SAF Honors Lee Allen with Biological Science Award

Posted on October 18, 2010 by rwgonzal

Professor Emeritus H. Lee Allen is the 2010 recipient of the Barrington Moore Memorial Award in Biological Science from the Society of American Foresters (SAF). This prestigious award recognizes outstanding achievement in biological research leading to the advancement of forestry.

Lee during Summer Exploration Camp for High School Students

Lee as faculty participant of the Forestry and Environmental Resources' Exploration Camp for high school students

During his 30 years of service to NC State University, the College of Natural Resources, and the Department of Forestry and Environmental Resources, Lee has been a devoted teacher and eminent researcher. In 1998, Lee was made the C.A Schenck Distinguished Professor of Forestry and Environmental Resources. He was honored in 2007 with the Alexander Quarles Holladay Medal of Excellence, the highest award made by the University in recognition of faculty achievement.

“I can’t think of a more deserving individual,” said Department Head Barry Goldfarb about SAF’s choice for the award. “Lee’s career has transcended the typical academician. While he is a great teacher, he has also left a legacy of students who have gone on, themselves, to have distinguished careers.”

Much of Lee’s research effort was focused around the scientific and administrative leadership of the Forest Nutrition Cooperative. Under his leadership, the Cooperative grew from being a regionally based fertilizer cooperative into an internationally recognized silviculture research and education partnership. The Cooperative involves students, staff and faculty at NC State, Virginia Tech, and the Universidad de Concepcion in Chile, as well as more than 40 supporting members around the world, representing forest industry, consulting firms, TIMOs and public agencies that manage over 24 million acres of pine and broadleaved plantations in the Southeast US and Latin America.

Forest Nutrition Cooperative - Co-director Tom Fox and Director Emeritus Lee Allen

Lee has and continues to make a huge impact on how plantation forestry is practiced. With his mantra that “leaves grow trees and resources grow leaves,” he has demonstrated that with appropriate silvicultural treatments, potential productivity on most sites is much higher than previously realized. He has helped forest managers from around the world to recognize that active management of both the plant and the soil resource are required to optimize value production. As Barry explains, “While he was a very productive researcher, he always made it a point to make sure that his research was relevant to forest management. Thus, his impact on the profession and practice of forestry has been profound.”

“I am very pleased and honored to be recognized by my colleagues with this award,” said Lee. “Working at NC State has rarely been work – much more an avocation. I have been able to continue to learn and grow personally and professionally, and I have been able to work in an area of great personal interest. I have had lots of fun and have had the opportunity to work with and for many wonderful and dedicated people.” Previous recipients of this award from NC State include Bruce Zobel (1968), Charles Davey (1982), Robert Kellison (1997) and Ellis Cowling (2000).

Lee will be presented with the award and $1,000 honorarium Thursday, October 28, during the opening general session of the SAF National Convention in Albuquerque, New Mexico. We are very proud that he will also be attending the Wolfpack Alumni Luncheon during the convention, Thursday, Oct. 28, 11:30-1:15, in the Ruidoso room. Lee received his BS and MS degrees from the University of Maine, and his PhD from North Carolina State University in 1981.

About SAF:
The Society of American Foresters is the national scientific and educational organization representing the forestry profession in the United States. Founded in 1900 by Gifford Pinchot, it is the largest professional society for foresters in the world. safnet.org

‘Father of Green Chemistry’ will give Borlaug Lecture October 4 at NC State University

Posted on September 30, 2010 by

NEWS RELEASE – 9/29/2010

Media Contacts:
Natalie Hampton, natalie_hampton@ncsu.edu or 919.513.3128
Tilla Fearn, tilla_fearn@ncsu.edu or 919.513.4644

Dr. Paul Anastas, recognized as the “Father of Green Chemistry” and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency assistant administrator for the Office of Research and Development, will deliver the fifth Borlaug Lecture at N.C. State University on October 4, 3:30 p.m., in the N.C. State Talley Student Center Ballroom.

His lecture topic is “Sustainability through Innovation.” During his visit, Anastas will also engage in a roundtable discussion with students and faculty.

The lecture is free and open to the public, but seating is limited. News outlets are invited to cover this event or request an interview with Anastas by contacting Latisha Petteway, 202.564.3191.

The Nobel Laureate Dr. Norman E. Borlaug Distinguished Lecture on Global Service to Society and Environment is sponsored by the College of Agriculture and Life Sciences and the College of Natural Resources. Known as the “Father of the Green Revolution,” Borlaug was instrumental in developing crop varieties that helped feed millions around the world. The first person to deliver the lecture that later bore his name, Borlaug died last year.

In addition to the lecture, the award for Service to Society and Environment will be presented to Dr. JoAnn Burkholder, professor of in the Department of Plant Biology and director of N.C. State’s Center for Applied Aquatic Ecology. Burkholder was named the award winner last year but did not receive the award formally because no lecture was held in 2009.

