MENA Special Initiatives

The IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society is pleased to announce the following three initiatives open to all remote sensing communities in the Middle-East and North Africa (MENA) area.

MENA awards Social media

1.  BEST 2015-2019 MENA RESEARCH AWARD

Objective: recognize the achievement performed by the best MENA research teams in one of the fields of interest of the IEEE GRSS which are the theory, concepts, and techniques of science and engineering as they apply to the remote sensing of the earth, oceans, atmosphere, and space, as well as the processing, interpretation, and dissemination of this information. The evaluation will be performed by a team of five international experts.

The achievements which will be admitted for evaluation are:

  • any GRSS journal or magazine publication (TGRS, JSTARS, GRSL, GRSM) published between 2015-2019
  • any publication in a conference technically, financially (co-)sponsored, or supported by GRSS, and organized between 2015-2019
  • any research project aiming at developing activities and products in MENA, and funded by a governmental or private entity.

The final project deliverables have to be finalized in the period 2015-2019. In the above three cases, at least 50% of the research team should be affiliated to a MENA institution.

Each research team can submit only one achievement.

Application: please send the following documentation:

  • pdf copy of the achievement (paper, or in case of a project: description of the project and its deliverables)
  • accompanying letter in pdf format motivating why it is believed the submitted achievement deserves to be awarded
  • at least 2 letters of endorsement

Submission deadline: August 31, 2020

Evaluation outcome: September 30, 2020

Prizes: 1st ranked ($1000), 2nd ranked ($750), 3rd ranked ($500)

Contact Person: Farid Melgani (melgani@disi.unitn.it)

 

2. BEST MENA PHD 3MT AWARD 

3MT®, founded by the University of Queensland in 2008, is an academic competition that cultivates students’ presentation and research communication skills and challenges them to describe their research within three minutes to a general audience with one static slide. It is an amazing experience for students to show their presentation skills and be rewarded for their research idea and motivation in a simple and interesting way.

The competition is open to all PhD students affiliated to a MENA institution.

There will be two stages in the competition. First, submission of a 5-minute video describing the thesis/research topic by uploading it to a video platform (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.) or a site accessible only by the evaluation committee with a private URL by September 15, 2020 using the form below.

The top 10 submissions will be selected by September 30, 2020 and then invited for a final remote presentation of the three minutes to an international evaluation committee on Zoom platform. The top 3 presentations will be then announced.

The topic of the thesis/research should be closely linked to one of the fields of interest of the IEEE GRSS which are the theory, concepts, and techniques of science and engineering as they apply to the remote sensing of the earth, oceans, atmosphere, and space, as well as the processing, interpretation, and dissemination of this information.

The initial Video submission has to be done using this form:

forms.gle/EDT2iYw7HU3gAKA C6

Timeline of the competitions:
Submission deadline: September 15, 2020

First-stage outcome: September 30, 2020

Virtual competition and second-stage outcome: October 15, 2020

Prizes: 1st ranked ($1000), 2nd ranked ($750), 3rd ranked ($500)

Contact person: Fairouz Stambouli (Fairouz.stambouli@dlr.de)

 

3. BEST MENA MASTER 3MT AWARD

3MT®, founded by the University of Queensland in 2008, is an academic competition that cultivates students’ presentation and research communication skills and challenges them to describe their research within three minutes to a general audience with one static slide. It is an amazing experience for students to show their presentation skills and be rewarded for their research idea and motivation in a simple and interesting way.

The competition is open to all Master students affiliated to a MENA institution.

There will be two stages in the competition. First, submission of a 5-minute video describing the thesis/research topic by uploading it to a video platform (YouTube, Vimeo, etc.) or a site accessible only by the evaluation committee with a private URL by September 15, 2020 using the form below.

The top 10 submissions will be selected by September 30, 2020 and then invited for a final remote presentation of the three minutes to an international evaluation committee on Zoom platform. The top 3 presentations will be then announced.

The topic of the thesis/research should be closely linked to one of the fields of interest of the IEEE GRSS which are the theory, concepts, and techniques of science and engineering as they apply to the remote sensing of the earth, oceans, atmosphere, and space, as well as the processing, interpretation, and dissemination of this information.

The initial Video submission has to be done using this form:

forms.gle/REod74YVkmPLo3589

Timeline of the competitions:

Submission deadline: September 15, 2020

First-stage outcome: September 30, 2020

Virtual competition and second-stage outcome: October 15, 2020

Prizes: 1st ranked ($1000), 2nd ranked ($750), 3rd ranked ($500)

Contact person: Fairouz Stambouli (Fairouz.stambouli@dlr.de)

3MT Final Round Competition Rules

General rules

  • A single static PowerPoint slide is permitted. No slide transitions, animations or ‘movement’ of any description are allowed. The slide is to be presented from the beginning of the oration.
  • No additional electronic media (e.g. sound and video files) are permitted.
  • No additional props (e.g. costumes, musical instruments, laboratory equipment) are
  • Presentations are limited to 3 minutes maximum and competitors exceeding 3 minutes
    are disqualified.
  • Presentations are to be spoken word (e.g. no poems, raps or songs).
  • Presentations are to commence from the stage.
  • Presentations are considered to have commenced when a presenter starts their
    presentation through either movement or speech.
  • The decision of the adjudicating panel is final.

Comprehension and content

  • Did the presentation provide an understanding of the background and significance to the research question being addressed, while explaining terminology and avoiding jargon?
  • Did the presentation clearly describe the impact and/or results of the research, including conclusions and outcomes?
  • Did the presentation follow a clear and logical sequence?
  • Was the thesis topic, research significance, results/impact and outcomes communicated
    in language appropriate to a non-specialist audience?
  • Did the presenter spend adequate time on each element of their presentation – or did they elaborate for too long on one aspect or was the presentation rushed?

Engagement and communication

  • Did the oration make the audience want to know more?
  • Was the presenter careful not to trivialize or generalize their research?
  • Did the presenter convey enthusiasm for their research?
  • Did the presenter capture and maintain their audience’s attention?
  • Did the speaker have sufficient stage presence, eye contact, and vocal range; maintain a steady pace, and have a confident stance?
  • Did the PowerPoint slide enhance the presentation – was it clear, legible, and concise?