahassee campus. Dr. Abbasov traveled to FSU through the University Administration Support Program (UASP). The UASP program offers fellowships to University professionals looking to expand their knowledge and experience in other countries. Selected participants will attend a two-week training period in Washington, DC, before traveling to their respective locations for an additional four weeks. The goal of the program is to equip leaders in higher education with international trends and best practices that they can implement on their own campuses. The program is sponsored by IREX, an organization committed to the formation of meaningful relationships across borders.
Dr. Abbasov travels all the way from Baku, Azerbaijan, where he currently works as the Head of the Geography and Environment Department. Dr. Abbasov’s academic career spans over fifteen years – in the past, he has visited both Michigan State University and the University of Rome as a visiting professor. Additionally, in 2010 he traveled to UC Davis as part of the Fulbright fellowship program. In addition to his work inside the classroom, he has worked with UNICEF and the United Nations as a natural disaster risk and climate expert. In Baku, Dr. Abbasov currently serves on the Multidisciplinary Expert Panel on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services in İPBES. He also works as the Azerbaijan coordinator for the Pure Earth/Blacksmith Institute.
During his visit, Dr. Abbasov was immersed in Florida State’s culture, and was able to form connections with CCI faculty & students. He told CCI that his favorite activity in his free time was to walk on FSU’s campus. In addition to visiting FSU’s facilities, Dr. Abbasov was also able to visit St. George Island, Apalachicola, Wakulla Springs, and New Orleans. He spoke to CCI regarding his experience, saying, “I am very grateful to IREX, FSU and CCI for giving me this wonderful opportunity. I think that there should be more such opportunities for university teachers and researchers. We would then have a better idea of America and be able to bring the experience of this great country to our country and our universities.”
CCI is honored to be able to host such an accomplished and knowledgeable professional on our campus. The opportunity to connect with Dr. Abbasov was truly remarkable. In his notes, Dr. Abbasov went on to add, “All the meetings [within CCI] were very memorable and interesting. In most cases, even though the time allotted for the meeting was over, we didn’t feel it and talked more. Don’t think that we were only officially talking about research. No, we also share our life experiences and problems with each other, and as researchers living in two different parts of the world, we lay the foundation for how strong our future relationship will be.”
To read more about Dr. Abbasov, check out his LinkedIn profile here.