Anastas is known for his groundbreaking research on the design, manufacture and use of minimally toxic, environmentally friendly chemicals. Prior to joining the EPA, Anastas was the director of the Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering and the inaugural Teresa and H. John Heinz III Professor in the Practice of Chemistry for the Environment at Yale University’s School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

Prior to joining the Yale faculty, Anastas was the founding director of the Green Chemistry Institute, headquartered at the American Chemical Society in Washington, D.C. From 1999 to 2004, he worked at the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, concluding his service there as the assistant director for the environment.

A writer and thinker on the subjects of sustainability, green chemistry and engineering, he has published ten books, including Benign by Design and Designing Safer Polymers and his seminal work with John Warner, Green Chemistry: Theory and Practice. He earned a bachelor’s degree from University of Massachusetts at Boston and a master’s degree and doctorate in chemistry from Brandeis University.

Two Recreation & Leisure Professional Associations Honor Henderson

Posted on September 9, 2010 by

Dr. Karla Henderson, a professor of parks, recreation and tourism management, at NC State University recently received major awards from two professional associations.

The National Recreation and Park Association will honor Henderson with a 2010 National Literary Award, given to a writer or publisher who has made a significant contribution to understanding of tenets, trends or research in the field. She will accept the honor Oct. 27 at a congress and exposition in Minneapolis.

Henderson was named a senior fellow and founding member of the World Leisure Academy, an association for researchers, educators and practioners. She was inducted Aug. 20 in ChunCheon, Korea. Henderson accepted the academy’s George Torkildsen Literary Award earlier this month.

Henderson, who publishes regularly in a variety of journals, has authored or co-authored several books, led professional organizations and received awards for both teaching and research. She teaches primarily graduate courses in recreation and leisure theory and qualitative research methods.

This Red House

Posted on September 7, 2010 by

NC State University News Release – September 7, 2010
by Caroline Barnhill

It has been more than 80 years since NC State built a new chancellor’s residence. A thing or two has changed since 1928 – like the advent of central heat and air conditioning, which are among the many “retrofittings” that have taken place at the residence. The way the residence is used has changed a great deal, too, as the university has grown.

The need for a new residence more specifically designed for meeting the needs of a large university has become apparent. Last spring, ground was broken on a new residence. And despite this particularly hot North Carolina summer, construction is in full swing.

The new home is located on Lake Raleigh, near the Park Alumni Center. The residence is scheduled for completion by this time next year and will be financed by private gifts. The home was designed by College of Design Dean Marvin Malecha.

“The exterior of the home is very much a traditional style. When people come up to the residence, they’ll have an immediate feeling of familiarity – that this is what a home feels like. We’re using traditional landscaping and traditional materials. But when you walk into the house, you’ll see it is more modern than you’d think,” Malecha explains. “That was a struggle for us – to use familiar forms but with a modern expression. But I think this design does it. It will speak to the roots of NC State, but also to what the university has become.”

The lower level of the residence – about 5,000 square feet — will be the “public” portion of the home, where large receptions and events will be held for NC State students, employees, alumni and friends. The second floor will serve as the living quarters for the chancellor’s family.

NC State’s University Communications office recently launched the This Red House blog which will follow the building of the new chancellor’s residence. The blog will include interesting facts and features, pictures, videos and interviews relating to the design and construction of the new residence.

NC State Researchers Receive Grant to Convert Lignin into Chemical Feedstocks

Posted on August 19, 2010 by

NC STATE UNIVERSITY NEWS RELEASE – Aug. 19, 2010

Media Contact:
Tracey Peake, News Services, 919/515-6142 or tracey_peake@ncsu.edu

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Researchers at North Carolina State University have received a grant aimed at finding an energy efficient and environmentally friendly method for breaking down lignin-a renewable, energy-rich raw material found in plants-into feedstock for the petrochemical industry, which produces everything from fuel to pharmaceuticals.

NC State scientists Dr. Dimitris Argyropoulos, Finland Distinguished Professor of Chemistry, and Dr. Elon Ison, assistant professor of chemistry and a green chemistry specialist, have received a $500,000 National Science Foundation (NSF) grant via the Industrial Research Institute (IRI) for their research “Catalytic Oxidation Chemistry Aimed at Upgrading Lignin.”

Lignin is found in woody biomass and the by-products of the pulp and paper and bioethanol industries. Approximately 1.3 billion tons of biomass are available annually in the United States, which could produce up to 130 billion gallons of biofuels, as well as other petrochemical products. However, the fundamental science necessary to convert lignin into chemical feedstocks has not been adequately addressed.

Argyropoulos and Ison aim to develop the science for catalytically transforming lignin by using liquid carbon dioxide, an environmentally-friendly process, thereby creating an economically viable resource for the petrochemical industry.

“It will be a win-win-win situation if we are successful,” Argyropoulos says. “We will be making use of a renewable material, eliminating industrial waste, the end product will be immediately usable to supply our existing industrial infrastructure, and our conversion method is environmentally friendly.”

This grant is part of IRI’s Industry-Defined Fundamental Research program, designed to bring together leaders in industrial science to identify research that will directly affect the success of the American chemical industry, and to partner with universities and companies to explore this research.

The Department of Forest Biomaterials is part of NC State’s College of Natural Resources. The Department of Chemistry is part of NC State’s College of Physical and Mathematical Sciences.