The first research cooperation with an international university has been launched: HFT Stuttgart will cooperate with CEPT University in Ahmedabad/India in the field of geomatics. "We are very proud of this cooperation. Because it allows us to research together on solutions to meet the challenges in cities and regions caused by climate change. Only together can we change the world," said the Rector of HFT Stuttgart, Prof. Dr. Katja Rade.
At the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding on 25.11.21, Rector Rade regretted that it was not possible to receive a delegation from India personally in Stuttgart due to the Corona pandemic and that the meeting therefore had to take place digitally. However, there would certainly be a meeting in Stuttgart when the situation had eased.
In the future, there will be close cooperation between the Institute for Applied Research (IAF) of HFT Stuttgart and the CEPT Research and Development Foundation (CRDF).
IAF Director Prof. Dr. Volker Coors emphasized that global challenges must be tackled locally in order to create interconnected, livable and resilient living spaces. He briefly presented IAF research topics on digital city twins, specifically in the area of analysis and prediction of water demand and heat demand in cities and counties. He looked forward to working with CRFD researchers on solutions for the cities of the future.
The director of CRDF, Darshan Parikh (CRDF), who also holds a Master's degree in Urban and Regional Planning from CEPT, saw great potential and many opportunities for synergies between the two institutions. After all, he said, they were working in similar research fields in an interdisciplinary manner on innovations and issues that affect people's living environment to make it more livable. Ahmedabad, the location of CEPT University, is the fifth largest city in India with over 5.6 million inhabitants.
Cooperation is envisaged in the following areas:
The delegation on the occasion of the signing of the Memorandum of Understanding consisted of Prof. Dr. Katja Rade, Prof. Dr. Volker Coors and Darshan Parikh as well as Prof. Dr. Dietrich Schröder (Vice Dean, Department of Geoinformatics, HFT Stuttgart), Brigitte Heintz-Cuscianna (Head of International Office, HFT Stuttgart), Rushikesh Padsala (Academic Assistant Geoinformatics, HFT Stuttgart, former graduate of CEPT University), Dr. Nitika Bhakuni (Acting Executive Director of Center for Applied Geomatics (CAG), Dr. Shaily Gandhi (CRDF Manager Informatics), Shubham Bhatia (Communications Manager, CRDF).
More information:
https://www.hft-stuttgart.com/research/iaf
https://www.hft-stuttgart.com/geomatics
