8
Feb 2022
Dead Sea, Jordan, 13 – 16 May 2017

Dead Sea, Jordan, 13 – 16 May 2017

The 11th SKF conference took place from May 13th to May 16th 2017 at the stunning Mövenpick Dead Sea Hotel in Jordan.

The conference has received the Patronage of His Excellency the Prime Minister of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan and coincides with the launch of our partner the SESAME center.

Jordan, this year’s host country, is an example of stability and good governance in the Middle East despite being resource-poor and having had to face repeated massive waves of refugees influx. The country is also the seat of SESAME, an advanced light source research center founded by the UNESCO with statutes similar to those of the CERN. This project is a perfect illustration of SKF’s and the CERN “Science for Peace” motto as scientists from throughout this often troubled region will work together using tools from X-rays to infra-red radiation.

Our meeting started with a visit of the facilities of SESAME on the morning of the 13th of May following which the conference was formally opened by Dr. Khaled Toukan at 16:30.

The conference focuses on Jordan and its neighbors and will examine all the factors that are necessary to insure the region’s sustainable development such as Energy, Transports, Agriculture and Food Security, Water, Capacity Building, and Integration of Women to the workforce.

Read the recommendations of the conference: Recommendations SKF 11

  • Sat 13 May

    • 09h00
      Presentation of current experiments at SESAME

      Presentation of Rolf Heuer See the video | See PDF

    • 10h00
      Departure for visit at SESAME site

      Visit of the Middle East’s first major international research center together with users from around the region. The visit will be guided by Scientific Director Giorgio Paolucci and Technical Director Erhard Huttel and users of the SESAME facilities.

    • Science for Peace
      16h30
      Round table

      See the video | See PDF

      KLAPISCH Feu Robert

      Fondation Partager le Savoir

      Robert KLAPISCH entre au CNRS en 1956 dès sa sortie de l’Ecole de Physique et Chimie de Paris. Son travail de thèse dirigé par René Bernas (élève de A.O. Nier, et pionnier de la Spectrométrie de Masse en France) concerne la nucléosynthèse des éléments légers Lithium Beryllium et Bore et le mystère de leur survie alors qu’ils devraient disparaître par fusion. Pour cela, il utilisera les accélérateurs du CERN et participera à ses Comités Scientifiques. Il quitte le CNRS en1981 lorsque Herwig Schopper, DG du CERN lui propose de devenir Directeur de la Recherche (1981-1987). Carlo Rubbia, le nouveau DG (1989-1993), le prend comme Conseiller et le charge de moderniser la communication du CERN. Il organisera l’inauguration du LEP en 1989 et dirigera un Pavillon à l’Expo de Séville en 1992. A la fin du mandat de Rubbia, il s’associe au projet Amplificateur d’Energie, une approche novatrice de l’énergie nucléaire (1993-1997). En 2002, il est nommé par le Président Chirac au Comité Coppens préparant la « Charte de l’Environnement », qui fait maintenant partie de la Constitution française. Président de l’Association Française pour l’Avancement des Sciences (2000-2003), il propose un Dialogue Nord-Sud entre les scientifiques de l’Europe et ceux des pays moins développés d’Afrique et du Moyen Orient. Ceci le conduira à créer en 2006 la Fondation “Partager le Savoir” ou “Sharing Knowledge Foundation” (SKF), qu’il préside. Le Président Sarkozy le promeut Officier de la Légion d’Honneur en 2007.

      Robert Klapisch est décédé le 21 mars 2020.

    • 17h00
      Round table

      Moderator: Henry Marty-Gauquié

      Presentation of Philippe Delleur (ALSTOM, France), PhDelleur

      Presentation of Scott E. Kalb (Sovereign Investor Institute, USA), SKalb

      Presentation of Ulrike Steinhorst (Nuria Consultancy, France), USteinhorst

      Presentation of HE Khaled Toukan See the video

      Al Mulki Hani

      Gouvernement du Royaume hachémite de Jordanie

      Hani Al Mulki the current Prime Minister of Jordan, he served as interim between 29 May 2016 and 25 September 2016, until the Jordanian general election, 2016 were concluded. Previously Al-Mulki held several ministerial and diplomatic positions, and he was Chief Commissioner of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority before his designation as Prime Minister by King Abdullah II.

      He served as Jordan’s ambassador to Egypt and as Jordan’s permanent representative at the Arab League. He has held several ministerial positions; water, energy, supplies, industry and foreign affairs ministries.

      Mulki chaired the negotiating committee which produced the Israel-Jordan peace treaty between Jordan and Israel in 1994. During his time as foreign minister, Jordan experienced diplomatic issues with both Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Mulki was appointed as Scientific Advisor to the King, and then a member of the Senate. On 9 February 2011, Mulki was reappointed as Minister of Trade and Industries. On 9 November 2014, he was appointed Chief Commissioner of the Aqaba Special Economic Zone Authority, replacing Kamel Mahadin. On 29 May 2016, Mulki was appointed as the Prime Minister of Jordan, succeeding Abdullah Ensour. His cabinet was sworn in on 1 June. After the 2016 general election Mulki order a cabinet reshuffle, which resulted in three new portfolios, 22 ministers remaining and the introduction of 7 new ministers.

      Toukan Khaled

      JAEC and SESAME

      Dr. Toukan is the Chairman of Jordan Atomic Energy Commission, served previously as the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (2011), Minister of Education from 2000 to 2007, and Minister of Higher Education (2001-
      2002) and (2005-2007). Dr. Toukan was the President of Al-Balqa Applied University (1997-2001), Jordan; he also held the position of Dean of Faculty of Engineering & Technology and Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Jordan; Research Scientist at Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Germany; and Associate Research Scientist at the University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia.
      Dr. Toukan holds a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1978-1982), and M.Sc. degree in Nuclear Engineering from University of Michigan (1976-1978), and a B.E. degree in Electrical
      Engineering from The American University of Beirut (1971-1976). Dr. Toukan’s awards include the UNESCO Ghandi Medal of Peace (2003), the Royal Grand Gordon of Alkukab Al-Urduni (2003), the Theos J. Thompson Fellowship (1980-81) in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at M.I.T., Legion de Honore from the French Republic (2004), and Commanders Cross of the Order of Merit from the Federal Republic of Germany (2006) and King Hussein’s Medal of Excellence (2008).
      Born in Amman in 1954, Dr Toukan is married with three children. He is a Member of the International High Level EFA Group, a member of H.M. King Abdullah II Economic Consultative Council and presently is Director of SESAME and serves also as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of University of Jordan.

