*Important to use this revised report format*

Higher Education for DevelopmentKnowledge, Partnerships, Results

___

Collaborative Partnerships Program

Semi-Annual Progress ReportReport Period

April 1, 2010 – September 30, 2010

Due October 15, 2010__________________________________

INTRODUCTIONThe information partnerships provide create the basis of HED’s partnership results disseminated to the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), and the higher education community. USAID will use this information to report development results to the U.S. Congress. Your contribution of information is critical to the overall understanding of development and the future funding of such programs.

PARTNERSHIP INFORMATION

Partnership Title: AHEED: Albania-Hawaii Higher Education and Economic Development Partnership: Increasing Institutional Capacity in Agricultural Economics

Development Area/Sector of Focus: Agriculture/Agribusiness/Animal Science; Economic Growth & Trade

U.S. Partner Institution(s): University of Hawaii at Manoa

U.S. Partnership Director(s): Name: Dr. Catherine Chan-HalbrendtTelephone: 808-956-2626E-mail: Chanhalb@hawaii.edu

Host Country(ies): Albania

Host Country Partner Institution(s): Agricultural University of Tirana (AUT)

Host Country Partnership Director(s): Name: Dr. Engjell SkreliTelephone: 00355 6840 38941E-mail: ishpp@yahoo.com

Partnership Web Site (if any): http://manoa.hawaii.edu/ctahr/aheed

Please mail or e-mail the completed report and any attachments to your primary contact at:

Higher Education for Development1 Dupont Circle, NW, Suite 420Washington, DC 20036-1110

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INSTRUCTIONS

Both the U.S. and host country partners should be involved in writing progress reports. It is the U.S. institution’s responsibility to submit these reports to HED by the due date. It is also the U.S. institution’s responsibility to translate responses to English, as necessary.

Carefully review the attached Glossary of Terms for key definitions to assist you in completing the report accurately.

Please include as much information as necessary to answer the questions completely. Enter zeros when necessary. If any spaces are left blank, the report will be returned for completion.

The U.S. institutional partner is required to enter information about all training activities for host country nationals that take place in the United States, the host country, or a third country into USAID’s TraiNet system. The results of these progress reports will be compared with data the partnership has entered into TraiNet. For more information regarding TraiNet, please contact trainet-vcs@sraprod.com or 703-879-8611.

OVERVIEW OF PARTNERSHIP REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

Report Name Period Covered Date DueSemi-Annual Progress Report 10/1 – 3/31 April 30Semi-Annual Progress Report 4/1 – 9/30 October 15Final report Entire Award Period 30 days after sub-agreement end date

I. QUALITATIVE PROGRAM INFORMATION FOR APRIL 1, 2010 – SEPTEMBER 30, 2010

1. Describe in bullet form the major activities for this partnership during the past six months (4/1/2010 -9/30/2010)

2. For each of the above activities, describe the results and/or outcomes for each activity; answer in bullet form if appropriate.

If helpful, instead of answering questions 1 and 2, you may use the following chart for reporting the activities and outcomes associated with specific partnership objectives. Please feel free to insert additional lines as needed.

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ACTIVITY Process Results OUTCOME1f. Establish UH/FEA faculty advisement mentorship. Three to five students will begin their research thesis under this arrangement

AHEED advertised a Request for Proposal (RFP) to fund several small projects that fall under the criteria “to conduct research of high priority areas as identified by stakeholders of the agricultural sector in Albania.” These research proposals submitted by AUT faculty and their collaborators each had a student working with project with the intention of using the project as their thesis for their program.

Six students are currently participating in the research studies currently being conducted. The students have started their learning experiences with the grant writing process, the process of conducting research and in the future, disseminating the information via conferences and publications

Increase opportunity for students to learn through research work and incorporate their classroom knowledge

Gain experience in conducting research and presenting results to others

1g. Prepare mini-workshops on faculty professional development in teaching methods, grant writing workshops, research ethics

In preparation for submitting mini grant proposals, another grant writing workshop was held in July 2010 that was attended by AUT faculty and students, private industry members and open to anyone who was interested. This workshop covered the process of grant writing, what is involved and what might be expected from a proposal.

Six different teams of collaborators submitted grant proposal in response to the RFP advertised by the AHEED project. The projects range from Land management to agricultural product marketing and policy. Currently, research is being conducted on these projects. All of these research include collaborations with UH faculty and MOA extension personnel

Increase knowledge and experience in grant writing

Encourage collaboration between MOA, UH and FEA to further strengthen their relationship and integration of research and extension

1i.Present applied research at inaugural agricultural economics conference to showcase work

The second annual agricultural economics symposium was held in July 2010 and was entitled “Globalization and its Implication for Albanian Agriculture and Food Sector” It was organized and co-sponsored by the AUT Faculty of Economy and Agribusiness,, UH Manoa and supported by AHEED projects. 12 papers and 23 posters

The annual symposium this year had an invited speaker from Scotland. This year also had a wider variety of participants from different sectors of Albania as compared to last year. The papers presented in this symposium covers a wide range of topics from marketing, food safety production, rural development and policies.

