Ocean Leadership Staff Member Wins Acclaimed Award
Filed under: Census of Marine Life,Discovery,News & Resources,Press Releases
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – May 26, 2009
Ron O’Dor Named Canadian Geographic’s 2009 Environmental Scientist of the Year
(Washington, D.C.)- The Consortium for Ocean Leadership is pleased to announce that biologist Ron O’Dor, chief science officer of its Census of Marine life (CoML) program, is the recipient of Canadian Geographic’s 2009 Environmental Scientist of the Year award.
O’Dor joined the Consortium for Ocean Leadership in 2001 to work on CoML. He has remained an irreplaceable component of the program for the past eight years. CoML is a 10-year, 82-nation project that gauges and records the diversity, distribution and abundance of life in the world’s oceans. O’Dor currently manages the more than 2,000 scientists involved in the 17 projects of CoML.
Prior to CoML, O’Dor was a biology professor at Dalhousie University in Halifax, Nova Scotia. He has earned degrees in biochemistry and medial physiology at University of California, Berkeley and University of British Columbia, respectively, as well as a post-doctorate degree in Zoology at Cambridge University.
“I’m honored to be recognized by Canadian Geographic – this is truly a highlight in my career,” said O’Dor. “Environmental Scientist of the Year is a big name to live up to, but I know that the Census of Marine Life will continue to accomplish great feats as we discover more about our ocean environment.”
Canadian Geographic’s editorial staff annually identifies a leading Canadian scientist to honor through its resources, networks and readings. O’Dor is the fourth scientist to be named Scientist of the Year by the magazine. The 2009 announcement will appear in the Canadian Geographic’s June 2009 issue.
About Consortium for Ocean Leadership
Ocean Leadership is a Washington, D.C.-based nonprofit organization that represents 95 of the leading public and private ocean research education institutions, aquaria and industry with the mission to advance research, education and sound ocean policy. The organization also manages ocean research and education programs in areas of scientific ocean drilling, ocean observing, ocean exploration and ocean partnerships.
About Census of Marine Life
The Census of Marine Life (CoML) is the first international program dedicated to studying the biology of the ocean. CoML is a growing global network of researchers in more than 80 nations engaged in a 10-year scientific initiative to assess and explain the diversity, distribution and abundance of life in the ocean. CoML uses field research, historical data and models of trends and projections to understand and forecast marine biodiversity. In 2010, CoML will release the first comprehensive report on what is known, unknown and potentially unknowable about biodiversity in the ocean.
For more information or interviews, contact:
Kristin Mellon
202-787-1644
kmellon@oceanleadership.org