    • 17h15
      On the successful completion of SESAME and new era for science in the Middle East.

      Presentation of Khaled Toukan See the video | See PDF

      Toukan Khaled

      JAEC and SESAME

      Dr. Toukan is the Chairman of Jordan Atomic Energy Commission, served previously as the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (2011), Minister of Education from 2000 to 2007, and Minister of Higher Education (2001-
      2002) and (2005-2007). Dr. Toukan was the President of Al-Balqa Applied University (1997-2001), Jordan; he also held the position of Dean of Faculty of Engineering & Technology and Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Jordan; Research Scientist at Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Germany; and Associate Research Scientist at the University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia.
      Dr. Toukan holds a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1978-1982), and M.Sc. degree in Nuclear Engineering from University of Michigan (1976-1978), and a B.E. degree in Electrical
      Engineering from The American University of Beirut (1971-1976). Dr. Toukan’s awards include the UNESCO Ghandi Medal of Peace (2003), the Royal Grand Gordon of Alkukab Al-Urduni (2003), the Theos J. Thompson Fellowship (1980-81) in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at M.I.T., Legion de Honore from the French Republic (2004), and Commanders Cross of the Order of Merit from the Federal Republic of Germany (2006) and King Hussein’s Medal of Excellence (2008).
      Born in Amman in 1954, Dr Toukan is married with three children. He is a Member of the International High Level EFA Group, a member of H.M. King Abdullah II Economic Consultative Council and presently is Director of SESAME and serves also as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of University of Jordan.

    • 17h45
      Fossils fuels in the MENA: changing regional dynamics

      Presentation of Frederick Bordry See the video | See PDF

      BORDRY Frédérick

      CERN

      Frédérick BORDRY, has a degree in engineering and a PhD in energy conversion from the National Polytechnic Institute of Toulouse (INPT). After a two-year teaching post at the Federal University of Santa Catarina (Brazil), he took up a teaching and research post in Toulouse before joining the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN) in 1986. From 2009 to 2013, he was the Head of the CERN Technology Department. Since January 2014, he is the Director of Accelerators and Technology, responsible for the operation and exploitation of the whole CERN accelerator complex, with particular emphasis on the LHC and for the development of new projects and technologies. As a convinced advocate of international exchange in the cultural, political and scientific fields, he has devoted a considerable amount of time towards reflecting on issues relating to education, research, and multilingualism.

    • 18h15
      New perspectives for nuclear energy in Jordan and abroad

  • Sun 14 May

    • Agriculture and Food security
      09h00
      Food Security in Subsaharan Africa

      Session Chairs: Jean-Christophe Debar et Lionel Gbaguidi

      Presentation of John Ellis See the video | See PDF

      ELLIS John

      King’s College London

      John Ellis has been a board member of the Foundation since 2010.

      John ELLIS is the Clerk Maxwell Professor of Theoretical Physics at King’s College in London. After his 1971 PhD from Cambridge University, he worked at SLAC, Caltech, and CERN (Geneva), where he was Theory Division Leader for six years. His research interests focus on the phenomenological aspects of elementary particle physics and its connections with astrophysics, cosmology and quantum gravity. Much of his work relates directly to interpreting results of searches for new particles. He was one of the first to study how the Higgs boson could be produced and discovered. He is currently very active in efforts to understand the Higgs particle discovered recently at CERN, as well as its implications for possible new physics such as dark matter and supersymmetry. He also studies possible future particle accelerators, such as the Compact Linear Collider (CLIC) and future circular colliders, and is known for his relentless efforts to promote global collaboration in particle physics. John Ellis was awarded the Maxwell Medal (1982) and the Paul Dirac Prize (2005) by the Institute of Physics. He was elected Fellow of the Royal Society of London in 1985 and of the Institute of Physics in 1991, has several honorary doctorates and is an Honorary Fellow of King’s College Cambridge and of King’s College London. He was awarded a CBE in the Queen’s Birthday Honours in 2012.

       

      Abdelghany Amr

      National Research Center

      Associate Professor Dr. Amr Mohamed Abdelghany obtained his PhD degree from Mansoura University in Experimental Physics 2010. Currently Dr. Amr serves Spectroscopy Department at National Research Center in Egypt. He has published numerous refereed articles in professional international journals two books. Dr Amr’s field of expertise’s are spectroscopy and Material Science.

      Bassalat Ahmed

      An-Najah National University

      FASSNACHT Patrick

      Sharing Knowledge Foundation / CERN

      Patrick FASSNACHT started his career in the field of Nuclear and Particle Physics at the University Louis Pasteur in Strasbourg in 1979. He then moved to the Centre de Physique des Particules de Marseille to focus more on High Energy Physics by joining the CPLear experiment (matter/antimatter asymmetry) and then the ATLAS experiment (one of the four major experiments at the LHC (Large Hadron Collider)). He contributed to ATLAS as test beam coordinator and then, for six years, as technical coordinator of one of the major components of ATLAS, the Liquid Argon Calorimeter. He was responsible for the assembly, the insertion in the cryostats and the validation of the calorimeters. From 2004, for a period of more than six years, he was in charge of a group of 200 staff members, fellows and users as CERN ATLAS Team leader. During this period he had many interactions with different CERN Users from all over the World; which led him in 2012 to the position of advisor to the DG for Middle East and North Africa countries.
      Since 2018, he is the Communications Delegate of the Sharing Knowledge Foundation and since 2019 he is its Vice President. Active since 2016 within Rotary International he has initiated and developed a number of international projects in the field of Health and Peace.

