My name is Abdullah Ba Gunaid and I was born and raised in the beautiful city of Aden, Yemen, along with all my dreams that grew up with me in that city. The people there are very kind, so I always dreamt that I would help them have better lives.  When I graduated from high school, I qualified for a scholarship given by The Hadhramout Foundation to study abroad in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in September 2011. This was the first step towards achieving my goals, and through the hard work and effort I put into that stage, I graduated with a GPA of 3.94. Thankfully the Hadhramout Foundation has given me another scholarship to pursue my higher education at one of the most prestigious American universities in the field of mechanical engineering. It’s the second major step towards helping me to make my dreams come true, so I’m dedicating all my effort to thrive and follow my passion.

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My master’s project involves working with a solar energy research team on a solar tower project. More specifically, I will be working on an indirect heat exchanger. It is an important component of the project to transfer the heat gained by the working fluid to the water. I am trying to maximize my knowledge in the area of energy production using solar energy so that I can help tackle the energy shortage in the country, which was a problem even before the war. The country has great resources in terms of solar irradiance, and the usage of solar energy has the potential to partially solve this chronic problem. When the time is right, after my education and some practical training, I will do my very best to help bring this technology to Yemen.