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For more information, contact Dr. Christopher Field at Carnegie’s Department of Global Ecology, 650-325-1521 x 213, e-mail: cfield@globalecology.stanford.edu; or Mary Smith at 650-325-1521 x 202; e-mail: mary@Andrew2.Stanford.EDU

Groundbreaking Launches Carnegie’s New Global Ecology Department

Stanford, California, May 21, 2003.

The May 22nd groundbreaking for Carnegie’s new Department of Global Ecology marks a significant step in developing the scientific foundation for a sustainable future. Christopher Field, director of the new department remarked: “This event is important for Carnegie and for the science of global ecology. Carnegie’s investment in this area will help fuel an explosion of knowledge about the way the earth works as a coupled system with ecological, physical, and human components. The new building is a significant milestone.” The new department, formally established in July 2002, will be adjacent to Carnegie’s Department of Plant Biology, on the campus of Stanford University.

The Department of Global Ecology grew out of a century of ecological research at the Carnegie Institution. Using a wide range of powerful tools—from satellites to molecular biology—Carnegie scientists have been analyzing the complicated interactions of earth’s land, atmosphere, and oceans. They also play an active role in the public arena—from Congressional testimony on global warming to using satellite imagery to sense environmental “hotspots.”

The research building will reflect the department’s mission through an innovative, energy-efficient “green” design. The 11,000 square foot research building will use only 1⁄4 the energy per occupant as a typical new laboratory building in California. The San Francisco firm of Esherick, Homsey, Dodge and Davis (EHDD) designed the structure. “We want to set a high standard for energy efficiency, low-impact materials, and a healthy environment,” stated Field. “This building represents a real opportunity to contribute to sustainability through creative design,” he concluded.

Speakers at the groundbreaking will include Richard Meserve, tenth president of the Carnegie Institution, Michael Gellert, chairman of the Carnegie Board of Trustees, and Pamela Matson, Dean of Stanford’s College of Earth Sciences. Attendees will include Carnegie researchers and trustees, plus colleagues from Stanford and representatives of the David and Lucile Packard Foundation, which generously donated to the project. The groundbreaking will take place at 4:00 p.m., Thursday May 22, 2003, at 260 Panama St., Stanford, CA. A reception will follow the ceremony.

The Carnegie Institution (www.CarnegieInstitution.org) has been a pioneering force in basic scientific research since 1902. It is a private, nonprofit organization with six research departments in the U.S.: Embryology, Geophysical Laboratory, Terrestrial Magnetism, The Observatories, Plant Biology, and Global Ecology.