      PIUZZI François

      Société Française de Physique

      Physico-Chimiste  (recherche fondamentale)  Docteur en Physico Chimie, Ingénieur de recherché au Commissariat à l’Energie Atomique (1982-2014), retraité. Enseignement : Applications des lasers en Physico Chimie à l’université Paris XI (Orsay) et à l’université Paris VII (Jussieu).

      Gestion de la recherche : Rapporteur à l’Agence Nationale de  la recherche (2005-2007) dans le comité « Sciences pour l’Ingénieur ». Chargé de mission  pour les Nanosciences au Ministère de l’éducation supérieure et la Recherche (MESR 2010-2013), représentant au comité  NMP (Nanosciences Matériaux Production) de la commission européenne à Bruxelles. Membre du comité de rédaction du journal de la Société Française d’optique  “Photoniques” (depuis 2006). Fondateur du prix d’instrumentation en Chimie-Physique (2007). Membre du bureau de la division de Chimie Physique (SFC-SFP) (2004-2016).

      Coopération Internationale en science : Président (2016-now) de la commission  “Physique sans Frontières” de la Société Française de Physique.  Ancien Président du groupe interdivisions “Physics for Development” de la  European Physical Society (EPS) (2009-2015). Fondateur et ancien président de l’association  “Puya Raimondi”. Coopération scientifique avec le Pérou et l’Amérique latine (2004-). Professeur honoraire de la “Universidad  Nacional de Ingenieria  (UNI) (2005) et de la “Universidad Ricardo Palma” (2013), Lima, Pérou. Membre du bureau de l’ APSA (Association pour la Promotion Scientifique de l’Afrique) et co-organisateur des « Rencontres des jeunes chercheurs africains francophones » (2014 and 2016).

    • Investing in sustainable development and resilient projects in Jordan and MENA
      10h10

      Round table
      Moderator: Uriel Safriel

      Pedro Berliner (Ben Gurion University, Israël), PBerliner

      Mohammed Ali Mudabber (NCARE, Jordanie), MMudabber

      Theib Oweis (ICARDA, Jordan), ThOweis

      See the video

      MARTY-GAUQUIE Henry

      Sharing Knowledge Foundation

      With Graduations in International Law and Political Science, he has dedicated his whole career to the European integration. In 1978, he begins by working for the French Prime Minister (Raymond Barre) in the legal department of the S.G.C.I., now S.G.A.E. From 1981 to 1989, he served at the European Court of Justice as First Secretary at Law of the French Judge, and at the European Court of Auditors as deputy-Legal Counsel and Director of the President’s Private Office. In 1989, he joins the European Investment Bank where he is appointed Spokesperson and Director of EIB Group’s Communication. In late 2003, he becomes the EIB Group Representative in Paris, also in charge with the institutional liaison with non-EU International Organisations. Although retired since end of 2016, he has kept various responsibilities such as Board Member of the French Institute for PPP(IGD), Paris, and Member of the Advisory Board of the FEMISE Network, Marseille and Cairo. He is also Member of the Scientific Councils of the Sharing KnowledgeFoundation, Geneva, of the Association Euromed-IHEDN, Marseille and Paris, and has joined the “Groupe d’analyse JFC Conseil”.Ordre du Mérite européen : Silver Medal.

      DELLEUR Philippe

      Alstom

      Philippe DELLEUR est Senior Vice-Président en charge des Affaires Publiques chez Alstom. Entre 2011 et 2015 il était Senior Vice-Président en charge du réseau international d’Alstom et Président de Alstom International. Il a rejoint Alstom en 2006 en tant que SVP Europe du Sud – Afrique – Moyen Orient, puis SVP Amérique latine et Président de Alstom Brésil. Avant de rejoindre Alstom il a travaillé 23 ans au Ministère français de l’Economie et des Finances, notamment comme Directeur Général de l’Agence centrale des Achats, Chef de Service à la Direction des Relations Economiques Extérieures et membre du cabinet du Ministre de l’Economie et des Finances Michel Sapin. Il est ancien élève de l’ENA, diplômé de Sciences po Paris et licencié en droit.

      Kalb Scott E.

      Sovereign Investor Institute (SII), KLTI Advisors

      Chairman of the Sovereign Investor Institute (SII), a membership organization of Institutional Investor and the world’s largest private-sector led community for sovereign and government funds. He is CEO and founder of KLTI Advisors, a firm dedicated to helping institutional investors build and protect capital over the long-term. In addition, Scott also was appointed Fellow and Senior Advisor at New America for Bretton Woods II, an initiative focused on encouraging large, long-term institutions to engage in sustainable investing and commit a portion of their assets into impact investing in the developing world.

      During 2009-2012, Scott served as the CIO and Deputy CEO of the Korea Investment Corporation (KIC), Korea’s US$85 billion Sovereign Wealth Fund, and is one of the few foreigners appointed to manage another country’s sovereign wealth fund portfolio. During his time at KIC, assets under management grew from US$19 billion to US$60 billion. Prior to KIC, Scott was a Senior Portfolio Manager at Balyasny Asset Management (BAM), a multi-strategy hedge fund firm (2006-2008), CEO and Senior Portfolio Manager at Black Arrow Capital Management (2002-2006) and Senior Equity Portfolio Manager at Tudor Investment Corp (1999-2002). Scott also worked at Citigroup for ten years (1990 – 1999), serving as Managing Director of International Asset Management (1995-1999) and of International Equity Research (1990-1995).

      Since 2009, Scott has been a member of the WE Forum Global Agenda Council on the Future of Investing He also is on the Advisory Board of the Private Capital Research Institute, a Harvard based initiative dedicated to furthering the understanding of private capital. Scott has written numerous articles regarding long-term investing and the sovereign fund community. He lived in Asia for over fifteen years, speaks Korean and has an AM Degree from Harvard and a BA degree from Oberlin College. Scott lives in Greenwich CT.

