Georg Forster Research Fellow as guest
Dr. Shazia Iftikhar is Professor of Environmental Sciences at Fatima Jinnah Women University in Rawalpindi, Pakistan and a DAAD and Alexander von Humboldt Fellow. She is currently visiting Prof. Dr. Elke Hertig, Professor of Regional Climate Change and Health, for three months (1 November 2023 to 31 January 2024) as a Georg Forster Fellow of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation. The aim of the visit is to develop scientific collaborations and publish jointly: "I am currently working on a systematic review and meta-analysis of the health consequences of smog and air pollution in Pakistan. I would like to establish cooperation with Germany on this," says the environmental scientist, describing her plans for her stay in Augsburg. Prof. Iftikhar has over 20 years of teaching and research experience and has supervised numerous students at undergraduate (BS), graduate (M.Phil or MS) and doctoral levels. Her research areas are plant pathology, ecotoxicology, bioremediation and molecular biology. In 2008, she received the Pakistan Higher Education Commission Award for Best Teacher in a University. She is currently supervising BS, M.Phil and Ph.D students in Pakistan. From 2004 to 2006, she worked as an assistant professor at the University of Punjab in Lahore before moving to Fatima Jinnah Women's University. Prof. Iftikhar has established the Environmental Mycology and Ecotoxicology Laboratory at Fatima Jinnah Women's University through her research work. She conducted national and international projects and published her scientific papers in reputed national and international journals. She is the author of several books and has published book chapters with world renowned publishers. Georg Forster Research Fellowship for Sustainable Development: The Alexander von Humboldt Foundation awards Georg Forster Research Fellowships to researchers of all disciplines from developing and emerging countries with above-average qualifications. With this fellowship, the Humboldt Foundation recognizes the importance of researchers from these countries in achieving the 17 UN Sustainable Development Goals and thus enables them to receive funding equivalent to the Humboldt Research Fellowship.