Increase FEA’s and MOA’s image as research and extension institutions

Increased opportunity for networking and research collaboration

Increased access to research for farmers, policy makers

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were presented at the symposium. Audiences included the faculty and students from AUT, representatives from MOA, Ministry of Education, extension service personnel, farmers policy makers and AHEED personnel. The symposium was also open to the public with a few of attending the event.

There was cable TV interviews of the Dean and the AHEED project director. The interview was on the National cable channel broadcasted as a special issue report. The interview included details of the conference, impact, the AHEED project and the latest accomplishments of the faculty.

and other representatives to research done by AUT members.

Increased learning capacity, communication skills, methods of information exchange of students and faculty

Ensure effective dissemination of information

1j.Submit research and international travel grant proposals to enhance the resource base

Two research projects were done on Albanian Olive Oil and Wine that were collaboration with AUT faculty and AHEED’s Dr. Chan-Halbrendt and two UH graduate assistants. These two papers were submitted along with other AUT research to the IAMA 2010 conference with a total of 4 paper presentations and 2 posters accepted.

Travel grant were awarded from USAID and IAMA for 5 participants from AUT (3 females and 2 males) whose papers and case study have been accepted for presentation at the IAMA conference June 2010, Boston, USA.

AUT faculty who were able to attending the conference presented 4 papers. Of the 4 papers submitted, the paper on “Consumer preferences for Olive Oil: The case of Albania” was one of the Top 10 Best Papers Finalist in the conference. The paper on olive oil was also published in the International Food and Agribusiness Management Review (Vol. 13, Issue 3, 2010)

Experience in presenting at an International Conference.

Get expert feedback on paper from the audience

Exposure to current and cutting edge research in agribusiness and policy.

Opportunity to network with experts and fellow researchers in the field of agribusiness and agricultural policy research.

2l.Write and submit grants in collaboration with other disciplines and MOA.

A request for proposal (RFP) was announced in August 2010 of which the deadline was in September 2010. This RFP was for mini-grants that would fund research projects on Albanian agricultural issues. In

As a result of the mini-grants RFP, 6 proposals were accepted for funding (4 through AHEED and 2 through the Albania USAID). Each of these grants proposals intend to submit their research work to IAMA

This gave AUT faculty members experience in grant writing such as the process, requirements and writing experience. This also gave them the opportunity to use

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September, proposals were submitted by AUT members following a guideline that was noted in the RFP and posted on the AHEED website. The proposals were reviewed and extensively revised by the submitting collaborators. First, the proposal had to following the format. Those that did not had to re-submit with the proper format. Then, the proposals were evaluated by external peer reviewers. Before, the final decisions were made the proposal investigators had to respond to the comments of the reviewers. The final submission resulted in all 6 mini-grants being funded for research. The Albania USAID via World Learning Center in Albania agreed to sponsor two of the mini-grants that have relevance and support from the AAC project.

for the annual IAMA conference in 2011.

the TEEAL database for their research purposes.

Integrate with extension and MS II students.

For some it is the opportunity to incorporate the skills that they learned in a previous Grant Writing workshop.

2n.Evaluate and monitor Year 2 activities and make adjustments if necessary.

Dr. Carl Evensen went to Albania in June 2010 to evaluate the challenges and opportunities to enhance integration between research and extension. He met with both MOA and AUT faculty on what issues are of concern to both parties and with ATTC regarding their work since AUT is also now doing research work as well.

There were several issues that need to be addressed in order to better the integration of research and extension as found by Dr. Evensen. See 3i below on the recommendations of the report

To promote better integration of research and extension

Help with defining the roles of AUT/MOA/ATTC in doing research and sharing information

3e. Establish a three way UH/FEA/MOA trainer/advisor mentorship to develop relevant training modules and conduct workshops

Several short workshops were conducted by Professor Quentin Dombro and they are posted on the AHEED website. AUT/FEA faculty were invited to attend the workshop. The workshop powerpoints are

The workshops included: Entrepreneurship; Startups and Buyouts; Personnel Policies; Management; Pricing; Promotions; Distributions; and Quality

The materials for workshops on key agricultural business success workshops are available for AUT/FEA faculty to use

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posted on the AHEED website for reference to AUT/FEA faculty to conduct similar future workshop

3h. Evaluate impact of year 2 activities via surveying and comparing baseline data from year 2 progress

The new courses are currently being taught by AUT faculty and will be evaluated at the end of the semesters through the survey of student learning outcomes. Publication in external peer review and poster presentations and collaborations with MOA will be enumerated

The evaluations can show what the progress of the instructors who were taught new teaching methods by the US instructors have improved since the beginning of the project. This evaluation can show what, if any, needs to be improved upon for better teaching. The number of presentations/posters/collaborations can show the increase in the number of research and the involvement of stakeholders.