      Steinhorst Ulrike

      Nuria Consultancy

      Ulrike Steinhorst, a German national, has a long experience in senior executive functions, notably at the French utility EDF, the German Degussa Group and the European aeronautics, space and defense company Airbus, with an internationally oriented career and a strong industrial and strategic dominance. Ulrike Steinhorst dedicates at present most of her time to her non-executive Board memberships and to her consulting firm Nuria Consultancy.
      After a fascinating experience as advisor to the French Minister of European Affairs during the German re-unification process, she joined the French utility EDF in 1990 for 9 years, holding different functional and operational positions. She changed company and industrial sector when joining the German chemical group Degussa in Germany, first as HR Director in one of the 3 Divisions, later as head of leadership development at Group level. In 2003, Ulrike took over the responsibility for Degussa’s French affiliates in Paris and headed also the representative office of the Group in Brussels. From 2007 to 2012, Ulrike Steinhorst worked closely with CEO Louis Gallois as his Chief of Staff at the helm of EADS/ Airbus Group. She joined the Corporate Technical Office as Head of Strategy, Planning and Finance in 2012 and left Airbus in June 2017. Ulrike is a German lawyer (Ass. Iur.) and holds an EMBA from CPA/HEC. Graduated from the University Paris II – Panthéon in public law, she is also a former student of Ecole Nationale d’Administration. She is currently completing her coaching certificate (ICC) at INSEAD, Fontainebleau.

    • Energy diversification, a key to Jordan development. Session chaired by Khaled Toukan
      14h00
      Introduction

      Session chaired by Khaled Toukan

      See the video

      Toukan Khaled

      JAEC and SESAME

      Dr. Toukan is the Chairman of Jordan Atomic Energy Commission, served previously as the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (2011), Minister of Education from 2000 to 2007, and Minister of Higher Education (2001-
      2002) and (2005-2007). Dr. Toukan was the President of Al-Balqa Applied University (1997-2001), Jordan; he also held the position of Dean of Faculty of Engineering & Technology and Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Jordan; Research Scientist at Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Germany; and Associate Research Scientist at the University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia.
      Dr. Toukan holds a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1978-1982), and M.Sc. degree in Nuclear Engineering from University of Michigan (1976-1978), and a B.E. degree in Electrical
      Engineering from The American University of Beirut (1971-1976). Dr. Toukan’s awards include the UNESCO Ghandi Medal of Peace (2003), the Royal Grand Gordon of Alkukab Al-Urduni (2003), the Theos J. Thompson Fellowship (1980-81) in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at M.I.T., Legion de Honore from the French Republic (2004), and Commanders Cross of the Order of Merit from the Federal Republic of Germany (2006) and King Hussein’s Medal of Excellence (2008).
      Born in Amman in 1954, Dr Toukan is married with three children. He is a Member of the International High Level EFA Group, a member of H.M. King Abdullah II Economic Consultative Council and presently is Director of SESAME and serves also as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of University of Jordan.

    • 14h10
      End of conference

      Presentation of Bruno Weymuller See the video | See PDF

      WEYMULLER Bruno

      TOTAL

      Bruno Weymuller has been Executive Vice President at Total, member of the Executive Committee (2000-2008) in charge of Strategy and Risk Assessment. After joining Elf Aquitaine group in 1981 he has held various management positions in the upstream division both in France and abroad, and has been Chief Financial Officer from 1994 to 2000. He has begun his career in the French civil service at the Ministry for Industry from 1972 to 1978. He joined the Prime Minister Raymond Barre’s cabinet from 1978 to 1981.

      He is presently director in the board of the French Energy Council. He is a professor at « L’Institut Français du Pétrole et des Énergies Nouvelles. » and a member of Total Professors Associates. He works on the economics of energy and on the interactions between energy and environment. Bruno Weymuller is an alumnus from the École Polytechnique. He is also a graduate of the École des Mines in Paris. He holds a Master of Science of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (Harkness Fellow).

    • 14h45

      Moderator: Bruno Lescoeur

      Presentation of Bruno Lescoeur See PDF

      Lescoeur Bruno

      Observatoire Méditerranée de l’Energie

      Bruno Lescoeur, né en 1953, est diplômé de l’Ecole Polytechnique, de l’Ecole Nationale de la Statistique et de l’Administration Economique (ENSAE) et de l’Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris.  Il intègre EDF en 1978 au sein du Service des Etudes Economiques Générales. En 1990 Il représente EDF à  Londres dans la réorganisation de l’industrie électrique britannique, puis rejoint en 1993 la direction financière dont il  devient Directeur Délégué. En 1998, Il est nommé Président Directeur Général de London Electricity Group, qu’il développe pour en faire ce qui devint EDF Energy. En 2002, il devient le  Directeur de la Production, de l’Ingénierie et du Trading d’EDF, au moment où EDF lance la construction le réacteur nucléaire de nouveau modèle EPR a Flamanville. En 2005, il est Directeur Général Adjoint d’EDF, membre du comité exécutif, en charge de l’international. Il négocie le retrait d’EDF d’Amérique Latine, et assure la promotion de l’EPR à l’international (notamment en Chine à Taishan). Il  est chargé en 2008 de développer les activités gazières du Groupe et conduit le projet de construction du terminal GNL de Dunkerque. Il est nommé en avril 2011 administrateur délégué d’EDISON spa dont EDF prend le contrôle fin 2012, et continu d’être le Directeur gaz du Groupe et responsable de  l’Europe du sud, basé à Milan.

      De retour à Paris début 2016, Il est conseiller spécial du Président Directeur Général d’EDF. Président de l’Observatoire Méditerranéen de l’Energie. Depuis 2013, il est Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite et de l’Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur.

