Issue 10 - July 17, 2007 |
CFANS People in the News
 Mary Buschette, CFANS director of Alumni Relations, received the Jane Longley-Cook Volunteer Service Award at the 2007 National Agricultural Alumni and Development Association conference.
 Carrie Earthman, an assistant professor in the Department of Food Science and Nutrition, recently was awarded an Excellence in Practice Award in dietetics research as part of the 2007 American Dietetics Association Food and Nutrition Conference and Expo.
  Two faculty members from the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering recently were honored at the 2007 American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers meeting. Professor Larry Jacobson, right, was inducted as a Fellow of the society for outstanding contributions in the design and development of engineering practices concerning animal housing, air quality, and manure management systems. Professor John Shutske, left, was a co-author on a Superior Paper Award for a paper titled "Testing and Creation of a Safety System to Disengage the PTO of a Tractor."
 Ingrid Schneider, director of the University of Minnesota Tourism Center, and an associate professor in the Department of Forest Resources, recently was re-appointed to the Explore Minnesota Tourism Council. Schneider, who has been a member of the council since its inception in 2004, will serve a four-year term.
 Anne Cooper, a Ph.D. student in Conservation Biology, has won the American Fisheries Society's J. Frances Allen Scholarship. The Scholarship honors Allen, who pioneered women’s involvement in the AFS and in the field of fisheries and is intended to encourage women to become fisheries professionals. Only one scholarship is awarded each year. Since 1993, four students from the University of Minnesota have received the award.
 Caitrin Mullan, an academic adviser in the CFANS Student Services office, was one of 26 people who recently completed The President's Emerging Leaders program. The program marked its sixth year by recognizing the achievements of the 2006-07 cohort in a celebratory poster display at the Campus Club on the Twin Cities campus.
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In This Issue
- From CFANS Dean Allen Levine
- Norman Borlaug receives Congressional medal
- Ag Open House showcases research on campus
- Three projects awarded $100,000 CFANS grants
- Jay Bell named Associate Dean
- Healthy Foods, Healthy Lives Institute created
- Second biofuels symposium focuses on overcoming barriers
- 'Speaking of Science' features Anne Kapuscinski
- Rob King chosen for statewide board
- Golf Scramble raises money for scholarships
- Events
From Allen Levine: 
We hear a lot about this emerging concept of the bioeconomy, or the socioeconomic impact of technology arising out of the biosciences, particularly alternative energy.
Bioresources and Bioenergy is one of the three strategic foci of our college, along with environment (global climate change), and food and health.
What does increased interest in the bioeconomy mean for CFANS? Intramurally, teams of biological and physical scientists, engineers, and social scientists work on fundamental scientific issues involving technology development, economic systems analysis and energy.
Read more
This past year, under the leadership of Dr. Shri Ramaswamy, the college merged two units to form the Division of Bioresources and Bioenergy. In partnership with the Institute of Technology, the college also launched the Bioproducts and Biosystems (BBE) program.
The term biosystems -- or biological systems -- broadly refers to systems that include organic and biologically active materials and processes important in agriculture, food production and processing, ecological and life systems, and natural and managed environments.
Bioproducts or bio-based products are the broad spectrum of materials, chemicals and energy derived from renewable bio-resources including biofuels, bioenergy, bio-based plastics, biocomposites, wood products and pulp, paper and much more. These products contain materials from renewable, domestic agricultural and forestry resources such as soybeans, corn, wheat and other crops.
A number of alternative energy initiatives have been launched by the University of Minnesota. Extramurally, CFANS contributes unique expertise to a partnership with the Institute on the Environment, the College of Biological Sciences, the Initiative for Renewable Energy and the Environment, Institute of Technology, Extension and the Hubert H. Humphrey Institute. These interdisciplinary relationships are positioning the University of Minnesota to be a national center of excellence in renewable energy and the environment.
Clearly this strategic area helps promote statewide economic development, support healthy and diverse ecosystems and helps transform Minnesota to be a leader in the 21st century bioeconomy.
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Norman Borlaug receives Congressional medal
  CFANS alumnus and Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Norman Borlaug was awarded the Congressional Gold Medal, the nation’s highest civilian honor, at a ceremony in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda on July 17. The award was presented by President Bush and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi; an original gold medal was created by the U.S. Mint to commemorate the honor.
Borlaug, who earned his bachelor’s, master’s and Ph.D. degrees at the University of Minnesota, is known as “the father of the Green Revolution” for his work in reducing world hunger through high-yield, disease-resistant food crops.
The Congressional Gold Medal is Congress’ highest expression of national appreciation for distinguished achievements and contributions. Past recipients include a wide range of people and institutions such as George Washington, Hubert Humphrey, Nelson Mandela and the American Red Cross.
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Ag Open House set for July 19
Come see what's growing in the research fields at the St. Paul campus and talk with experts about such topics as organic vegetable farming and biofuels. The once-every-few-years Agriculture Open House, which also includes a free tour of the display gardens and dairy barns, will run from 4 to 7:30 p.m. Thursday, July 19 outside the Agronomy and Plant Genetics Greenhouse.
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Three projects receive CFANS grants
Three research proposals have been selected to receive $100,000 each from the Dean's Initiative Fund. The proposals involve 14 faculty members and were selected from more than 25 proposals. The seed money in the grants will be used to develop preliminary data with the intent that researchers also will successfully pursue extramural funding in these areas of inquiry.
