Congressional Affairs | Newsroom | Speeches | Priority Areas | What's Cool | Publications | Partners | History | About Us

   You are in: NSF Home > OLPA Home > Newsroom > NSF PA/M 03-22

NSF PA/M 03-22 - May 1, 2003

Workshop on Nanotechnology Grand Challenges in the Environment to Be Held at NSF

Arlington, VA - A multidisciplinary group of scholars will meet at the National Science Foundation (NSF) May 8-9, 2003, for a visionary planning workshop to discuss how nanotechnology research can be used to protect, inform, manage and improve the environment and how potential harm from nanotechnology can be studied and prevented. This workshop is one of several held under the auspices of the National Nanotechnology Initiative (NNI) and will address research planning for both the environmental applications and implications of nanotechnology.

The workshop's May 8 morning session, 8:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m., is open to the media. NSF's Mihail Roco, chair of the U.S. National Science and Technology Council's Subcommittee on Nanoscale Science, Engineering, and Technology (NSET), will present an overview of U.S. government efforts in nanotechnology research and development. Barbara Karn from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) will give the charge and goal to the workshop participants. Alexandra Navrotsky of the University of California, Davis, will give a plenary talk on the relationship between nanotechnology and the environment, followed by plenary speakers on the five broad topics explored in the workshop:

• Michael Zachariah, University of Minnesota-Applications for measurement in the environment: Sensors, monitors, models, separations, detection, data gathering and dissemination.
  
  
• Kenneth Geiser, University of Massachusetts, Lowell-Applications for sustainable materials and resources: Water, waste (including reuse and recycling), pollution and energy issues.
  
  
• Kenneth Klabunde, Kansas State University-Applications for sustainable processes: Bottom-up manufacturing, waste and water treatment, remanufacture and reuse, self-assembling systems, biomimicry and hierarchical structures.
  
  
• Richard C. Flagan, California Institute of Technology-Implications in natural and global processes: Climate change; transport of aerosols, colloids and particulates; biomineralization; the role of biosystems.
  
  
• Günter Oberdörster, University of Rochester-Implications in health and environmental safety: Environmental health, persistence, toxicity, fate and transport and the wet-dry interface.

Workshop participants will debate these topics in smaller groups and develop a vision for future research. The results of the workshop will be released in a report following the meeting.

For more information, contact David Hart, 703-292-7737, dhart@nsf.gov, or Estella Waldman, 202-564-6836, waldman.estella@epa.gov

-NSF-

NSF is an independent federal agency that supports fundamental research and education across all fields of science and engineering, with an annual budget of nearly $5 billion. NSF funds reach all 50 states through grants to nearly 2,000 universities and institutions. Each year, NSF receives about 30,000 competitive requests for funding, and makes about 10,000 new funding awards. NSF also awards over $200 million in professional and service contracts yearly.

Receive official NSF news electronically through the e-mail delivery system, NSFnews. To subscribe, send an e-mail message to join-nsfnews@lists.nsf.gov. In the body of the message, type "subscribe nsfnews" and then type your name. (Ex.: "subscribe nsfnews John Smith")

Useful Web Sites:
NSF Home Page: http://www.nsf.gov
News Highlights: http://www.nsf.gov/home/news.html
Newsroom: http://www.nsf.gov/od/lpa/news/media/start.htm
Science Statistics: http://www.nsf.gov/sbe/srs/stats.htm
Awards Searches: http://www.fastlane.nsf.gov/a6/A6Start.htm

 
National Science Foundation
Office of Legislative and Public Affairs
4201 Wilson Boulevard
Arlington, Virginia 22230, USA
Tel: 703-292-8070
FIRS: 800-877-8339 | TDD: 703-292-5090