    • 15h00
      Keynote by Khaled Toukan

      On the development of nuclear power in Jordan

      Presentation of Khaled Toukan See the video | See PDF

      Toukan Khaled

      JAEC and SESAME

      Dr. Toukan is the Chairman of Jordan Atomic Energy Commission, served previously as the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources (2011), Minister of Education from 2000 to 2007, and Minister of Higher Education (2001-
      2002) and (2005-2007). Dr. Toukan was the President of Al-Balqa Applied University (1997-2001), Jordan; he also held the position of Dean of Faculty of Engineering & Technology and Professor of Industrial Engineering at the University of Jordan; Research Scientist at Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe, Germany; and Associate Research Scientist at the University of Petroleum and Minerals, Saudi Arabia.
      Dr. Toukan holds a Ph.D. in Nuclear Engineering from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (1978-1982), and M.Sc. degree in Nuclear Engineering from University of Michigan (1976-1978), and a B.E. degree in Electrical
      Engineering from The American University of Beirut (1971-1976). Dr. Toukan’s awards include the UNESCO Ghandi Medal of Peace (2003), the Royal Grand Gordon of Alkukab Al-Urduni (2003), the Theos J. Thompson Fellowship (1980-81) in the Department of Nuclear Engineering at M.I.T., Legion de Honore from the French Republic (2004), and Commanders Cross of the Order of Merit from the Federal Republic of Germany (2006) and King Hussein’s Medal of Excellence (2008).
      Born in Amman in 1954, Dr Toukan is married with three children. He is a Member of the International High Level EFA Group, a member of H.M. King Abdullah II Economic Consultative Council and presently is Director of SESAME and serves also as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of University of Jordan.

    • 15h30
      Keynote by Alain Bugat

      An immersed Small Modular Reactor : Seanergie project

      Presentation of Alain Bugat See the video | See PDF

      Bugat Alain

      NucAdvisor

      President of the National Academy of Technology of France (2015-2016). A career fully dedicated to advanced technologies, inside government owned research organizations and industrial companies. Two main activities: energy, nuclear energy and renewables and second : information technologies. Last executive position: Administrateur Général (Chairman and CEO) of the French Atomic Energy Commission (CEA). Founder in 2009 and present Chairman of NucAdvisor, an advisory and engineering company dedicated to consultancy and owner’s engineer services for new nuclear programs, especially for “Newcomers” countries.

    • 16h00
      Keynote by Bruno Lescoeur

      See the video

      Lescoeur Bruno

      Observatoire Méditerranée de l’Energie

      Bruno Lescoeur, né en 1953, est diplômé de l’Ecole Polytechnique, de l’Ecole Nationale de la Statistique et de l’Administration Economique (ENSAE) et de l’Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris.  Il intègre EDF en 1978 au sein du Service des Etudes Economiques Générales. En 1990 Il représente EDF à  Londres dans la réorganisation de l’industrie électrique britannique, puis rejoint en 1993 la direction financière dont il  devient Directeur Délégué. En 1998, Il est nommé Président Directeur Général de London Electricity Group, qu’il développe pour en faire ce qui devint EDF Energy. En 2002, il devient le  Directeur de la Production, de l’Ingénierie et du Trading d’EDF, au moment où EDF lance la construction le réacteur nucléaire de nouveau modèle EPR a Flamanville. En 2005, il est Directeur Général Adjoint d’EDF, membre du comité exécutif, en charge de l’international. Il négocie le retrait d’EDF d’Amérique Latine, et assure la promotion de l’EPR à l’international (notamment en Chine à Taishan). Il  est chargé en 2008 de développer les activités gazières du Groupe et conduit le projet de construction du terminal GNL de Dunkerque. Il est nommé en avril 2011 administrateur délégué d’EDISON spa dont EDF prend le contrôle fin 2012, et continu d’être le Directeur gaz du Groupe et responsable de  l’Europe du sud, basé à Milan.

      De retour à Paris début 2016, Il est conseiller spécial du Président Directeur Général d’EDF. Président de l’Observatoire Méditerranéen de l’Energie. Depuis 2013, il est Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite et de l’Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur.

    • Tapping on infinite resources: Innovative renewable energy projects in Jordan and MENA
      17h00
      Table round

      Moderator: Bruno Lescoeur

      See the video | See PDF

      Lescoeur Bruno

      Observatoire Méditerranée de l’Energie

      Bruno Lescoeur, né en 1953, est diplômé de l’Ecole Polytechnique, de l’Ecole Nationale de la Statistique et de l’Administration Economique (ENSAE) et de l’Institut d’Etudes Politiques de Paris.  Il intègre EDF en 1978 au sein du Service des Etudes Economiques Générales. En 1990 Il représente EDF à  Londres dans la réorganisation de l’industrie électrique britannique, puis rejoint en 1993 la direction financière dont il  devient Directeur Délégué. En 1998, Il est nommé Président Directeur Général de London Electricity Group, qu’il développe pour en faire ce qui devint EDF Energy. En 2002, il devient le  Directeur de la Production, de l’Ingénierie et du Trading d’EDF, au moment où EDF lance la construction le réacteur nucléaire de nouveau modèle EPR a Flamanville. En 2005, il est Directeur Général Adjoint d’EDF, membre du comité exécutif, en charge de l’international. Il négocie le retrait d’EDF d’Amérique Latine, et assure la promotion de l’EPR à l’international (notamment en Chine à Taishan). Il  est chargé en 2008 de développer les activités gazières du Groupe et conduit le projet de construction du terminal GNL de Dunkerque. Il est nommé en avril 2011 administrateur délégué d’EDISON spa dont EDF prend le contrôle fin 2012, et continu d’être le Directeur gaz du Groupe et responsable de  l’Europe du sud, basé à Milan.

      De retour à Paris début 2016, Il est conseiller spécial du Président Directeur Général d’EDF. Président de l’Observatoire Méditerranéen de l’Energie. Depuis 2013, il est Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite et de l’Ordre National de la Légion d’Honneur.

