More than 100 high school students participated in the Nexus Summit Why Hack. (Ernest Nelfrard)
Professor Gang Chen, a faculty member in the Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering, recently returned from the 2024 EnergyWaterFoodClimate Nexus International Summit in Durban, South Africa enthusiastic about the experience and its future potential.
“I was deeply impressed by these high school students and their willingness to do more to protect the environment,” Chen said. “A lot of them are from poor communities and are eager to do something to help. They designed rainwater collection and reuse systems to achieve these goals.”
Chen participated in the multi-day event, including judging a shark-tank style hackathon with high school students in the area.
The Nexus Summit attracted officials, experts, activists, scholars and students from North America, Europe and Africa. The annual event focused on training the next generation of students on environmental issues such as sea level rise, food insecurity, climate change and the shortage of clean drinking water.
“This was an amazing event to see the climate change impact globally and involvement of the efforts from researchers and scientists all over the world,” Chen said. “Food, energy, water and climate are tangible together. We cannot address any one of these issues separately.”
The summit was part of a $5 million Department of Energy grant awarded to the FAMU School of the Environment. Chen, the grant’s co-investigator, worked with Victor Ibeanusi, dean of the FAMU School of the Environment and the grant’s lead faculty member.
Ten FAMU undergraduate students and two doctoral students traveled to Durban and served as notetakers during the breakout sessions. Those notes and the speaker’s and panelists’ presentations will be used to produce a peer-reviewed post-summit proceeding.
“This was an amazing event to see the climate change impact globally and involvement of the efforts from researchers and scientists all over the world. Food, energy, water and climate are tangible together. We cannot address any one of these issues separately.” – Prof. Gang Chen
Several FAMU administrators were present, including former FAMU President Larry Robinson, Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs Allyson L. Watson, Ibeanusi, and Lewis Johnson, Associate Provost for Student Success and Strategic Initiatives.
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