‘ISTC has a long standing policy to encourage knowledge transfer among its States Parties through doctorial scholarships for young researchers who return from Europe to their countries of origin to engage in practical application of the acquired skills ’, stated ISTC Executive Director David Cleave speaking at the 7th International Meeting of the National Focal Points of the EU CBRN Risk Mitigation Centres of Excellence Initiative, taking place in Belgium.  The same guidelines applied for the call for proposals which was published in the framework of the EU- funded ISTC Targeted Initiative ‘CBRN Export Control on Dual-Use Materials and Intangible Technologies in CENTRAL ASIAN Countries ‘.

The International Science and Technology Center (ISTC) awarded its 2019 Doctoral Research Grant to Mr. Zhanat Baigazinov, an outstanding young scholar from the Center of Radioecological Research, Shakarim State University of Semey, East Kazakhstan. Mr. Baigazinov will conduct research on the general methodology for assessing the content of artificial radionuclides, supervised by Dr. Kovacs Tibor, Head of the Institute of Radiochemistry and Radioecology, University of Pannonia, Hungary. At the same time, he will carry out the experimental work at the former Semipalatinsk Test Range, working at the laboratory of the Institute of Radiation Safety and Ecology NNC RK. This Institute served at an identification center for the purposes of the export control system of Kazakhstan.