New teaching methods are effective and students learning has improved

Increase in participations of research work and their results being disseminated shows that AUT is working towards their improvement of their image as a research school and in providing relevant information to stakeholders

3i. Continue working to strengthen the Agricultural Technology Transfer and Information Center (ATTC)

As mentioned in the previous progress report. Dr. Carl Evensen evaluated the relationship between MOA and AUT/FEA and ATTC to determine what is needed in order to improve the relationship between them and AUT and the integration of research and extension

This evaluation showed key issues and challenges that needed to be addressed in order to create a better relationship between MOA, ATTC and AUT and the integration of research and extension. Dr. Evensen also provided recommendations and insights to improve and strengthen ATTC. Here are some of his recommendations:Focus AHEED project efforts at integration of research and extension through the AUT graduate students;extension professionals from MOA should be invited to serve as advisors to AUT grad students, perhaps as adjunct or affiliate faculty with the University: initiate a small grants program through the AHEED project to AUT faculty to learn how to apply for grant funding; set up an office within the FEA to facility and assist with grants, assistantships/internships

This will help in improving the integration of research and extension of AUT and ATTC so that others can benefit from the information provided through research.

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and employment opportunities for students and faculty; initiate a regular seminar series at AUT with speakers to include visiting scientists  as well as local government, agency or donor representatives and: a special unit should be established within FEA through which grants and faculty services could be contracted.

3j.Develop agreement between FEA and MOA for graduate students to intern at ATTC

Currently a Memorandum of Understanding has been created and sent to MOA regarding the opportunity for students to intern at ATTC. We are still waiting for a response from MOA

Internships with ATTC will provide graduate students with the opportunity to learn new knowledge and gain hands-on experience from working with professionals in their fields

Increase knowledge and experience in students’ field of study

Job opportunity for students to continue and support ATTC

Increase ATTC/MOA/AUT relations and exchange of information

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3. How are the above activities and outcomes reported in questions 1 and 2 benefiting and/or helping to strengthen the institutional capacity and the human capacity of the host country higher education institution(s)?Faculty

1. Increased professional development of faculty staff2. Opportunity for future research collaboration between host country institution, AUT and US

university- UH Manoa.3. Assistance to host country institution- strengthening relationships and collaboration between

stakeholders. 4. Consultation on research projects from people in similar fields5. New courses offer new knowledge 6. Attendance in local and international conferences to gain knowledge and increase networking7. Attendance in training workshops offer opportunity for increase knowledge and experience

in business fields8. Gaining experience in grant writing

Students:1. Improved faculty development increases students’ opportunities for learning2. New courses will increase students’ learning capacity and expand knowledge3. Mentoring/Advising on course and current and/or future research projects

a. Assistance in determining potential research project or thesisb. Assistance/mentoring in current projects

4. Internships offer practical learning and experience5. Strengthening ATTC offers opportunity for students to gain hands-on experience6. Gaining experience for disseminating information through conference presentation and

increasing social network with colleagues in similar fieldsInstitution:

1. Increase reputation in the area of research2. Networking opportunities for faculty and students3. Produce quality employable graduates4. Increase research grant and publications

4. How are the above activities and outcomes from this partnership benefiting and/or helping to strengthen the capacity to address national development goals?

1. Improved education of current and future generation2. Strengthen agriculture sector and industry3. Improve capacity for policy analysis 4. Improved educational system5. Information sharing from AUT/National and International conferences held for research

projects6. Step closer towards joining EU and its positive effects

5. How are these activities and outcomes benefiting the U.S. higher education institution(s)?Faculty

1. Increase opportunities for research collaborations2. Assisting other professionals in the field- such as extension specialists and from the NGO

and government sectors.3. Opportunity to disseminate information and promote U.S. institutions

Students: 1. Access to more information as a result of research projects2. Opportunity to learn more about AUT through dissemination of research work

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3. Cultural sensitivity4. International exposure and future collaboration5. Knowledge of transitional economy and the role of agriculture

Organization:1. Increased reputation internationally for research and education, extension work2. Increased reputation internationally for assistance in increasing Higher Education

6. Briefly describe the involvement of other collaborating host country stakeholders (e.g., NGOs, community-based organizations, government agencies, small businesses, education institutions) in partnership activities during the past six months, and please list them.

MOA (Ministry of Agriculture, Albania) – Specifically the training workshops offered by MOA and Agricultural Technology Transfer Centers (ATTC) that assists farmers. Dr. Dishnica from MOA is a member of the advisory committee.