      Hamzeh Rasmi

      Jordan Renewable Energy Fund (JREEEF)

      Executive Director; Jordan Renewable Energy & Energy Efficiency Fund (JREEEF). EFQM 2013 Certified Assessor. CEO/Co-Founder CSRArabia/ Consulting Company. EFQM Assessor Certification. Assessor at King Abdullah II Center for Excellence Award, Abu Dhabi Award for Excellence in Government Performance and Dubai Government Excellence Program. Consultant /Business developer, SME’s Capacity Building and Enhancing Entrepreneurs capabilities, SME’s and Entrepreneurs. PMP certification. Daily columnist/writer of newspaper articles regarding political, economic, social and cultural issues.

       

    • 18h00
      End of session

  • Mon 15 May

    • 09h00

      Presentation of J.-Ch. Debar See PDF

      DEBAR Jean-Christophe

      Fondation FARM

      Jean-Christophe DEBAR, trained as an agronomist, started his career as an agro-economist at the Embassy of the United States in France. He has been a consultant in international farm policy and agricultural economics, and the editor of Agri US Analyse, a monthly newsletter on US agriculture. Since 2011, he has been the director of the Foundation for World Agriculture and Rurality (FARM), based in Paris. FARM is a think tank devoted to the promotion of productive and sustainable agricultures and food value chains in developing countries. It also supports producer organizations in Africa. FARM’s entrepreneurial vision of agriculture focuses on the emergence of small and medium farms, and their ability to supply to local markets.

      GBAGUIDI Lionel

      FAO

      Lionel Gbaguidi has been a board member of the Foundation since 2020.

      Lionel GBAGUIDI serves as Emergency Management Specialist at FAO-Emergency Management Center for Animal Health. Before joining FAO, he worked as independent consultant for international organizations (FAO, USAID, and USDA) in West Africa on the prevention and the control of Infectious Diseases (Avian Influenza, Anthrax,..), the adoption of the one health approach for public and veterinary health systems in developing countries and on the analysis of agricultural value chains. He received his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Tunisia National Veterinary School in 2001. Afterward, he pursued graduate studies in Epidemiology at the Institute of Tropical Medicine of Antwerp (Belgium). He also holds a Master in Toxicology from Tunis Medical School and a graduate certificate in avian pathology from the French National veterinary school of Alfort.

    • Desert agriculture, innovation from Nabateans till today

      Presentation of Uriel Safriel See the video | See PDF

      Safriel Uriel

      Hebrew University of Jerusalem

      Professor Emeritus of Ecology at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Former: Director of the Blaustein Institute for Desert Research of Ben-Gurion University, Chief Scientist of the Israeli Nature Reserves Authority, Chair of the Committee of Science and Technology and Co-chair of the Science-Policy Interface of the UN Convention to Combat Desertification. Currently Chair of Israel National Ecosystem Assessment, and of Israel National Man and Biosphere Committee.

      Berliner Pedro

      Ben Gurion University of the Negev

      Prof Emeritus Pedro Berliner, a member of the Wyler Department of Dryland Agriculture, was born in Buenos Aires, Argentina. He earned his undergraduate and graduate degrees at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Berliner’s main research interest is the efficient use of water in rainfed agricultural systems and planted forests in drylands. He has studied and developed the techniques that make use of flood waters for the irrigation of orchards and forests planted in arid zones, with a focus on the evaporation of water from the surface of bare soils and between the rows of crops. He is involved in the development, testing and modeling of agricultural techniques that increase the water use efficiency of crops and planted forests. The results of these studies have been published in leading scientific journals and he has served as a referee for numerous scientific journals and funding agencies. In addition to BGU, he has held a research post in South Africa and was a visiting professor in Spain, Japan and Mexico and was the Director of the Blaustein Institutes from 2010 to 2014. He is currently Israel’s Focal Point for the United Nations Convention for Combating Desertification and incumbent of UNESCO Chair “Plant water relations in sand dunes”.

      Oweis Theib

      International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA)

      Currently acting director of the Integrated Water and Land Management Program (IWLMP) at the International Center for Agricultural Research in the Dry Areas (ICARDA). Formerly, Distinguished Guest Professor of water management in agriculture at the International Platform for Dryland research and Education (IPDRE) of Tottori University in Japan. Since 1991, worked for ICARDA as Director of research, scientist, and research manager.  Earlier, worked for the University of Jordan, Amman, as an assistant professor in irrigation and drainage and in the 70’s worked for Dar Alhandash Consultants (Shaer and Partners) as a field irrigation engineer in south Yemen.  Received a BSc. degree in agriculture from Aleppo University, Syria in 1972 and MSc and PhD degrees in agricultural and irrigation engineer from Utah State University, Logan, Utah, USA in 1980 & 1983. Has over 40 years of experience in international research, development and human capacity building and in the management of water for agriculture in the dry areas.  Author of over 200 refereed journal publications, books/book chapters and conference proceedings in the areas of water use efficiency, supplemental irrigation, water harvesting, water productivity, deficit irrigation, salinity and the management of scarce water resources.

      Mudabber Mohammed Ali

      National Center for Agricultural Research and Extention (NCARE)

      Graduated from the University of Jordan in 1980 (B.Sc. in Soil and Irrigation) and in 1987 (M.Sc. in Soil and Irrigation). Currently working as a Director of the Water and Environment Research Directorate at the National Center for Agricultural Research and Extension (NCARE). Work experience is 10-years work at the ministry of agriculture and 19-years work at NCARE). Experience includes soil conservation expert and water management. A coordinator for several projects working in the fields of wastewater-reuse, use of marginal water and irrigation management information system. An irrigation expert in the project “Improving the Environmental Sustainability of Irrigated Agricultural Productivity in Lebanon and Jordan – ENSIAP” since February 2013.

    • 11h40
      Keynote by Martin Gastal

      How can high energy physics help the water shortage?

      Presentation of Martin Gastal See the video | See PDF

      Gastal Martin

      CERN

      Mr.Martin Gastal (MBA and MSc Physics) is a senior staff member of CERN, the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. Mr.Gastal has been since 2006 the manager of the CMS experimental area, which includes the planning, coordination and follow up of all the activities of one of the largest and most advanced machines that human kind has ever built. Mr.Gastal is also a facilitator for the integration of new institutes into the CMS collaboration through engineering and technological engagement. He stimulates the development of many projects that, using CERN technology, benefit the local communities and promote economic development.

