Winter 2009 Vol. VII, No. 2

From the Editors

Education, service, research. At AUB, these core ideals can be seen in so many ways—both on and off campus, in science labs, at the medical center, at the AUB farm in the Beqa’a. In this issue of MainGate, we learn that many students and faculty members have made improving the conditions of Palestinian communities in Lebanon and the region an integral part of their university experience. Although we planned this issue a long time ago, recent events have made it, unfortunately, a most timely topic. In Views from Campus, we have included reports on student fundraising activities to raise money for communities in Gaza, while the features investigate the work of AUB students, faculty members, and health care professionals from the AUB Medical Center and the Faculty of Health Sciences in Palestinian camps in Lebanon and with institutions in Palestine. We also introduce the Issam Fares Institute initiative on Policy and Governance in Palestinian Refugee Camps, and additional faculty research on health and living conditions in Lebanon’s camps.

This is work that is ongoing, work that is improving people’s lives on every level. Read through our stories—you’ll find medical students providing health-care services, children empowered, doctors trained, homes rebuilt, systems restored. This is what education, service, and research can accomplish as AUB trains its students to put their knowledge to work in surrounding communities.

Ada H. Porter and Ibrahim Khoury
Coeditors, MainGate
maingate@aub.edu.lb