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Minyahl Teferi Desta (PhD)

Specialization: Petrology
Email: mintfr09@gmail.com / minyahl.teferi@bdu.edu.et.
Phone:+251973111585
P.O.Box: 79
Zenzelima Campus, Office No.: 156
Bahir Dar University
Bahir Dar, Ethiopia

  • Education : 

    • PhD in Earth science (Geochemistry), Department of Earth Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan. (September, 2015)
       Dissertation: “Petrogenesis of Triassic gabbros and associated basalts from Chukotka (NE Russia): implications for eastern margin of Siberian LIP”
       GPA: 4.0/4.0
       Advisor: Prof. Akira Ishiwatari
       Discipline: Petrology, Geochemistry, Mineral Chemistry

    • Master of Earth Science (Petrology), Department of Earth Science, Tohoku University, Sendai, Japan. September, 2012. GPA: 4.0/4.0
       Graduate courses: Analytical techniques, Mineral and Rock Sciences, Igneous and Metamorphic petrology, Field Science, Stable Isotope Geochemistry, Origin of Earth and life, Frontiers in Science.
       Research Advisor: Prof. Akira Ishiwatari
       Thesis: “A Comparative petrological study of the Siberian and Ethiopian Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) and A case study on Triassic mafic rocks in Chukotka, NE Russia”
       Discipline: Mineralogy, Geochemistry
       Bachelor of Science (BSc) in Applied Geology, Faculty of Science and Technology, Mekelle University, Mekelle, Ethiopia. July, 2008.
       Cumulative GPA: 3.51/4.00
       Related course work: Crystallography and mineral optics, applied mathematics I and II, Mineralogy, Geochemistry, Igneous petrology, Sedimentary Petrology, metamorphic petrology, structural geology, remote sensing and photo geology,
      tectonics, applied mechanics etc.
       Graduation Project: “Engineering geology and Landslide Assessment and Its Mitigation measures in Adisho Area, Southern Tigray, and Northern Ethiopia”.
       Higher Diploma Program (HDP) in Teaching from College of Education and Behavioral Science, Bahir Dar University, Bahir Dar, Ethiopia. August/01/2024
       Master Class for Teaching Online (open edx) from Arizona State University, January, 2025
       Certificate in higher Education Leadership training organized by BDU LMEU project, from 20th of November 2020 to 5th of March 2021
       Certificate in trainers (ToT) on Leadership and Change Management Prepared by Bahir Dar University, from 23-25 August, 2019
       Certificate in research ethics review and SOP preparation training, organized by BDU with MoSHE, conducted from February 28-29/2024
       Certificate in e-SHE: CE106’s Keeping Yourself safe online training, organized by Ministry of Education in partnership with Arizona State University, MasterCard foundation and Shayashone, January, 23, 2024
       Certificate in e-SHE: CE105’s academic integrity training, organized by Ministry of Education in partnership with Arizona State University, MasterCard foundation and Shayashone, January, 6, 2024
       Certificate in e-SHE: CE104’s Set goals to manage your time training, organized by Ministry of Education in partnership with Arizona State University, MasterCard foundation and Shayashone, January, 23, 2024
       Certificate in “e-SHE: Keeping Yourself safe online” training, organized by Ministry of Education in partnership with Arizona State University, MasterCard foundation and Shayashone, January, 23, 2024
       Certificate in “e-SHE: CE102’s SS5 How to evaluate resources” training, organized by Ministry of Education in partnership with Arizona State University, MasterCard foundation and Shayashone, January, 29, 2025
       International Graduate Program for Advanced Science (IGPAS) scholarship in
      Tohoku University in fall 2010.
       Best Project Certificate in Engineering: My BSc graduation project selected one of the best among other projects executed in applied geology Department in the Faculty of Science and Technology at Mekelle University in academic year 2007/08.