AAC program (Albania Agriculture Competitiveness) Program –It is a five year USAID program that supports sustained growth for Albania’s agriculture sector and improve rural income. It also offers complementary efforts to other ongoing USAID

projects to improve farmer competitiveness in the domestic and global markets. Recently, AAC also assist in indentifying mini-grant proposals that are relevant to their project. Two projects were identified by their project director as beneficial to their project.

Local NGOS –DSA Consult, an NGO, specialized in services for donor projects, with expertise in sector/value chain analysis, rural development, and TA for SME/agribusinesses more info you may find under: www.dsaconsult.com <http://www.dsaconsult.com>

7. Briefly describe the involvement of other collaborating U.S. stakeholders (e.g., NGOs, community-based organizations, government agencies, small businesses, education institutions) in partnership activities during the past six months, and please list them.

Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Management (NREM) is a department under the College of Tropical at the University of Hawaii at Manoa (UHM) that is where the PI for AHEED is based at.University of CA- Davis - Dr. McCalla participated in the AHEED project as an invited speakerUniversity of Canberra - Dr. Christie Chang participated in the AHEED project as an instructorProfessor Dombro, a private consultant and also a volunteer instructor for the AHEED project

8. What has been the partnership’s greatest success(es) during the past six months? Collaborative policy research with AUT faculty, Drini Imami, Edvin Zhllima, and Dr. Chan-

Halbrendt was undertaken and was selected as one of the Top 10 Best Paper Finalist and was also published in the IAMA Review Vol. 13, Issue 3.

A successful 2nd annual agricultural economics symposium was held in Albania in which a wider variety of stakeholders attended.

The mini-grants that were offered through AHEED for AUT researchers. This gave a great opportunity for AUT faculty to learn and experience the process of a research project from grant writing to research and then dissemination of information. Sixteen faculty collaboratively submitted 6 proposals.

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Given the opportunity to extend the project for another year with additional funding to conduct activities that will help sustain the successes and overcome challenges of the project.

9. Please explain any changes, obstacles, and/or delays to the implementation of activities during the last six months (4/1/2010 -9/30/2010).

The meeting in Boston was scheduled a bit too short to capture all the offerings of the conference. Should pay more attention and work with World Learning for the next trip so that participants are more well prepared and are able to stay for the whole length of the conference

10. Outline your partnership’s planned activities and an approximate timeline for the next six months. Continue engaging faculty in collaborative scholarly research activities with extension relevant to

solving agricultural issues Monitor and evaluate the student learning outcomes of the revised courses taught by AUT/FEA

faculty Preparing for the IAMA conference, June 2011

o Mini-grant research to be conductedo Prepare submission to IAMAo Apply for travel grants and registration waivers

Plan for the 3rd Annual Agricultural Conference at AUT Work with faculty to publish the papers presented at the last IAMA conference

11. Of these activities, please list which will provide good opportunities for USG visits.3rd Annual Agricultural Conference at AUT in June, 2011

12. Overall, activities for this partnership are:_X__ on schedule_____ahead of schedule_____behind schedule

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II. QUANTITATIVE PROGRAM INFORMATION

Please provide appropriate numbers to support the following activities for the reporting period (4/1/2010 -9/30/2010). See Progress Report Glossary for definitions. Please note that a participant/recipient involved in mutually exclusive activities should be counted for each activity. NB: To avoid double counting, report only NEW participant numbers for this reporting period.

TABLE 1. Participant Information

Activities forCurrent Reporting

Period

Number of New MALE Participants* Number of New FEMALE Participants* Location of Activity

TotalNEW

Participants this Reporting Period

Faculty, Admini-strators

StudentsOthers (Not Faculty or

Admin) Faculty,Admini-strators

StudentsOthers (Not Faculty or

Admin) United States

Host Country25 yrs

& under

26 yrs& over

25 yrs& under

26 yrs& over

25 yrs& under

26 yrs& over

25 yrs& under

26 yrs& over

1) Number of HCNs receiving USG scholarships (including cost-share scholarships)2) Number of US participants receiving USG scholarships (including cost-share scholarships)Description of scholarships:

3) Number of HCNs completing USG-funded exchanges (including cost-share exchanges)

N/A

4) Number of US participants completing USG-funded exchanges (including cost-share exchanges)

N/A

Description of exchanges:

5) Number of HCNs participating in partnership-related internships

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6) Number of US individuals participating in partnership-related internships Description of internships:

7) Number of HCNs receiving non-degree training – workshops, seminars, special classes (not exchanges, not internships, not certificate programs)Description of non-degree training:

*U.S. government reports often require participants to be described by gender (male or female) and by estimated age: youth (25 years and under) or adult (26 years and over)

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TABLE 2 Formal Training (including degree and certificate training)

Please provide appropriate numbers to support the following activities for the reporting period (4/1/2010 -9/30/2010).See Progress Report Glossary for definitions. Please note that a participant/recipient involved in mutually exclusive activities should be counted for each activity.NB: To avoid double counting, report only NEW participant numbers for this reporting period, unless specifically stated otherwise.

