A doctoral alumnus of Waterloo Engineering has won an international award to continue her research on crop stress in her native Jordan.
Heba Alzaben, who earned a PhD in mechanical engineering in 2020, received the equivalent of about $15,000 through the L’Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science Young Talents Program in a region that includes Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine and the Syrian Arab Republic.
Her research involves the use of thermal remote sensing to detect crop stress at an early stage, allowing farmers to reduce water and air pollution by using fewer chemicals.
“My research has the potential not only to help farmers save costs, but also to enable them to do agricultural work in a more environmentally friendly way,” she said.
Alzaben knew she wanted to be a scientist as a young teenager and was encouraged to study engineering by her civil engineer father.
After returning to Jordan following her studies in Waterloo, she has worked in academia to advance the research she pursued for her PhD.
The L’Oréal-UNESCO program identifies and rewards talented young female researchers in the life sciences and physical sciences.
Alzaben would also like to acknowledge her PhD supervisor, Roydon Fraser for his support during her studies. "Prof. Fraser helped me a lot in developing my research skills and I thank him very much". Further she said, "this opportunity will be a collaboration with the University of Waterloo, I will be working on this project during the Spring 2022 collecting temperature and emissivity data."