The Regional Council and the Northeast Linkage Network of the National Association of Universities and Higher Education Institutions (Asociación Nacional de Universidades e Instituciones de Educación Superior, ANUIES) recognized the Autonomous University of Sinaloa (Universidad Autónoma de Sinaloa, UAS) for achieving first place at the Most Successful Linkage Experience of an HEI, TI and IC Award, granted by the 2015-2016 ANUIES’ Regional Council and the Northeast Linkage Network. The decoration was received by José Ramón López Arellano, as a representative of the institution.

The general director of UAS’ Technological Innovation Park (Parque de Innovación Tecnológica, PIT) informed that, through the university centre of innovation he heads, the leading academic institution of Sinaloa was awarded thanks to the Smart Eco-Park PIT-UAS project, an integral ecological model that aims for the introduction of sustainability and the internet of things in urban areas, such as the systems implemented inside of the Park’s facilities.

The recognition was granted during the ANUIES session recently celebrated at Mazatlán city. According to Lopez Arellano, the project was evaluated by external advisors, independent of the universities, and it raised a great interest among the institutions, given the complexity involved and the factors that take part on this development.

«The elements taken into consideration for this evaluation are the impact in society and who are the people integrated for the development of this work, performed by an interdisciplinary team of university academics. The project is linked to a local enterprise… in general, we talk about improvement of an urban area endorsed by a vertical garden, the implementation of three solar trackers, an intelligent parking system and also a combustion car’s changeover to an electric one», the general director of PIT-UAS announced.

Additionally, he explained that there were two main aspects taken under consideration by the evaluators that allowed them to grant UAS with the award: the unity between the local enterprise HunabSys and the consensus inside the university for the establishment of interdisciplinary groups that keep directly in touch with the enterprises, accomplishing thus impact inside and outside the institution.

López Arellano highlighted the importance of the linkage that UAS keeps whit local and regional enterprises, because this concedes a main focus in academic research and the prompt solving of social environment needs. The linkage plan strengthens thanks to the government’s support to count on resources that lead to ease this collaborative work.

Source: http://dcs.uas.edu.mx/index.php?sec=3&op=2&tipo=i&id_noticia=6761 translated by Belem Ruiz (Edition and Communication, PIT-UAS).