FORMALPROGRAM

Location of Activity

Number of New MALE

Participants

Number of New FEMALE

Participants

Degrees, Certificates, and Diplomados Awarded this Reporting Period

Subject Matter Topic **

US Host Country

25 yrs&

under*

26 yrs&

older*

25 yrs&

under*

26 yrs&

older*

MALE FEMALE

25 yrs& under*

26 yrs& older*

25 yrs& under*

26 yrs& older*

Certificates/ Diplomados (formal non-degree training)

Specialization

Baccalaureate

Masters

Doctorate

Dual Degrees ׀

Joint Degrees׀

Describe training programs:

:Describe types of degrees ׀

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* U.S. Government reports often require participants to be described by gender (male or female) and by estimated age—youth (25 years and under) or adult (26 years and older)** Example: Education, Agriculture, Health, Business, Law, Environment, etc.

TABLE 3. Leveraged Contributions Made this Reporting Period (4/1/2010 -9/30/2010).

CONTRIBUTIONS Name of Contributor Description of Contribution Estimated Dollar Value of Contribution

Other leveraged contributions not reported as official or proposed cost share. (See Glossary for definitions.)

Albanian USAID – World Learning Center

Two mini grant projects that have been proposed by participants in AHEED are being funded by USAID through the World Learning Center

$6000.00 USD ($3000/project)

AUT/FEA matching funds

In cash was $ 2,885 USD and in-kind $ 12,500 USD.

(IAMA) IAMA provided free registration for 5 AUT participants at the amount of $400 per person

$2000.00 USD

TABLE 4. Institutional Capacity Strengthening ActivitiesPlease mark (X) if your partnership was engaged in the following capacity strengthening activities benefiting the host country and U.S. institution(s) during this reporting period (4/1/2010 -9/30/2010). Describe briefly.

ACTIVITY Host Country Institution(s) U.S. Institution(s)Yes No Description Yes No Description

Established new academic programs X XAdapted/changed/created new curriculum and/or courses

X In Spring 2010, 3 AHEED instructors taught three new courses

X

Improved methods of instruction X UH instructors assisted AUT faculty during the new courses by showing them new teaching methods and improving on their dissemination of information

X

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Undertook collaborative research X Collaborative research is still continuing between AUT and UH instructors. Some completed research has been submitted and accepted to local and international conferences. The mini grants are examples of collaborative works in progress

X Currently, mini-grant projects sponsored by AHEED and USAID viaWorld Learning Center have been proposed and accepted for funding. Research is progress.

Prepared collaborative publications X A collaborative research on Olive Oil was published this year in the IAMA Review

X Collaborative research paper on olive oil has been submitted and published

Promoted public service education X 2nd Annual Agricultural Conference disseminated information to AUT member, private and public stakeholders and to the general public

X

Improved institutional governance X XImproved institutional management procedures

X X

Other institutional strengthening:Open competition for the mini-grant. The RFA was announced to the entire faculty and presented to those interested. The submissions were sent directly to AHEED and reviewers by UH faculty who independently conducted the merit of the proposals.

TABLE 5.Improved Institutional Capacity to Address Local, Regional, and National Development Goals Please mark (X) if your partnership was engaged in the following capacity strengthening activities benefitting the host country and U.S. institution(s) during this reporting period (4/1/2010 -9/30/2010). Describe briefly.

ACTIVITY Yes No Description

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Promoted workforce development X New courses taught by UH professors in conjunction with AUT faculty is intended to teach new teaching methods for AUT instructors to improve their teaching skills

Involved in community outreach (knowledge to the people) – oral and/or written

X A 2nd annual economics symposium gave the general public and agricultural stakeholders the opportunity to gain knowledge and access information that may be beneficial to them

Informed policy at local, community, and/or national levels

X Olive oil study was presented to stakeholders (Introduction video attached)

Worked with government agencies, NGOs, and/or private sector groups

X Through AHEED, AUT has been in an agreement with AAC and DSA Consult giving opportunities for collaborative research and internships for AUT students

Promoted economic growth X The research done with the support of AHEED is geared toward looking at the agricultural issues and finding issues and recommending viable solutions to these problems

Promoted democracy and good governance X All Mini-grants and travel grants were widely publicized to encourage everyone interested to apply. Conflict of interests were avoided through external reviews

Worked to improve host country health XPromoted environmental protection/preservation X The results of the research works look at finding efficient ways to

increase agriculture and environmental protectionsOther work towards host country development goals:

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III. PARTNERSHIP PROFILE, SUCCESS, AND DISSEMINATION

1. In approximately one page or less, please provide an executive summary of your higher education partnership, as described in the partnership sub-agreement. This profile piece will provide us with valuable information for reports to USAID and to the higher education community—critical material for verbal discussions, printed reports, and on-line publications. The profile should include:

Key development issue(s) being addressed; Overall objective(s) for the partnership; Primary activities of the partnership; Outcomes this fiscal year.

