By Office of Communications and Public Affairs
6 January 2026 – The Asian Institute of Technology welcomed Dr. Christopher J. Elias, President of Global Development at the Gates Foundation, to campus for a high-level strategic dialogue on advancing global development through applied research, innovation, and systems-level solutions.
The delegation was welcomed by Dr. Anat Arbhabhirama, Chairman of AIT’s Board of Trustees, and Prof. Pai-Chi Li, AIT President.
The dialogue explored how AIT’s institutional strengths, interdisciplinary platforms, and implementation experience can further support the Foundation’s global agenda, with emphasis on scalable and time-bound impact across key sectors. Priority areas discussed included water and sanitation, digital public infrastructure, climate adaptation and resilience, health innovation, agriculture, and environmental surveillance.
AIT President Prof. Pai-Chi Li welcomed the delegation and reflected on more than a decade of collaboration. “We sincerely appreciate the Foundation’s trust and support over the years, from sanitation innovation and the Global Water & Sanitation Center (GWSC) to aquaculture and emerging areas such as digital public infrastructure. We look forward to strengthening this partnership through new, impactful initiatives,” he said.
Dr. Elias underscored the importance of alignment between institutional strengths and global priorities. “We have built a strong, decade-long partnership with AIT, starting with the Reinvented Toilet work, expanding through the GWSC, and more recently extending into areas such as digital public infrastructure, agriculture, and aquaculture. We form partnerships by aligning our strategic priorities with a partner’s strengths, and we are eager to deepen our work together to deliver real impact for communities.”
He also highlighted the Foundation’s focused, time-bound strategy through 2045 and identified priority areas for continued engagement, particularly climate adaptation, environmental surveillance, digital public infrastructure (DPI), and agriculture, encouraging stronger links between AIT’s capabilities and the Foundation’s program teams going forward.
Dr. Roshan R. Shrestha, Member of the AIT Board of Trustees and Senior Strategic Advisor to the AIT President, highlighted the significance of the visit. “Hosting senior leadership from the Gates Foundation is a meaningful milestone in our long-standing partnership. It allows AIT to showcase its applied research capabilities and explore deeper collaboration aligned with the Foundation’s mission and timelines,” he said.
The Foundation delegation included Dr. Jamal Khan, Regional Representative for Policy & Government Relations for South and Southeast Asia, and Zachary Wheeler, Senior Associate, Albright Stonebridge Group.
The dialogue reviewed the long-standing partnership and identified priority areas to expand collaboration, including water and sanitation, digital public infrastructure, aquaculture, climate resilience, health innovations, and environmental surveillance.
Prof. Sangam Shrestha and Prof. Thammarat Koottatep, Co-Directors of the Global Water & Sanitation Center (GWSC), opened the session with an overview of AIT and reflections on AIT’s long-standing collaboration with the Gates Foundation.
This was followed by presentations from AIT faculty and staff highlighting applied research, development, and innovation across priority themes. Water and sanitation solutions were presented by Prof. Thammarat and Ms. Isha Bhasyal, Deputy COO, GWSC. Digital public infrastructure (DPI) was presented by Associate Prof. Dr. Chutiporn Anutariya and Assistant Prof. Dr. Chantri Polprasert (Computer Science and Information Management), while the Integrated Municipal Information System (IMIS) was presented by Dr. Sanjeev Neupane (GWSC).
Agriculture and aquaculture innovations were presented by Associate Prof. Dr. Ha Thanh Dong (Aquaculture and Aquatic Resources Management – AARM) and Assistant Prof. Dr. Mohana Sundaram Shanmugham (Water Engineering and Management – WEM). Climate adaptation and climate-resilient health systems were discussed through perspectives shared by Prof. Sangam and Ms. Mimansha Joshi, Climate and Health Technical Specialist, the Global Fund.
Health-related innovations were presented by Dr. Kwanrawee Joy Sirikanchana (Chulabhorn Research Institute) and Assistant Prof. Dr. Branesh M. Pillai (Medical Engineering). Disaster preparedness and response efforts were highlighted by Associate Prof. Dr. Indrajit Pal (Disaster Preparedness, Mitigation and Management) and Assistant Prof. Dr. Natthachet Tangdamrongsub (Water Engineering and Management).
The presentations highlighted AIT’s applied work and implementation experience, from municipal data platforms, open-source approaches to digital ID, aquaculture capacity building in Africa, and innovations in telehealth and maternal health, and disaster preparedness solutions alongside partner perspectives on climate-resilient health systems. The delegation also visited the GWSC Office, AI Simulation Lab, Integrated Municipal Information Systems (IMIS) Lab, and NATS Lab, gaining a closer look at AIT’s applied research environment and interdisciplinary facilities. The meeting was also attended by Mr. Agus Nugroho, COO, GWSC, Dr. Atitaya Panuvatvanich, NATS Lab; Dr. Sumana Shrestha, Director, Office of International Affairs and Mr. Sanjeet Amatya, Director of Communication and Public Affairs.
Since 2011, the Gates Foundation has supported AIT through multiple partnership grants, advancing impact-oriented work in water and sanitation innovation, fecal sludge management, decentralized wastewater solutions, laboratory systems strengthening, and aquaculture productivity. These collaborations have reinforced AIT’s role as a regional hub for applied research and global development partnerships.
