This strong commitment to the existing partnership between SABIC and KAUST by Al-Mady comes at a time when SABIC’s funding and collaborative research with the university marks its first year this month. The IAC, in which Al-Mady is an active member, plays an advisory role on the overall academic development of the university.

At the dinner reception, Al-Mady thanked KAUST’s strong research team for the tremendous progress they have made in advancing research just within a year of interaction. He said that SABIC would continue to work toward strengthening its research collaboration with the scientific community for the betterment of society.

Among those who attended the event were Amin Shibani, interim VP economic development, the 2011 SABIC post-doctoral fellows and their research advisors, and SABIC direct research collaborators. SABIC funds 15 post-doctoral researchers and multiple research projects, with their benefits reaching well beyond the company’s business interests.

The SABIC researchers and their partners work in critical areas of significant value to Saudi Arabia, the region and the world. The research areas covered are renewable energies, water research, advanced materials, catalysis, scientific computational services, renewable feedstocks, materials engineering, and nanotechnologies.