2. Include one or two well-crafted success stories related to your partnership (see attached success story

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Key development issue(s) being addressedThe key development issue being addressed is the economic development of Albania’s agriculture sector primarily through training faculty, students and extension personnel as a long approach to enhance capacity and also improving the local work force by integrating research and extension.

Overall objective(s) for the partnership;The overall objective for the partnership is to strengthen the Agricultural University in Tirana/Faculty of Economy and Agribusinesses (FEA) faculty’s capacity to provide quality graduate education and to build capacity for effective training, consulting and advising to the Ministry of Agriculture, extension agencies, and producer associations.

Primary activities of the partnership; Providing mentorship to students and others through AUT and ATTC Presenting mini workshops for teaching improvements and research Presentations of research in local and international conference Providing mini-grants for research work Strengthening ATTC and the relationship between AUT and MOA

Outcomes this fiscal year.The IAMA conference in Boston, MA was a great opportunity for the AUT and UH faculty and students given them the opportunity to participate and gain knowledge and experience at a well-known international level conference. Of the 4 papers and 2 posters submitted, one paper was chosen as one of the 10 Best Paper Finalist. This paper would go on to be published in the IAMA review. Another conference, the 2nd Annual Economics Symposium, was held in Albania in July 2010 which was attended by a wide variety of stakeholders and consumers. This annual symposium has offered a great platform for AUT faculty and students to present their research work and to share that knowledge as well as increase their networking. Forty four males and 38 females contributed to this conference. This annual symposium also gives stakeholders the chance to network and share ideas with others and with the general public. Research work for AUT faculty and students have increased through AHEED that has sponsored 6 Mini-grant proposals of which 2 are being funded through Albanian USAID Mission via the World Learning center in Albania. These mini grants were proposed by AUT faculty and their collaborators totally 16 persons who gained experience in the process of applying for funding of research work. Also the matching funds from AUT/FEA in cash was $2,885 USD and in-kind was $12,500 USD. Currently, the work for the funded research is still in progress, but the researchers are intending to present their research at the IAMA conference in 2011, but also aim to present in other international conference for further experience. Dr. Carl Evensen, an extension specialist from the University of Hawaii, had met and evaluated ATTC to find the challenges and issues that needed to be resolved in order to strengthen the centers and also opportunities for better integration of research and extension at AUT. The success of AHEED meeting its goals and accomplishing its activities had given the project the opportunity to extend for a 4th year. The fourth year will be looking at continued improvement of teaching methods, exposure of AUT Faculty to more international conferences to increase networking and gain more knowledge of their field, and increasing their opportunities to apply for more grants to fund their research.

outline as a guide).

Success Story

How about some lamb with your olives? Research Success Leads to More Opportunities in Albania Albania-Hawaii Higher Education and Economic Development partnership (AHEED)University of Hawai’i (UH) / Agriculture University of Tirana, Albania (AUT)

Researchers in developing countries often have trouble securing funding for studies that will help their country move forward. Help in setting the table for further research is key to building sustainable capacity for such researchers. Two young lecturers at AUT have discovered that their HED-assisted activities and research not only help Albania’s agricultural development, but attract further opportunities from other funding sources.

Drini Imami and Edvin Zhllima are both Ph.D. candidates at University of Bologna and lecturers at AUT in the Faculty of Economy and Agribusiness. Drini and Edvin both grew up in Tirana and have high hopes for agricultural development in Albania. Over the past few years they’ve taken part in AHEED’s

capacity-building activities. Both Edvin and Drini attended workshops on grant and journal articles. Not long after, they collaborated with UH partners for studies on wine and olive oil to help Albanian agricultural industries adapt to domestic consumer demand. Their research included cutting-edge methods, Conjoint-Based Choice experimentation and Latent-class analysis.

Through AHEED facilitation, Drini was invited to present a paper in an FAO workshop at the 2009 International Food and Agribusiness Management Association (IFAMA) Conference in Budapest. With their UH partners, Drini and Edvin submitted and presented papers on olive oil and wine consumer preferences at IFAMA Boston, 2010. Their olive oil presentation was greeted with enthusiastic interest and they were among the top-ten finalists for Best Paper of Conference. This success encouraged Drini and Edvin to publish the paper in IFAMA’s academic journal in November 2010. Their research success did not go unnoticed.

