U ecology professor receives international prize

Last update: October 7, 2008 - 8:55 PM

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David Tilman, regents professor of ecology at the University of Minnesota, has been named this year's recipient of the International Prize for Biology.

THE AWARD: Tilman will receive a medal, nearly $100,000 and a gift from Emperor Akihito of Japan in a ceremony Dec. 8 in Tokyo. After the ceremony, he will present the keynote address at a scientific symposium.

The university said the award is given to one person in a different field of biology each year.

HIS RESEARCH: Tilman, 59, was selected for research proving that biodiversity makes ecosystems more productive and resistant to drought, disease and pests.

His seminal findings were published in Science and Nature during the 1990s. More recently, he has applied his discoveries to renewable energy, showing that biofuel created from diverse prairie grasses is more efficient and better for the environment than fuel made from food crops such as corn and soybeans.

All of his research was carried out at Cedar Creek Ecosystem Science Reserve, which is operated by the College of Biological Sciences, where Tilman is a faculty member. He also is director of the Cedar Creek reserve.

"The world is facing immense environmental challenges. There is no scientific goal more important than pursing solutions to these problems," Tilman said. "We have an ethical obligation to preserve the Earth's ecosystems for future generations."

THE PRIZE: The International Prize in Biology was created in 1985 to commemorate the 60-year reign of Emperor Showa of Japan and his longtime interest in and support for the biological sciences.

PAUL WALSH