  • Teaching Experience: 

    • Graduate assistant II, Department of Earth Sciences, Mekelle University, Ethiopia (2009).
      Activities done
      - Conducted office hours to assist students in practical classes (such as crystallography, mineralogy and structural geology).
      - Prepared course handouts for students.
      - Assisting the senior lecturers.
    •  Assistant lecturer, Department of Earth Sciences, Mekelle University, Ethiopia (2010)
      Activities done
      - Prepared and delivered practical and theoretical lectures.
      - Managed geological field trips (Igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary
      terrain mapping practicals).

    • Assistant Professor of Petrology and geochemistry, Department of Geology, School of Earth Scinces, Bahir Dar University since, 2015 to present
       Instructor/Lecturer (both for undergraduate and postgraduate programs)
      - Igneous Petrology with practical course

      - Metamorphic Petrology with practical course
      - Crystallography and Mineralogy with their practicals
      - Igneous Terrian Mapping
      - Metamorphic Terrian mapping
      - Ethiopian Geology and Geologic Resources
      - Geochemistry
      - Applied Geochemistry
      - Tectonics
      - Volcanology and Geothermal
       Advised the MSc thesis works of Petrology students

  • Professional and Administrative Experiences:

    • Dean of School of Earth Sciences (Oct 1, 2015 – Jan, 10, 2024)
      Activities done
      - Formulated the Au’s strategic and annual plans and submitting the plan for Academic
      - Communicated and inculcating the Au’s strategy, vision, mission and objective to AU members, and internal and external stakeholders;
      - Developed, together with the AU vice Deans/vice Directors and Academic Council, core process performance standards, procedures and guidelines
      - Oversee the proper functioning of academic unit level administrative bodies (registrar, finance, human resource, general serve, procurement and others)
      - Implemented continuous quality management and process improvement initiatives
      - Ensuring customer and stakeholder satisfaction on the Au’s core processes and programs
      - Developed better work systems, environment and incentive system so as to improve motivation of staff, efficiency and effectiveness
      - Established bilateral and multilateral partnerships with international and local bodies
      - Ensuring the provision of resources, facilities, training and education needed for the Au’s staff;
      - Allocated budget for RCS activities and follow up its proper implementation and utilization.
      - Developed appropriate staff development programs in line with the target performance goals of the Au’s core processes
    • Bahir Dar University Natural History Museum Establishment and scientific committee (2018 to now)
      Activities done
      - Prepared the Natural history museum establishment document
      - Presented the document to the BDU senate members upon approval of the establishment plan
      - Provide advice about the structural design of the Museum
      - Prepare strategic plan
      - Suggest the museum components and organizational structure
      - Collect, analyse and conduct research geological specimens (rock and minerals) for the museum
      - To prepare the scientific aspects of temporary exhibitions
    • Coordinator for more than eight Geological mapping and mineral exploration projects in collaboration with Bahir Dar University School of Earth Sciences and the Amhara National regional state mines development office (2016-now)
      Activities done
      - Manage and execute exploration projects
      - Build, lead and motivate exploration teams composed of contractors and field staff, with direct onsite supervision
      - Lead exploration team efforts to develop exploration plans by analysing prior exploration results and existing data
  • - Lead the efforts of exploration teams to execute approved exploration project plans
    - Prepare project budgets and be responsible to deliver exploration projects on budget (or timely flag budget problems).
    - Geological study and Mapping
    - Report project results in a comprehensive and timely manner to management, business partners and regulators.
    - Ensure the capture, safety and integrity of all project data.
    - Build relationships with existing and potential business partners, service suppliers, and local and regional project stakeholders.
    - Generate new exploration projects.
    - Assign team member’s assignments and make sure they know what's expected of them in terms of project deliverables and milestones.
    - Schedule stakeholder meetings, document and generate reports
    - Encourage cooperation between teams to assist project members in completing tasks and producing deliverables.
    - Monitoring the mineral exploration and geological mapping project progress and creating project status reports for project managers and stakeholders
    - serving as the chief geologist and carrying out important professional duties such as identifying and characterizing lithological units in the field, petrographic analysis, and geochemical analysis and interpretation
    - Prepared the road map of the ANRS mines resource development plan, 2021
    • Board Member of the Water Well Drilling Enterprise (WWDE) (2022 – 2023 GC)
      Activities done
      - Establish the Organization’s Vision, Mission and Purpose
      - Evaluating and approving a strategic plan to identify long and short-term goals and working toward achieving them.
      - Review agenda and supporting materials prior to board and committee meetings.
      - Inform others about the organization. Advocate for the organization.
      - Suggest possible nominees to the board who can make significant contributions to the work of the board and the organization
      - Hire, support, and assess the chief executive
      - Manage the corporate finances
      - Monitor the resource supply
      - Review and Evaluate the performance of the enterprise every quarter year
      - Offer expert advice regarding possible ground occurrence sites and geological mapping to improve the enterprise's performance.
    • Reviewer in the Journal of Geologica acta, September, 2024
    •  Reviewer in the Journal of Island Arc, Wiley, 2024
    • Reviewer in the Abyssinia Journal of Science and Technology, 2023
    • October 2010-September, 2015. Graduate student in Department of Earth Science, Geology and Geochemistry Research group, Tohoku University, Japan.
    • In Prof. Akira Ishiwatari’s laboratory, I conducted several field excursions in
      Japan, undertook sample collection, prepared thin sections, and made petrographic
      analyses of the volcanic and intrusive and metamorphic rocks related to ophiolite
      mélange.
      - Experienced in using electron probe micro analyser (EPMA) using energy dispersive X-ray spectrometer Oxford Link ISIS equipped on the JEOL JSM- 5410Scanning electron microscope (SEM) to determine mineral chemistry.
  •   - Experienced in rock powder preparation, glass bid preparation, XRF analysis.
      - Experienced in using LA-ICP-MS for geochemical analyses and data reduction
      - Geochemical data plotting, data interpretation and synthesis, and publication.
  •  