Drini and Edvin were recently funded by the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) to study the lamb meat market using the methods they learned. The research will include MS. II students at AUT and a UNDP meeting will be held with participation of livestock and farmer associations, the Ministry of Agriculture, and the donor community. Discussion on future activities of the project is expected to further encourage the type of work that Edvin and Drini are undertaking. Most recently, Drini and Edvin are working on new projects funded through AHEED’s USAID assistance. Drini is part of a team at AUT studying consumer preferences for apple fruits in Albania and Edvin is part of another team analyzing preference for the table olive. These studies will help local agricultural stakeholders set priorities and improve their domestic market share. Soon more studies and academic publications will be on the table with the names Edvin Zhllima and Drini Imami as authors. AHEED, through USAID/HED assistance, has been working to set that table for Albanian agricultural development by building sustainable capacity. Thus, USAID/HED assistance is instrumental in enabling these young scholars to publish in international referred journals but also in developing research capacities and know-how in the field of consumer studies which are very much needed for policymakers and private enterprises in a dynamic market transition country like Albania.

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3. How has information about your partnership been disseminated during this reporting period?

If appropriate, please provide HED with samples of the following as attachments to this report:

Photographs (enclose prints or a CD-rom with high resolution images); Articles publishes in the campus, local, national, or international media; Papers published or presented; Features in any other media.

Please note that any photos submitted are intended to be used for USG publicity materials. USAID and HED reserve the right to use these images in its fact sheets, success stories, presentations, website, and other outreach materials. Please include a caption and photo credit information with the images.

4. We invite you to share any additional information or comments about your partnership.

Additional attachments:

1. Mini-Grant RFP2. Olive Oil Paper published in IAMA Review3. Matching Grant Dollars from Aut/FEA4. Video of Drini Imami talk on the Olive Oil paper invited by IAMA publisher.

THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION!

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Glossary of Terms

Capacity:Usually considered mental and/or physical ability to produce and/or perform; learning, improving;

Human Capacity Strengthening focuses on the development of people’s knowledge and skills, not things. Helping people identify what they would like to see changed, learn new skills to achieve what they believe is most important.

Institutional Capacity Strengthening focuses on institutional changes that will improve the operation of the institution and its ability to provide quality higher education.

Community Institutions/Stakeholders:Examples Government agencies and ministries Private for profit groups/businesses Not-for-profit, non-government agencies (NGO)

Cost Share Contributions:Cash and in-kind contributions that are: (1) verifiable from the applicant’s records (i.e., auditable); (2) not included as contributions for any other federally-assisted program; (3) reasonable for the accomplishment of partnership objectives; and (4) not paid by the federal government under another grant.

Degree Training:A learning activity taking place in the U.S., host country, or a third country, which may eventually result in a bachelor, master or doctoral degree, conferred by a higher education institution. 

Formal Non-Degree Training: certificate, diplomado, specialization

Non-Degree Training: A learning activity taking place in the U.S., a third country, or in-country in a setting predominantly intended for teaching or imparting knowledge and information to the participants with designated instructors or lead persons, learning objectives, and outcomes, conducted fulltime or intermittently.

The transfer of knowledge, skills, or attitudes (KSAs) through structured learning and follow-up activities, or through less structured means, to solve problems or fill identified performance gaps. Non-degree training can consist of short- or long-term technical courses in academic or in other settings, non-academic seminars, workshops, on-the-job learning experiences, observational study tours, or distance learning exercises or interventions. Non-degree training may also include printed educational materials.

Double Counting:Something to be avoided when reporting numbers of participants or recipients taking part in partnership activities. A participant/recipient can be counted and reported only once each year even though the person is still participating each reporting period. If the person is involved in mutually exclusive activities, then he/she can be counted once a year for each activity. At the end of the year, we add together numbers from the semi-annual reports. Thus it is important that individuals are reported only once a year for each activity.

Dual Degree Program:An academic program in which an individual receives a degree from each institution (host country and U.S.) for academic work completed at both institutions. The work may be completed on campus or via distance education.

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Joint Degree Program: An academic program in which an individual receives one degree (with both institutions named on the diploma) for academic work completed at host country and U.S. institutions. The work may be completed on campus or via distance education.

Exchange:An institutional visit by a representative from a HCN or a U.S. institution for partnership related activities (excluding scholarships and internships).

HCN:A Host Country National may be an individual or institution in a partnership.

Internship:This service learning activity complements a participant’s academic study, training or research and may take place in the U.S., a third country, or in-country. It is not defined as training.

Leveraged Contributions: Additional financial or in-kind donations made as a result of an HED partnership beyond the originally agreed-upon cost-share; often only an estimated value available.

Objective:An objective answers two questions: (1) What activity will occur?; and (2) What is expected as the outcome or change as a result of this activity?

Example:University partnership faculty from the United States and Mexico will recruit and train eight long-term degree scholarship recipients for graduate degrees in natural resource management (NRM) resulting in at least six of the recipients returning to full-time teaching positions in a newly established NRM program at Universidad de Vásquez.

