Philadelphia, Pa., June 22, 2009 – The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania announced an agreement with the Centre of Excellence for Applied Research and Training (CERT), a preeminent private education provider in the Middle East. Cornerstones of the agreement between Wharton and the Abu Dhabi-based CERT include two initiatives that are aimed at the creation and dissemination of Wharton research. Wharton and CERT will establish a Research Center where Wharton faculty will study entrepreneurship, innovation and family business. In addition, Wharton and CERT will collaborate on the development of an Arabic language version of Knowledge@Wharton, Wharton’s award-winning online business journal.

“The Wharton-CERT partnership is a key example of an innovative collaboration that helps pave the way for putting global knowledge into practice,” said University of Pennsylvania President Amy Gutmann.

“At Penn, we are committed to using our vast intellectual resources to gain knowledge and insights for use in the search for solutions to some of the most vexing problems facing our world today. This new initiative will advance our understanding of the Middle East and provide our faculty with rich new areas for research.”

“This collaboration between CERT and Wharton represents a significant milestone in our continuing quest for promoting entrepreneurship and innovation in UAE and the region. Hosting the Arabic edition of the Knowledge@Wharton portal provides tremendous opportunity for disseminating knowledge on a broad range of research projects involving family businesses and entrepreneurship,” stated Dr. Tayeb Kamali, Group Chief Executive of CERT and Vice Chancellor of HCT.

“We are pleased to partner with CERT for knowledge creation and dissemination,” said Wharton Dean Thomas S. Robertson. “Our alumni in the region have always provided Wharton with a unique link to the Middle East. This is an important first step in Wharton’s role in the Gulf and broader Middle East region. We are looking forward to our work in Abu Dhabi and the Gulf Region.”

Professor Raphael (Raffi) Amit, the Robert B. Goergen Professor of Entrepreneurship, will spearhead Wharton’s engagement with CERT for the formation of the Wharton Entrepreneurship and Family Business Research Center. “As one of the first business schools to establish a center for entrepreneurship, we are very pleased to join with CERT in this significant academic endeavor,” said Professor Amit. “We stand to gain greater clarity on innovation and family business to the benefit of the United Arab Emirates and more broadly, the Middle East.”

The Arabic edition of Knowledge@Wharton will disseminate knowledge in print and through video casts and podcasts. The site, by making extensive use of mobile technology, will analyze business trends in the Middle East and their impact on the larger global community. The Arabic edition will become the first site in the Middle East to join the Knowledge@Wharton Network, which is celebrating its tenth anniversary. K@W has a global audience of 1.3 million subscribers via editions in the U. S., Latin America, China and India. Mukul Pandya, Executive Director and Editor in Chief of the Knowledge@Wharton network, said, “We expect the Arabic version to be a source of global insight for people in the Middle East and a source of knowledge about the region for the K@W audience.”

The Wharton-CERT relationship will formally commence on August 1st. On November 1, 2009, a senior delegation from the University of Pennsylvania will travel to Abu Dhabi to take part in the Festival of Thinkers and celebrate the signing of this agreement.

About the Wharton School, Wharton Entrepreneurial Programs, the Wharton Global Family Alliance and Knowledge @ Wharton

The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania -- founded in 1881 as the first collegiate business school -- is recognized globally for intellectual leadership and ongoing innovation across every major discipline of business education. The most comprehensive source of business knowledge in the world, Wharton bridges research and practice through its broad engagement with the global business community. The school has more than 4,600 undergraduate, MBA, executive MBA, and doctoral students; more than 8,000 annual participants in executive education programs; and an alumni network of more than 86,000 graduates.

In 1973, The Wharton School became the first school to develop a fully integrated curriculum of entrepreneurial studies. Today Wharton, through Wharton Entrepreneurial Programs, supports and seeds innovation and entrepreneurship globally through teaching, research and outreach to a range of organizations through its many programs, initiatives and research centers. At the same time, Wharton students and alumni are helping to build entrepreneurial enterprises around the world and impacting virtually every industry.

Since its formation in January 2004 through an agreement between the Wharton School and CCC Alliance, the Wharton Global Family Alliance has become the knowledge leader in family business research focused on family businesses, primarily in the areas of governance, philanthropy, and wealth management. Wharton GFA focuses on rigorous scholarly research in combination with the practical experience of successful global families to highlight the social impact of families worldwide. Wharton GFA has a robust research agenda and a wide variety of outreach focused on a global audience.

Knowledge@Wharton is a free biweekly online resource that captures knowledge generated at the Wharton School and beyond through such channels as research papers, conferences, speakers, books, and interviews with faculty and other business experts on current business topics. The Knowledge@Wharton network – which includes Chinese, Spanish, Portuguese and Indian editions -- has more than 1.3 million subscribers worldwide.

About Centre of Excellence for Applied Research & Training

The CERT Group of Companies began as the commercial arm of the Higher Colleges of Technology in the United Arab Emirates, and has grown to be the largest private education provider in the Middle East. CERT is also the largest MENA (Middle East North Africa) investor in the discovery and commercialization of technology.

Since its creation in 1996, the Centre of Excellence for Applied Research and Training (CERT) has been synonymous with quality in education, training, research, and socioeconomic progress. Over the years, CERT has helped thousands of professionals and companies meet their goals and achieve the next level in their development, and it is now the largest private education provider in the region. Included is an Executive MBA in Innovation & Entrepreneurship which features the best professors from leading institutions around the world.

CERT additionally, hosts the regions premiere biennial Global Entrepreneurship Conference where students throughout the GCC and regional entrepreneurs attend. The Conference features leading international thought leaders & entrepreneurs throughout the world.