Professor Daniella Tilbury has returned to Morocco following an invitation from His Royal Highness King Mohammed VI and Princess Lalla Hasna.
Professor Tilbury, Director of Sustainability at the University of Gloucestershire, arrived in Marrakech last week to deliver a keynote address at the 7th World Environmental Education Congress and to Chair various United Nations official side events. The Congress brought together university experts, government officials and representatives from international agencies. Over 3,000 participants were expected from all corners of the globe.
Her royal invitation followed her commissioning by the European Union’s Horizon 2020 programme to advise and support higher education in Morocco. She visited the University of Mohammed V Soussi in Rabat to lead sessions on strategic development and scenario planning for higher education in Morocco with presidents and senior management teams from seven Moroccan universities.
It was following this work that she was invited to return by His Royal Highness King Mohammed VI and Princess Lalla Hasnaa who are promoting sustainable development across the region. Professor Tilbury works as an advisor to the UN and is also Chair of the UNESCO Global Monitoring and Evaluation Expert Group on Sustainable Development.
Professor Tilbury explained: “The Moroccan community have much to celebrate today as the Congress comes to an end. It has shown what can be achieved to address issues such as water scarcity, environmental protection, health and poverty through higher education and in a short period of time. It is playing an important leadership role in the Mediterranean region demonstrating how economic development can be underpinned by sustainability principles and educational processes that help connect people to their environments.”
About the University of Gloucestershire
The University of Gloucestershire gained official university status in 2001 but has existed as an educational establishment for nearly 200 years. Our heritage lies in the Mechanics Institutes of the 1830s, with our Francis Close Hall campus founded in 1847 as the Cheltenham Training College.
Today, we have three thriving campuses, Francis Close Hall and The Park in Cheltenham, and Oxstalls in Gloucester, which are occupied by approximately 10,000 students. In 2010, the University invested £5 million in teaching facilities including a new, state-of-the-art media and art and design studios.
The University of Gloucestershire delivers approximately 100 undergraduate course choices including accounting, law, business and management, fine art, TV production, humanities, leisure and tourism, social work and education plus and a diverse range of postgraduate and research degrees, and professional courses. For more information visit www.glos.ac.uk
