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– Ein strålande ambassadør for UiA

Eqbal Dauqan er kåra til årets kulturbyggjar på UiA. 

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gruppebilde med prisvinner
Kvart år blir prisen for årets kulturbyggjar på UiA kåra. Prisen blir delt ut på personalfesten i oktober. I år gjekk prisen til Eqbal Dauquan frå Institutt for ernæring og folkehelse. På bildet: Anne Merete Selvik Ask, insitituttleiar for ernæring og folkehelse, Sunniva Whittaker, rektor på UiA, Eqbal Dauquan, førsteamanuensis på institutt for ernæring og folkehelse og Karen-Lise Scheie Knudsen, avdelingsdirektør for ledelsens stab på UiA.

– Eqbal Dauqan er ein strålande representant og ambassadør for UiA. Dette har ho vist både på UiA og i nasjonale og internasjonale forum, sa Seunn Smith-Tønnesen, universitetsdirektør på UiA då ho delte ut prisen. 

Prisen blei delt ut på personalseminaret 29. oktober i kantina på UiA Campus Kristiansand. 

Eqbal Dauqan kom til UiA våren 2018 gjennom Scholar at Risk-programmet (SAR), som samarbeider med over 500 universitet for å beskytte og styrke akademisk fridom. Dauqan har doktorgrad i biokjemi og arbeider for augeblikket med undervising, rettleiing og forsking på Institutt for ernæring og folkehelse. 

Ifølgje kollegaer har ho trivast på Fakultet for helse- og idrettsvitskap og Institutt for ernæring og folkehelse frå første dag. 

– Dauquan byggjer bruer internt og eksternt og byr på sin eigen kultur. Ho brukar alle høve til å skape fleirkulturelle relasjonar. Med dette oppnår ho både ei felles forståing og betre toleranse for ulike kulturar. Samstundes bruker ho alle sjansar til å oppleve nye ting og ta del i den norske kulturen, seier Anne Merete Selvik Ask, leiar for Institutt for ernæring og folkehelse på vegner av instituttet. 

Heimlengsla forsvan

Dauquan fekk ståande applaus frå salen då ho tok imot prisen. Prisvinnaren er glad for å arbeide i Noreg og oppleve arbeidslivet på UiA. 

– Eg er så takksam for denne prisen. Takk til instituttet og kollegaane mine for denne nominasjon, seier Dauqan. 

Dauquan fortel at heimlengsla til venner og familie i Jemen blei borte då grunngjevinga for nominasjonen blei lesen opp. 

– Då eg høyrde alle dei fine orda visste eg heilt sikkert at UiA er rett plass for meg. UiA er min heim no og kollegaane er min familie. Dei relasjonane er viktig å ta vare på, seier Dauqan. 

 

 

Grunngjevinga for at Dauquan vann prisen

This year’s winner of the Cross-Cultural Bridge Builder’s Award is an excellent ambassador of the University of Agder. She has used the opportunity to promote the university on many occasions, and wherever she is invited to speak, be it here on campus, at national gatherings or through international media forums both on subjects concerning her scientific expertise as well as within Science Diplomacy.

In June, she participated in a meeting at the European Union where she discussed the possibility of a prestigious collaborative research between UiA’s Priority Research Centre “Lifecourse Nutrition” and important leading scientists in this field from within the European Commission. 

Acting as a role model, she also inspires other women from developing countries to pursue an academic career and contribute positively to socio-cultural development.  She is a person who always looks ahead and aims to help others to succeed. She supervises for example two PhD students in Yemen and Malaysia. In 2017, she featured on the American media channel NPR as “the world’s most unstoppable scientist”. We at the University of Agder are incredibly proud to call this passionately dedicated scientist our colleague. It is with great pleasure we award this year’s Cross-Cultural Bridge Builder Prize to: Eqbal Daugan! 

Even though Eqbal has hardly been a year with us at the University, she already has been invited to seven international conferences and workshops where she has represented the University of Agder in general and in particular the Department of Nutrition and Public Health - where she is employed.  She arrived at the University of Agder through the Scholars at Risk programme (SAR). This is an international organization with a network of over 500 universities all over the world, joining forces to protect and strengthen academic freedom. As we all know, following the world events at present, this work is more relevant and important than ever before.

However, Eqbal is not only a dedicated and highly competent scientist.  She also stands out in how she communicates and interacts with others. She has been awarded this year’s Cross-Cultural Bridge Builder’s price based on her unique skill to make contact and build bridges between her own culture and the cultures of others.  Regardless of where she is invited, she takes the opportunity to make cross-cultural connections, and by doing so, increases mutual understanding and tolerance.  With generosity and open-mindedness, she invites everyone she meets to celebrate and share the richness of her culture during religious festivities. At the same time, she will seize any opportunity to experience new things, and to take part in Norwegian culture. She has a cultural competence that is truly impressive and her commitment to taking a social-cultural responsibility is integrated into all aspects of her everyday life.  She is very easy to get to know and interested in meeting others. There are already many of us here from different departments at the University whom she has befriended. 

Eqbal works hard and embraces any new task with great courage.  This despite the personal pressures she must live with; the concern for her family in Yemen and the insecurity about what the future may bring both for them and for herself.

Dear Eqbal, we so appreciate your initiatives and your contributions as a cross-cultural bridge builder.  Our warmest congratulations on winning the 2019 Cross-Cultural Bridge Builders’ award!