The principal investigators on the grants are:
Professor Jeffrey Apland of the Department of Applied Economics,"
Economic and Environmental Impacts of Biofuels in Minnesota"
Professor Jerry Cohen of the Department of Horticultural Science, "Novel Antimicrobial Properties of Honeybee Propolis in Human and Animal Health"
Professor Peter Reich of the Department of Forest Resources, "An Integrated Initiative on Climate Change in Northern Forest."
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Jay Bell chosen as new Associate Dean
 Jay Bell, a professor in the Department of Soil, Water and Climate, has been named Associate Dean for Academic Programs and Faculty Affairs. He has been a faculty member at the University of Minnesota since 1991 and earlier this year received a Morse-Alumni Award for Undergraduate Teaching. He is a two-time recipient (1995-2002) of the college's Distinguished Teaching Award. He also played a critical role in designing the new Environmental Sciences, Policy and Management curriculum. He will begin his new duties on July 23.
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Healthy Foods, Healthy Lives Institute created
 The Healthy Foods Healthy Lives Presidential Initiative has become an Institute, administratively housed
in CFANS. Professor Mindy Kurzer of the Department of Food Science and Nutrition has been named Director of the HFHL Institute. She will maintain the collaboration between the five colleges that participated in the original presidential initiative as she works with faculty to strengthen the University of Minnesota's contributions to food and health. The five original colleges include the School of Public Health, the Medical School, the College of Veterinary Medicine, Extension, and CFANS.
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Second biofuels symposium looks at barriers
  How can we unlock the potential that is bound up in biomass? Can we do it economically at an appropriate scale? Two world-renowned experts will help try to unlock that answer at the second CFANS biofuels symposium, titled "BIOFUELS: Breaking the Barriers for Biomass Conversion--Challenges and Opportunities." Charlie Wyman, right, a professor at the University of California-Riverside, and Simon Harvey, left, a professor at Chalmers University in Sweden, will share their perspectives on technical
challenges and potential opportunities, and then answer questions in a panel discussion with professors Simo Sarkanen and Roger Ruan, both from the Department of Bioproducts and Biosystems Engineering. The symposium will be from noon to 5 pm. Sept. 19 in the St. Paul Student Center. No registration is needed.
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A new "Speaking of Science"
 The latest installment of "Speaking of Science" is now online. This series of interviews between CFANS dean Allen Levine and key faculty and staff showcases the research and outreach work happening throughout the college. The latest interviewee is Anne Kapuscinski , a professor in the Department of Fisheries, Wildlife, and Conservation Biology. Kapuscinski is one of the founding fellows of the Institute on the Environment.
Read the Q and A with Anne Kapuscinski
Listen to raw MP3 audio of the interview:
Part 1
Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5
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Rob King named to statewide advisory board
 Rob King, head of the Department of Applied Economics, has been named to the statewide NextGen Energy Board by Gov. Tim Pawlenty.
The 19-member board will provide recommendations to the legislature and the governor about how the state can most efficiently achieve energy independence through agriculture and natural resource sustainability. One of the board’s primary duties is to examine the future of biofuels within Minnesota and to develop grant programs to assist renewable energy facilities throughout the state.
King has conducted research on a range of issues related to farmer cooperative formation and management over the past 20 years. He is appointed as a representative of the Minnesota Institute for Sustainable Agriculture.
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Golf Scramble raises money for scholarships
This year's Golf Scramble for Scholarships, sponsored by the CFANS Alumni Society, raised money for new student scholarships on July 9. The winning team was, from left, Greg Harder, Jim Merritt, Jerry Hawton and Rick Jeddeloh. (Goldy Gopher posed for photos).
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Events
Here are a few of the upcoming events of interest to the College of
Food, Agricultural and Natural Resource Sciences community. Visit www.cfans.umn.edu to
see more events.
Art to A-Maze Exhibition
Through Sept. 30
Minnesota Landscape Arboretum, Chaska
Explore the relationship between people and the natural world on the Art to A-Maze Walk, featuring a juried collection of 15 installations of environmental art, sculpture and interactive exhibits. The walk leads visitors from the Oswald Visitor Center to the Arboretum's new Maze Garden.
Biofuel Production and Wildlife Protection
Thursday, July 19, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Cargill Building
How will biofuels affect wildlife? Biofuel production has the potential to improve conditions for wildlife in the Upper Midwest, but if not properly done, it could make things worse. This conference will be a look into the state of scientific knowledge on biofuels and wildlife. Attendees will hear presentations from researchers and experts, join in discussion, develop ideas, offer suggestions, and work toward improving the state of affairs for the planet's wildlife. Co-sponsored by IREE and the Institute on the Environment. Advance registration is required.
Horticulture Night
Thursday, July 26, 5 to 9 p.m.
West Central Research and Outreach Center, Morris
The West Central Research and Outreach Center hosts its annual Horticulture Night, which includes tours of the University of Minnesota's Horticultural Gardens as well as discussions on gardening topics, gardening technique demonstrations, games in the Children's Garden and a picnic dinner.
Farmfest 2007
Tuesday-Thursday, Aug. 7-9
Gilfillan Estate, Redwood County
Farm displays, presentations and entertainment all are part of the 26th annual Farmfest; CFANS is a sponsor of the Farm Family of the Year awards. UMore Park Open House
Thursday, Aug. 16, 4 to 8 p.m.
UMore Park, Rosemount
The Open House will provide an opportunity for citizens in surrounding communities to learn about activities at UMore Park as well as presentations on the past, present and future of UMore Park. The event includes tours of the Master Gardener Education and Research Display Garden, birds from the University of Minnesota Raptor Center, complimentary lemonade and corn-on-the-cob.
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