Activity:Something that happens or is done

Outcome/Result:An effect or an expected change as a consequence of an activity

Scholarship: Funding for host country national participants for one or more semesters in the United States, in a host country university or in a third country. It may include specialty training and/or sabbaticals. Scholarships may be funded by the partner institution(s), the private or public sectors, and/or U.S. government.

Workforce Development Programs: Workforce development programs include technical and vocational education programs and workforce readiness programs.

Examples: Delivering adult education, basic skills training, and/or high school equivalency programs; Delivering vocational education programs for youth. Connecting individuals with job search training and skills training through one-stop centers; Linking intermediary organizations, such as the Chamber of Commerce, in school- to-work partnerships. Offering employee development, career development, and organization development programs

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Partnership Success Stories

Higher Education for Development (HED) enjoys highlighting partnership success stories and photographs to educate the public about our programs, explain how U.S. development assistance works, and demonstrate the impact U.S. Agency for International Development-funded projects have on peoples' lives around the world. We want to convey information that the everyday reader can care about and understand. A Success Story does this by describing how an individual or community benefitted from our projects or programs, illustrated by a powerful photograph. The story should introduce the challenge, character, or opportunity, briefly explain the HED partnership and describe the end result or benefit.

Situation/Setting Problem/Challenge Project (what/why)- goal/purpose Solution/Results/Value

HeadlineGood headlines or titles are simple, jargon-free, and have impact; they summarize the story in a nutshell; and include action verbs that bring the story to life. Your headline should include few words.

SubheadIf you wish to provide a subhead, it should expand on the headline, humanize the story, or highlight a key fact.

Story CopySuccess stories will vary depending on the details of specific projects. Stories will resonate if they are personalized to show the impact of programs for specific individuals or groups affected by the project and relates to greater community, regional, or global needs. They should highlight how challenges were resolved or make explicit and illustrative the results of our programs. Depending on the specifics of a project, the success stories can be crafted to highlight our impact with a few different styles.

HED success stories online are roughly 150-200 words, but longer formats of up to 1,000 words coincide with USAID’s word limit and would be useful for information kits and other promotional purposes as well.

General Success StoriesThe introduction should showcase the challenge a person or group encountered and the context of the partnership. Presenting a conflict or sharing a first person account are two good ways to grab the reader's attention. Continue by describing what action was taken to improve the situation and briefly describe the project, highlighting HED’s role (as well as other stakeholders like USAID and/or university partners). Finally describe the end result or benefit. What changed for the person or community? What was learned? What was received? What was the impact? How did this make a difference in the community or country overall? (350-500 words)

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Case StudyThe case study is a more succinct snapshot of a partnership’s success that highlights three aspects, the challenge, initiative, and results. Challenge: states the problem, issue or opportunity. (Up to 150 words.)Initiative: The initiative should be strategic in nature and explain what partnership programs addressed the challenge and how they responded to host country needs. (Up to 150 words.)Results: This last paragraph represents the end result or benefit — what changed, what was learned, what was received. Try to use quantitative measures and illustrative, tangible results when possible. We want to show strong impact. (Up to 150 words.)

Before and AfterA Before and After comparison can also highlight partnership impacts visually and in narrative form This example should broadly explain why the partnership initiative was needed and how it helped or affected the community. (Up to 250 words.) Graphic depictions of the contrast will strengthen the piece.

First PersonFirst person stories should be told from the beneficiaries of HED’s partnerships. They focus on one person who benefited from the project or worked to create change in the community and should provide a compelling account of how partnerships make a difference. These stories should include a quote and photo. (Up to 350 words.)

Photos & Quotes: Accompanying the StoryStrong images and interesting quotes grab readers and pique their curiosity to read a story. Provide a quote that represents and summarizes the story. This 10-20 word quote should capture the success of the program and will be highlighted in the piece. Please be sure to identify the source of the quote (name, title, affiliation).

Your photograph will bring the story to life. The photo should be colorful, depict action, capture people's attention, and feature a main character prominently if possible.

Photograph Specifications: The preferred format for photos are .jpg, .bmp, or .gif file, with at least 300 dpi (dots per inch). Digital photos should be shot with at least a 3-megapixel resolution. The larger the file, the better the quality and final result.

Please also include with photos: Permission to use photograph Photographer's name and organization Caption: A sentence of about 15 words that briefly summarizes what is occurring in the

photograph. Please specify who is in the image, what they are doing, when (if relevant), and where they are.

For archival purposes: date, HED partnership title, country (and region/city) of photo.

For more information on creating success stories, please visit USAID’s “Telling Our Story” section at http://www.usaid.gov/stories/guidelines.html.

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Proposals for the Mini-Grant

Matching dollars for the mini-grant

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