The year 2008 may well be remembered as a watershed moment when global warming and collapsing economies jarred the planet’s collective consciousness to consider sustainable approaches to living. As AIT approached its 50th anniversary, it responded to these great challenges by positioning itself as a regional educational and research thought leader to combat climate change and poverty. Significantly, in march, AIT was designated by the United Nations as the world’s first Regional Center of Excellence on the millennium Development Goals (mDGs). This recognized AIT as the permanent regional site dedicated to the promotion and achievement of the mDGs in Southeast Asia (ASEAN) through education and training. AIT also began to focus its research on climate change. Together with a number of partners, AIT laid the groundwork for an eventual center of excellence for the study of climate change adaptation and mitigation in the developing world.
