Ashok Kuman Mirpuri, Singapore's ambassador to the United States since 2012, will be the featured guest today (Oct. 6) at a UC Davis roundtable discussion on key issues affecting the Asia-Pacific region.

The discussion, organized by the Office of Global Affairs, will be held from 2:30 to 3:45 p.m. in the Founders Room of the Buehler Alumni Center. Admission is free and open to the public; RSVPs are requested.

A career diplomat, Mirpuri has served as ambassador to Indonesia, and high commissioner to Malaysia and Australia.

Moderating the discussion will be Afra Afsharipour, a professor in the School of Law and affiliated with the Middle East/South Asia Studies Program. Afsharipour, whose interests include comparative corporate law, is secretary of the Association of American Law Schools' section on law and South Asian studies.

Panelists include:

• Katharine Burnett, director, East Asian studies
• Beth Greenwood, associate dean, International programs, School of Law and UC DavisExtension
• Darrell Hamamoto, professor, Asian American studies
• Linxia Liang, director, Asian international programs, Global Affairs
• Adrienne Martín, associate vice provost, Global Affairs

The ambassador will also visit UC Davis' California Lighting Technology Center. The center is collaborating with the Singapore Green Building Council and Singapore’s Building and Construction Authority to develop a lighting efficiency demonstration and training center in Singapore.

Law professor named UN special rapporteur

Karima Bennoune, a UC Davis law professor with expertise in international human rights, has been appointed as a special rapporteur to the UN Human Rights Council, to advise the council on cultural rights.

She is set to take up her UN role on Nov. 1, while maintaining her position in the law school.

As a UN envoy, she will make official visits around the world; observe and report on the promotion and protection of cultural rights at the local, national, regional and international levels; identify possible obstacles to the promotion and protection of cultural rights; and make recommendations to the council on possible actions.

“I am truly delighted to have this opportunity to contribute to the advancement of human rights, especially in the current challenging global context,” Bennoune said. “As special rapporteur, I will work tirelessly to promote the human right to culture. The struggle to defend cultural rights is of global, national and personal significance everywhere.”

Bennoune is the author of Your Fatwa Does Not Apply Here: Untold Stories from the Fight Against Muslim Fundamentalism, published in 2013. Her TEDxExeter talk on the same subject in 2014 subsequently went online, where viewership surpassed 1 million in just two months and has now surpassed 1.3 million.

Vet students run adoptathon, free clinic

The “oath” is the veterinarian’s oath and “Our Oath in Action” is the event that UC Davis veterinary students and professionals will present this Sunday (Oct. 11): an adoptathon and free clinic from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.

This marks the second year in a row UC Davis students have put on this event. This year’s is in a new location: under the pavilion at Central Park, Third and C streets, Davis.

Animal shelters and rescue organizations will participate in the adoptathon, which will feature a variety of species. Students will collect pet food and other supplies for donation to the organization that adopts out the greatest number of animals.

Students will work with veterinarians to provide free vaccinations and heartworm testing for adopted animals, and free exams and microchipping for other pets.

The day’s program also incudes an animal photo booth and other fun activities for the family.

The demonstration part of the program has been expanded to include agility and service dogs, a police K9 unit, large-animal rescue and pet CPR, as well as training and grooming.

Our Oath in Action is a program of the American Veterinary Medical Foundation, which provided grant support for the UC Davis event last year and this year. Only eight projects won funding this year, nationwide.

Opening doors to health care professions

The 13th annual UC Davis Pre-Medical and Pre-Health Professions National Conference — the largest conference of its kind in the country — will be held this weekend (Oct. 10 and 11). Organizers estimated attendance of more than 8,000: community college and university students, others who already have bachelor's degrees, and counselors

The program features sessions to help students from historically underrepresented communities see themselves in the medical and health professions and overcome obstacles that may stand in the way.

The student-run conference also explores health disparities and how the students can contribute to addressing them, and provides hands-on experiences — from handling horses to assisting in the emergency delivery of a baby mannequin.

Read the complete news release.

Fair Wage/Fair Work: More information

UC Davis Human Resources and Contracting Services have developed webpages with information on UC's new Fair Wage/Fair Work policy, under which the university's minimum wage will rise in increments to $15 over the next two years.

Under the policy, the university established a $13-per-hour minimum wage effective Oct. 1, and has scheduled a bump to $14 on Oct. 1, 2016, and a bump tp $15 a year after that.

With some exceptions, the policy applies to all UC employees who are hired to work at least 20 hours per week, according to HR's Fair Wage/Fair Work webpage.

University contractors and subcontractors also must comply, with some exceptions. UC Davis officials are communicating the new policy to vendors, and Contracting Services has posted more information here.

UC Office of the President answers frequently asked questions.

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