Two Washington State University faculty members have been elected to the Washington State Academy of Sciences, honoring their scientific achievements and tapping them for advice on science policy in the state.
The two—agricultural economist Thomas Marsh and plant biologist Gerald Edwards—will join 22 others from around the state when they are inducted at the academy’s fourth annual meeting in Seattle Sept. 22. They will bring the academy’s total membership to 154.
“It’s certainly an honor to be elected to a group of well known and established scientists,” said Marsh, a professor in the WSU School of Economic Sciences and director of the school’s IMPACT Center, which addresses economic, social, political, and technical problems affecting Washington agriculture. “As an economist, I look forward to working with individuals on policy questions where I can contribute from a social and economic-impact point of view.”
Marsh, who also sits on the faculty of the Paul G. Allen School for Global Animal Health, has spent much of the past decade studying the economic effects of plant and animal diseases in the U.S. and abroad.
Edwards, a Regents professor in WSU’s School of Biological Sciences, studies photosynthesis, including the effects of environmental stress and potential global climate change. He is currently involved in a consortium of scientists working to improve rice production and water use in stressed conditions.
Edwards said he is looking forward to the outreach and education role of being an academy member, which can range from activities promoting the sciences to advising on science-related issues.
Also elected to the academy were:
Jim Fredrickson, chief scientist in the Biological Sciences Division of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and an adjunct professor in WSU’s Gene and Linda Voiland School of Chemical Engineering and Bioengineering.
Mohammad Khaleel, director of the Computational Sciences and Mathematics Division of the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and adjunct professor at WSU’s School of Mechanical and Materials Engineering.