Dean's Letter
When people hear of the College of the Environment, many think that means we are
“the College of Environmental Problem Solving.” While, admittedly, we excel at
addressing some of the greatest environmental challenges of our day, our
research and education programs have a much broader scope. The rigorous and
innovative fundamental science that our faculty, staff and students undertake
addresses scientific questions that push the frontiers of what we know about
life, our planet, and our solar system, and embodies the pure joy of discovery.
Read more of Dean Graumlich’s letter on our website.
  News
College
of the Environment faculty appointed to Washington Coastal Marine Advisory Council
David
Fluharty, School of Marine and Environmental Affairs, and Penny Dalton,
Washington Sea Grant, have been appointed by Governor Jay Inslee to serve on
the Washington Coastal Marine Advisory Council. The Council advises the governor, state and local agencies, and the
Washington State Legislature on coastal resource management issues focused on
the Pacific Coast of Washington.
Read
more on the College of the Environment website.
 Mount Rainier Institute
successfully completes pilot programs
This
fall, the Mount Rainier Institute successfully
conducted its first two pilot programs at Pack Forest. The program invites
school students from all backgrounds—and especially from diverse communities
with limited access to parks and other natural spaces—to spend three nights at
Pack Forest near Mount Rainier National Park. The mission of the Institute is
to provide outstanding nature-based education experiences that are rooted in
science and nurture the next generation of environmental stewards and leaders.
Read
more about this program on the College of the Environment website.
Washington Ocean Acidification Center funds forecasting project
The
newly established Washington Ocean Acidification Center, housed in the College
of the Environment, was tasked by the governor and legislature to oversee five
priority actions. One of them is to develop
the ability to make short-term
forecasts of unfavorable conditions related to ocean acidification for application to shellfish
hatcheries, growing areas, and other areas of concern. The Center recently funded a project aimed at
addressing this need, which will result in a real-time online tool accessible
to shellfish growers and managers to track acidification on a scale of days to
weeks, giving them time to change or adjust their hatcheries’ operation.
Read
more about this research on the College of the Environment
website.
 Dean’s Office working
toward sustainable administration practices
The
staff of the College of the Environment’s dean’s office are inspired by the
work in the College and across campus to understand and address the
environmental challenges of our time. This past year, following sustainability
efforts of many students, faculty, and staff in the college and beyond, the
dean’s office worked with the Environmental Stewardship and
Sustainability Office to identify and align our practices and
policies with the goals of sustainable resource use.
Read
more about this effort on the College of the Environment website, and how you
can participate.
Awards & Kudos
Congratulations
to Tom DeLuca, professor and director of the School of Environmental and Forest
Sciences, and his lab for earning their place as the greenest lab in the 2013
College of the Environment Green Lab Competition.
Congratulations
to LuAnne Thompson, professor of oceanography and director of the Program on
Climate Change, on being named an American Meteorological Society Fellow. Also, congratulations to Fang-Zhen Teng,
professor of Earth and space science, on receiving the Mineralogical Society of
America Award.
Congratulations to Interim Director Billie Swalla at the Friday Harbor Laboratories, who has been named the recipient of the Dennis Willows Director's Endowed Professorship by Ana Mari Cauce, UW Provost and Executive Vice President. The appointment was approved by the Board of Regents in October.
Spotlight
 Katharine Huntington, Earth and Space Sciences
Spotlight is an ongoing series that
will introduce you to the many members that make up the College
community.
Katharine “Kate” Huntington grew
up in both Pennsylvania and northern Italy, which set
a perfect
stage
for her
research
across continents.
Now
an assistant
professor
in the
UW College
of the Environment’s Department
of Earth and Space Sciences, she
traverses the mountains of
India and Nepal,
western North America,
and
Argentina and Chile,
exploring how landscapes
evolve
over
millions of years.
She and her research group
seek to
understand
how
tectonics,
erosion and climate shape
Earth’s
surface
through
time,
and
how
the
evolution
of Earth’s surface and crust both
reflect
and
record
these interactions.
Read more about Huntington on the College of
the Environment website.
For & About Students
 Sports and sustainability: nothing in common? Think again
This quarter,
Program on Environment’s Sustainability Studio students partnered with
University of Washington Husky Athletics Green Team members, and with
representatives from the Green Sports Alliance, UW Environmental Stewardship
and Sustainability Office, and UW Recycling, to assess existing practices and
identify opportunities for sustainability improvements in UW sports. The teams developed
and implemented four innovative projects to help ramp up Husky athletics sustainability
efforts: Athlete Engagement in Locker Room Waste Diversion, Analysis of Local Food
at Husky Stadium, Carbon Footprinting Offsetting of Game Day Travel, and Fan
Outreach and Education via Social Media.
Read more on
the College of the Environment website.
Doris Duke
Conservation Scholars Program at the UW launching Summer
2014
The goal of the Doris
Duke Conservation Scholars Program at the University of Washington, a multi-year conservation immersion program,
is to broaden participation within conservation and diversify what it means to
be a "conservation professional."
They are looking for 20-25 freshmen and sophomores to join an eight week
immersion course this summer. Scholars don't have to be environmental science,
or even science, majors, but should demonstrate a commitment to the environment
and to diversity, and be curious, creative and enthusiastic—incipient
change-makers.
Learn more about
this opportunity on the College of the Environment website.
Philanthropy: Making a Difference
Private
gifts and grants make all the difference in the lives of our students, faculty,
and programs. We wish to salute and thank every one of our amazing
supporters, be they individuals, corporations, private foundations,
organizations, or community partners. You help ensure that the College of the
Environment—and all of its exceptional schools, departments, centers, programs
and people—remain and grow as national and global leaders in education,
research and outreach across a broad array of environmental fields.