    • 13h40
      Introduction

      Presentation of Miriam Balaban

      Balaban Miriam

      European Desalination Society

      Miriam BALABAN is a graduate in chemistry from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, USA. She is the founder of Desalination, the international journal for desalting and purification of water, and was its Editor-in- Chief from 1966 to 2009. In 2009 she launched the monthly journal Desalination and Water Treatment to accommodate the growing flood of papers in the field and enable prompt publication. She is editor and publisher of the Desalination Directory, the international online database in desalination water reuse. She is the Secretary General of the European Desalination Society with its headquarters in Italy, where she organizes courses, conferences, and workshops in desalination. She is associated with the desalination program – Center for Clean Water and Energy – in the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Desalination Association and Star of Honor from the President of Italy. She has been adviser to the African Academy of Science in establishing the journal “Discover” and establishing the African Association of Science Editors.

    • What answers to the water crisis in Jordan and the MENA?
      13h45
      Challenges of the water sector in Jordan and updates from the Red-Dead project

      Moderator: Koussai Quteishat

      Presentation of Maysoon Al-Zoubi (The Higher Population Council, Jordanie), MalZoubi

      Presentation of Patrick Bachelery (Suez – Samra, France-Jordanie), Bachelery

      Presentation of Nabil Zoubi par K. Quteishat, NZoubi

      Presentation of Koussai Quteishat See the video | See PDF

      Quteishat Koussai

      Jordan River Consultancy Services

      Koussai Quteishat is the General Manager of Jordan River Consultancy Services, JRC, a private consultancy firm on water institutional issues. He is also the President of Jordan Desalination and Reuse Association, a Jordanian NGO. Both entities serve as a resource providing access to Jordanian water professionals in all aspects of water and wastewater ranging from policy and governance to institutional management and day to day operations. Mr. Quteishat gained extensive technical expertise in five major specialties: water and wastewater, geotechnical engineering, desalination, and contract management. Mr. Quteishat has had long term involvement in regional and international water issues in public and private settings; served on many international committees and has given presentations worldwide on the topics of water, water management, desalination, project finance, as well as regional and peace process water issues.

      Al-Zoubi Maysoon

      The Higher Population Council

      Maysoon Al-Zoubi currently the Secretary General of the Higher Population Council.  She got a bachelor of Engineering at the University of Jordan in 1986. Then, she attended many specialization courses abroad. She got a Master of Water Demand Management at the Jordan University of Science and Technology. From January 2009 to July 2012, she has been the Secretary General of the Jordan Ministry of Water & Irrigation. Her professional experience is quite extensive and was accumulated mainly at the Ministry of Water and Irrigation.  She joint the Hashemite Royal Court as Senior Policy Analyst / Economic Affairs Department from 2007 to 2009. Before that, she was seconded to the Prime Ministry of Jordan as Senior Infrastructure Specialist from April 2005 to April 2007.  She has involved in providing objective, timely and proactive analysis with respect to international and domestic economic issues through constant coordination with various stakeholders including both the private and public sectors. Recommend a set of policy priorities and directions in accordance with Jordan’s strategic and national objectives. Prepare an extensive report providing sector overview that includes:  main sector indicators in comparison to previous years, recent developments, and challenges.

      Maysoon Zoubi has a long and prestigious career increasing accountable, sustainable, water sector management and governance for Jordan’s water resources. Maysoon Al-Zoubi has 29 years of experience managing water resources and utilities in Jordan demonstrating political savviness and diplomacy working closely with numerous political and private stakeholders. Eng. Maysoon Al-Zoubi served as the Technical Committee Chair for the ambitious Red to Dead Sea Project, Negotiator and Ambassador for Climate Change, Jordan.  She is a WANA Institute’s Academic Advisory Board Member, Blue Peace Core Group member, chaired by HRH Prince Hasan Bin Talal, and The Jordanian Engineers Association’s Representative in Arab Engineers Union Committee of Water and Natural Resources.

      Bachelery Patrick

      Samra Plant Operation & Maintenance Co. Ltd

      Patrick Bachelery is the General Manager of Samra Plant Operation & Maintenance Co. Ltd, the current operator of the biggest Wastewater Treatment Plant in Jordan, located in Zarqa, Hashimiyyah. He has been working in the field of potable and sewage water for 25 years and has occupied different management positions in engineering and operation for Suez Group, one of the world leaders in environment services. During the last 14 years, he specialized in operation of wastewater treatment plants and also managed different projects in treated wastewater and sludge reuse in agriculture.He holds a Master of Science in Hydraulics, water resources option, from l’ECOLE NATIONALE SUPERIEURE D’HYDRAULIQUE et de MECANIQUE (Institut National Polytechnique de Grenoble), France.

      Zoubi Nabil

      Jordan Valley Authority

      Education: BSc in Civil Engineering/ University of Alabama/USA 1982; MSc in Hydraulic Engineering/University of Newcastle Upon Tyne, U.K/1990. Current Work Position: Director/ Red Sea- Dead Sea Water Conveyance Project; and Chairman of Board of Directors/ Wadi Araba Development Company.

    • 16h00
      The water crisis in Gaza: blueprint for solutions

      Moderator: Miriam Balaban

      Presentation of Yousef S. Abu Mayla (Al Azhar University-Gaza, Palestine), Abu Mayla

      Presentation of Charlotte de Bruyne (Office of the Quartet, Jerusalem), ChDeBruyne

      See the video

      Balaban Miriam

      European Desalination Society

      Miriam BALABAN is a graduate in chemistry from the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia, USA. She is the founder of Desalination, the international journal for desalting and purification of water, and was its Editor-in- Chief from 1966 to 2009. In 2009 she launched the monthly journal Desalination and Water Treatment to accommodate the growing flood of papers in the field and enable prompt publication. She is editor and publisher of the Desalination Directory, the international online database in desalination water reuse. She is the Secretary General of the European Desalination Society with its headquarters in Italy, where she organizes courses, conferences, and workshops in desalination. She is associated with the desalination program – Center for Clean Water and Energy – in the Department of Mechanical Engineering of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). She has received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the International Desalination Association and Star of Honor from the President of Italy. She has been adviser to the African Academy of Science in establishing the journal “Discover” and establishing the African Association of Science Editors.

