Professor Michael Ward has been appointed as the Stuart L. and Nancy J. Levenick Chair in Sustainability in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences (NRES), part of the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES). Ward succeeds Professor Emeritus Jeffrey Brawn, who has held the first endowed chair since 2020.
Since the summer of 2022, the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign welcomed 44 new and reclassified faculty members, its largest cohort of new faculty in living memory. Seven more have accepted offers and will start in the new year.
The loss of nutrients into Illinois’ lakes, streams, and rivers harms water quality here and downstream all the way to the Gulf of Mexico. The Illinois Nutrient Loss Reduction Strategy, NLRS, was established in 2015 and is designed to reduce nutrient pollution in Illinois’ waterways and the Mississippi River and its negative impacts by exploring and recommending practical, research-based nutrient loss practices and collaborating with partners across the state.
In a newly released TED Talk, Stephen Long a University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign professor of plant biology and crop sciences, detailed his and his colleagues’ efforts to boost photosynthesis in crop plants.
Prelude: The Opportunity
Last month, I was privileged to attend the Norman E. Borlaug Food Dialogue in Des Moines, Iowa. This conference, held at a pivotal point in my educational journey, had a profound impact on my thoughts about my future career and goals.
The Attendees: A Melting Pot of Perspectives
The FSP is part of the Fulbright Program, the U.S. Department of State’s flagship international educational exchange program, and pairs highly qualified U.S. academics and professionals with institutions abroad to share their expertise, strengthen institutional linkages, hone their skills, and gain international experience, while building capacity at their overseas host institutions though a short-term, project-based exchange.
The project, ‘Technology Transfer for Vertical Farming to 4 Universities’ (P009482), would involve three visits, approximately 42 days total in length, to the Catholic University of El Salvador in Santa Ana, El Salvador. Ideally the project would be conducted between April 7 and October 19, 2024, with flexibility depending on the selected candidate’s availability. Full project details are included in the attached Open Project Announcement.
The grant will include international round-trip economy class airfare, transit allowance ($100), all applicable visa fees, a daily honorarium ($200), enrollment in a limited health benefits program, lodging, meals, and in-country transportation.
Interested applicants should submit a Resume/CV and a completed “Submission of Interest” form (please see attached) to fulbrightspecialist@worldlearning.org no later than 11:59 PM ET on Monday, December 11, 2023, to be considered for this project. Further details and application instructions are included in the attached announcement – please note that U.S. citizenship is required to serve as a Fulbright Specialist.
In honor of National Cookie Day, Alyssa Deolitsis reflects on kickstarting her own business with help from her degree.
A promising new form of ammonium phosphate fertilizer has been field-tested by University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign researchers. The fertilizer, struvite, offers a triple win for sustainability and crop production, as it recycles nutrients from wastewater streams, reduces leaching of phosphorus and nitrogen in agricultural soils, and maintains or improves soybean yield compared to conventional phosphorus fertilizers.
URBANA, Ill. – The infant formula shortage crisis in the United States and Canada, which began in February 2022, revealed vulnerabilities in the industrial food system and disproportionately affected low-income families and those relying on specialty formulas.
The International Research Experiences for Students (IRES) program supports international research and research-related activities for U.S. science and engineering students. The IRES program contributes to development of a diverse, globally engaged workforce with world-class skills. IRES focuses on active research participation by undergraduate and/or graduate students in high quality international research, education and professional development experiences in NSF-funded research areas.
The overarching, long-term goals of the IRES program are to enhance U.S. leadership in science and engineering research and education and to strengthen economic competitiveness through training the next generation of science research leaders. IRES focuses on the development of a world-class U.S. STEM workforce through international research experiences for cohorts of U.S.students.
Student participants supported by IRES funds must be citizens, nationals, or permanent residents of the United States.
Students do not apply directly to NSF to participate in IRES activities. Students apply to NSF-funded investigators who receive IRES awards. To identify appropriate IRES projects, students should consult the directory of active IRES awards.
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