For more information on ways to make a gift, or programs you can support,
please contact Marilyn Montgomery, Assistant Dean for Advancement, at 206-221-0906
or mmmontg@uw.edu.
Lee Alverson
Memorial Fund Established
Highly respected as a fisheries scientist and
policy maker, UW alumnus and affiliate faculty member Lee Alverson, passed away
earlier this year. Friends and family came together to establish the Lee Alverson
Memorial Fellowship Fund, which will provide support to students studying the
science and management of North Pacific fisheries. The fund, led by gifts from
the Pacific Seafood Processors Association, the Bering Sea Fisheries Research
Foundation and alumnus Wally Pereyra, will serve as a lasting memory of Mr.
Alverson's influence on North Pacific fisheries. If you’d like to make a
gift to the fund, you can give online through the UW Foundation website, or contact Daniel Webb at
206-221-4573 or dcwebb@uw.edu.
This Month's
Highlighted Funds
Please consider
making a generous annual gift to any of the funds below, or to the fund of your
choice via the UW Foundation:
Private Funding Opportunities
Seeking private
funding for your project or program? Below are upcoming corporate and
foundation opportunities. If your project fits the criteria or you have other
thoughts on how to engage corporate and foundation funders please contact Lauren
Honaker, Associate Director for Corporate and
Foundation Relations, at 206-685-4423 or lhonaker@uw.edu.
Wells Fargo
and the National Fish & Wildlife Foundation—Environmental Solutions for
Communities
Award amount: Up to
$100,000
Deadline: December 16, 2013
Description: This effort
aims to support highly-visible projects that link economic development and
community well-being to the stewardship and health of the environment.
Collectively, investments under this initiative will promote a sustainable
future for communities by: supporting sustainable agricultural practices and
private lands stewardship; conserving critical land and water resources and improving
local water quality; restoring and managing natural habitat, species and
ecosystems that are important to community livelihoods; facilitating investments
in green infrastructure, renewable energy and energy efficiency; and encouraging
broad-based citizen and targeted youth participation in project implementation.
Check out
the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation website for more
information.
The American Educational Research Association
Award amount: Up to
$35,000
Deadline: January 24, 2014
Description: Support is
available in two categories 1) Research Grants and 2) Dissertation Grants that provide
small grants and training for researchers to conduct studies of education
policy and practice using quantitative methods, including the analysis of data
from the large-scale data sets sponsored by National Center for Education
Statistics and National Science Foundation.
For more
information, please visit The American Educational Research Association website.
BoatUS
Foundation—Boating Safety and Clean Water's Grassroots Grants Program
Award amount: Up to $10,000
Deadline: January 15, 2014
Description: The
foundation is looking for creative projects that promote safe and clean boating
on local waterways. Past topics have ranged from PSAs on the effects of boating
under the influence to hands-on education about the effects of marine debris.
Read more
about this on the BoatUS Foundation website.
Mountaineers
Foundation—Projects to Research and Conserve Pacific Northwest Wilderness
Award amount: Up to $5,000
Deadline: February 1, 2014
Description: Grants will
be awarded to organizations and agencies working to preserve the natural beauty
and ecological integrity of the Pacific Northwest.
For more
information, visit the Mountaineers Foundation website.
X PRIZE
Foundation—Wendy Schmidt Ocean Health XPRIZE
Award amount: $1,000,000 (two separate awards)
Deadline: March 2014, teams must be registered
Description: The
competition aims to catalyze the development of accurate and affordable pH
sensors that can transform the study of ocean acidification caused by the rise
in atmospheric carbon dioxide.
Check out the X Prize Foundation website for more information.
Save the Date
Friday Harbor Labs' art featured at the Seattle Aquarium
Adam Summers, professor of biology and resident scientist at FHL, is being featured in an art exhibit at the Seattle Aquarium. On display are stunning photos of cleared and stained fish that he has prepared for research. The exhibit runs from December 2013 through Spring 2014. See some of the images that will be on display.
Portal
to Current Research at the Pacific Science Center
The
Portal to Current Research at the Pacific Science Center showcases local
scientists' advances in current research through a combination of digital
media, graphics, objects and interactive displays and programs. Currently,
Erika Harnett in the College’s Department of Earth and Space Sciences is
featured in an exhibit called Exploring Our Solar System With Local NASA
Scientists through the month of December.
 Future of Ice Lecture
Series
As
climate change transforms our environment, the Arctic and Antarctic face a
troubling, uncertain fate. Join us for The Future of Ice, a six-part
lecture series that covers our polar regions from a variety of perspectives. We
offer a slate of renowned experts who will cover issues including glacial
retreat, wildlife at the poles, and the changing Arctic environment’s impact on
Inuit culture.
Please
join us for this series that will take place throughout Winter Quarter, beginning with the first event on January 7. The series is sponsored by The
Graduate School, UW Alumni Association, College of the Environment, Canadian
Studies Center at the Henry M. Jackson School of International Studies, Polar
Science Center at the Applied Physics Laboratory, Quaternary Research Center,
Office of Minority Affairs and Diversity, Department of American Indian
Studies, Department of Communication, and School of Art Photomedia Department.
For
more information on the speakers and to register, visit our webpage.
Don’t forget the many on-going series of seminars of interest to researchers and laypersons alike happening throughout the College and elsewhere – you can stay current through our events calendar or by subscribing to our weekly events bulletin here.
|