  • Research Interests:

  • My research focuses on the geology, petrology, geochemistry, and petrogenesis of volcanic and plutonic rocks, both mafic and felsic, within large igneous provinces. I investigate ultramafic rocks associated with ophiolites and explore the complexities of metamorphic rocks. Additionally, I am engaged in studying the petrography and geochemistry of sedimentary rocks, with a particular interest in the exploration of critical minerals and resources linked to large igneous provinces (LIPs). My work extends to the East African Orogeny, especially in the context of Ethiopian Basement rocks and related plutonic formations. I also delve into the exploration of industrial minerals and gemstones, with a focus on their connection to geological structures and mineral deposits within these regions.

  • Supervised Master's Thesis Works:

    • Volcano-stratigraphy, petrography, and geochemistry of bimodal volcanic rock of Mekane Selam area, northwestern Ethiopia (By: Habtamu Alemu, 2023)
    • Petrography and geochemistry of Yilmana Densa area volcanic rocks, northwestern Ethiopian plateau (By: Ayene Yilak, 2023
    • Petrological and Geochemical studies of Alkaline Volcanic Rocks Around Mertule Maryam Volcanic Section, Northwestern Ethiopian Large Igneous
    • Province (LIP): Implications for Their Source and genesis (By: Bayelign Tewachew, 2022) Petrology and Geochemistry of Volcanic Rocks of Gomer Area, Northwestern Ethiopia: Implication for Plume-Lithosphere Interaction (By: Habtamu Wendem, 2020)
    • Petrography and Geochemistry of Late - Paleozoic Sandstone in Bure Area, Blue Nile Basin, Central Ethiopia: Implication for Provenance, Paleoclimate and Tectonic Setting (By:Tigist Birhanu, 2020)
    • Petrology and Geochemistry of Volcanic Rocks and Associated Mafic Dykes in The Birsheleko Area, Northwestern Ethiopian Plateau (By: Kidist Tesfa, 2020)
    •  Petrography and geochemistry of Neo-Proterozoic Granites from Gozamin Area, North Western Ethiopia (By: Telelu Abebe, 2020)
    • Petrogenesis of Granitoid Rocks in Kuch Area, Notrh Western Ethiopia: Petrographical and Geochemical Evidence (By: Siham Adem, 2020)
    • Petrogenesis of Granitoids from Gaba Sanbata Area, Eastern Gimbi, Western Ethiopia (By: Degefa Temesegen, 2020)
    •  Geology and geochemistry of Oligocene volcanic rocks of Kulf Amba area, North Wollo, Northwestern Ethiopian Plateau (By: Dejen Teka, 2019)
    • Petrology and geochemistry of volcanic lava flows from the southwestern flank of Choke Shield volcano, Northwestern Ethiopian volcanic province (By: Lealem Beza, 2019)
    • Petrology and Geochemistry of the Quaternary Volcanic Rocks in the Southwestern Part of Lake Tana area, North Western Ethiopia (By: Amare Berihun, 2018)
    • Petrogenesis of mafic and felsic volcanic rocks around Debre Tabor Area, Amhara Region, North Western Ethiopia (By: Yaregal Bayeh, 2018)