      Abu Mayla Yousef S.

      Al Azhar University-Gaza

      Ph.D. in Hydrology.   Manchester University, England, (1984 – 87). ( Hydrologic and Geomorphic Processes in Coombs Brook Macclesfield forest U. K. ). Thesis: The problem of Water in Jordan – East Bank. Lecturing in Hydrology and environmental Science Al Azhar University – Gaza ; and  the Islamic University of Gaza.

      Research and  Activities: about 57 paper – and about 25 Project. Attended a number of workshops and conferences in water and environmental  issues. Also participated in all the meetings of the Multilateral Negotiations on the Middle East Peace Process for water (1991-1995).

      De Bruyne Charlotte

      Office of the Quartet

      Charlotte joined OQ in August 2015. Besides her extensive experience in the water sector, she completed a PhD in transboundary water management at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem. Before OQ, she worked as a consultant for the Center of Transboundary Water Management of the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies in Israel and the Palestinian Territory, the International Water Management Institute in Sri Lanka and South Africa and OXFAM GB in the DR Congo.

      Tenne Abraham

      Israeli Water Authority – Desalination Division

      Chemical Engineer B.Sc graduated in 1973. Worked for many years in the chemical industry and in the water sector as project manager and general management.In the years 2005-2015 worked for the Israeli Water Authority as Head of desalination Division and Chairman of the WDA (water desalination administration). The Water Authority is the governmental authority regulating the water sector and including all water and waste water issues in Israel.

      Since 2016 working as a senior consultant on Water, Wastewater, Desalination, Solid municipal waste (waste to energy) and Clean and Renewable Energy.

    • 17h30
      Sharing knowledge about agriculture in arid land

      Presentation of Zubaida Ezery, ZEzery

      Presentation of Shira Kronich, SKronich

      See the video

      Ezery Zubaida

      The Arava Institute for Environmental Studies

      Zubaida Ezery is from Akko, and currently living in Beer Sheva. Zubaida is a coordinator of Gray water system in the Bedouin communities in the Negev project, part of the Center for Transboundary Water Management (CTWM) at the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies started working at The Society for the Protection of Nature in Israel (SPNI) recently as an environmental education project coordinator, her job includes being in charge of two projects that deal with pupils and teachers.

      Zubaida was a student at the Arava Institute in spring 2013 and a PA in full 2014. Before that, she worked as a lab manger in a wastewater and effluent tests lab. Zubaida is a Phd Student candidate at the Faculty of Health Sciences in the Department of Health Systems Managemen, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev. Has a Master of Public Health (MPH) degree from Haifa University, In February 2015, supported by the Arava institute, she wrote her thesis at Ben-Gurion University on “Inadequate Wastewater Infrastructure Effect on the Health and Environment of the Bedouin Population in the Negev”.

      Kronich Shira

      Arava Institute for Environmental Studies

      Associate Director of the Center for Transboundary Water Management (CTWM) at the Arava Institute for Environmental Studies, www.arava.org, and the Wastewater Manager at the Eilot Regional Council. She has an undergraduate degree from the University of Melbourne in Environmental Engineering and Master’s degree from Hebrew University of Jerusalem in G/local Community Development. Her work at CTWM focuses on providing a platform for regional water professionals and policy makers to cooperate in water conservation, desalination, wastewater treatment and education. The center facilitates direct communication among regional water professionals in the three lower riparian states of the Jordan River and Dead Sea Basin (Israel, Palestine and Jordan. She was the project manager for an EU Marie Curie Action and a USAID Conflict Mitigation and Management grant focused on the conflict resolution aspects of regional water, food and energy challenges between Israel, the West Bank and Gaza.

      Ms. Kronich is currently the Co-Chair and Coordinator of the Arava Institutes Track II Environmental Forum which aims to “promote cross-border environmental agreements between Jordan, Israel and Palestine, with the objectives of improving lives, protecting the environment, and supporting sustainable resolution of conflict.”

      Mehyar Munqeth

      EcoPeace Middle East

      Munqeth Mehyar serves as Chairman and Jordanian Director of EcoPeace Middle East which is a unique regional organization that brings together Jordanian, Palestinian and Israeli environmentalists to promote sustainable development and advance peace efforts in the Middle East. The organization has offices in Amman, Bethlehem and Tel-Aviv,  and employs over 40 paid staff and actively involves hundreds of volunteers.

    • 18h30
      End of session

    • 20h00
      Gala Dinner

  • Tues 16 May

    • 09h00
      General Discussion and Preparation of recommendations

      Presentation of Alison Parker See the video | See PDF

      PARKER Alison

      Cranfield University

      Alison PARKER has a large research activity in technologies for urban sanitation. She is leading Cranfield University’s response to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation’s challenge to “Reinvent the Toilet”, using novel membrane technology to treat human waste on-site. She is working at both ends of the technology development process – helping to develop a novel technology for Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) and in testing “off the shelf” systems for Water and Sanitation for Urban Poor (WSUP). Supporting stakeholders to provide safe water supplies is another research focus through Alison’s work in WASHTech project, a European project aiming to help African decision makers decide which water and sanitation technologies to use in their projects and Community Water Plus, an AusAID funded project aiming to understand what support communities in India need to manage their water supplies. She also has research students working on Water Safety Plans in Malaysia, Nigeria, Jamaica, India and Uganda and on the transition of urban communities between informal supplies and piped systems in Kenya. She is the Course Tutor of the MSc in Community Water and Sanitation.

    • 11h00

Photos