    •  Petrographic and geochemical characterization of the Triassic-Jurassic Adigrat Sandstone Formation, Blue Nile Basin, NW Ethiopia: Implications for paleo- weathering, provenance and tectonic setting (By: Mandefro Gebeyehu, 2018)

  • Major Conference Activities and Talks:

    • Participated in the Geological Society of America's (GSA) first-ever Virtual Volunteer Fair (September 4, 2024)
       Title: A comparative petrological study of the Siberian and Ethiopian Large Igneous Provinces (LIPs) and a case study on Triassic mafic rocks in Chukotka, NE Russia.
       G-COE symposium 2012, 25-28, September 2012 (Poster).
       Japan Geoscience Union (JpGU) Meeting 2012, 20-25 May 2012 (Oral).
       American Geophysical Union (AGU) 2012 Fall meeting in 3-7 December 2012 (Poster).
       Japan Agency for Marine-Earth Science and Technology (JAMSTEC) in 2013/01/17 (Oral).
       Title: Ferropicrite from the Lalibela area in the Ethiopian large igneous province.
       American Geophysical Union 2013 Fall Meeting in 9-13 December 2013 (Poster).

  • Association and Memberships

    • American Geophysical Union (AGU), Geological Society of America (GSA),

    • Japan Geoscience Union (JpGU), Ethiopian Geophysical Union-International
      (ETGUI).

  • Computer Skills

    • Operating Systems: MS Windows
    • Microsoft Applications: MS Word, MS Excel, MS PowerPoint
    • Scientific applications: Arc-GIS, Geochemical data plotting tools and modelling magmatic processes.

  • HOBBIES: Playing football, reading books.

  • REFERENCES:

    • Professor Akira Ishiwatari: Commissioner Nuclear Regulation Authority, Japan, Roppongi-First Bldg. 4F, Roppongi 1-9-9, Minato-ku, Tokyo 106-8450.
      Email: geoishw@cneas.tohoku.ac.jp or stepstone@tulip.ocn.ne.jp
      Tel: 03-5114-2148.
    • Professor. Dereje Ayalew: School of Earth Sciences, Addis Ababa University,
      P.O.Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
      Email: dereayal@yahoo.com
    • Professor Takeshi Kakegawa: (Zip code: 980-8572), 402 Geoscience Bldg. Graduate School of Science, Tohoku University Aramaki 6-3 Sendai, Japan
      Email: takeshi.kakegawa.a4@tohoku.ac.jp or kakegawa@m.tohoku.ac.jp

    •  Professor Michihiko Nakamura: Graduate School of Science, Volcanology and Geo-Fluids Research group, Tohoku University, Japan.

      Email: nakamm@m.tohoku.ac.jp or michihiko.nakamura.e8@tohoku.ac.jp

    • Dr. Naoto Hirano: Center for Northeast Asian Studies (CNEAS), Tohoku University, Japan.
      Email: nhirano@cneas.tohoku.ac.jp

    • Professor Gezahegn Yirgu: School of Earth Sciences, Addis Ababa University,
      P.O.Box 1176, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
      Email: gezahegnyirgu@yahoo.com

  • Links: 

  • Google Scholar

  • ResearchGate

  • Scopus

  • Web of Science

  • ORCID

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