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Worcester State College Press
Release
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dr. Kerr Receives Fulbright Scholar
Grant to Promote
Green Chemistry in Asia
(Worcester, MA – April 30, 2007) “The Asian
market is so vast that the future of the planet depends considerably on what
happens there in the next generation,” according to Associate Professor of
Chemistry Margaret Kerr, Ph.D.
With
this in mind, Kerr will be promoting green chemistry at Chulalongkorn
University in Bangkok, Thailand, this fall. She has received a Fulbright
Scholar grant to support university green chemistry curriculum development,
K-12 outreach, and the creation and expansion of green chemistry networks in
Southeast Asia.
Kerr
said that in 2003 the Global Chemical Index, an important measure of
economic growth worldwide, showed East Asia with an annual growth of 11.0%,
compared with 6.7% in Central and Eastern Europe and 0.2% in the United
States. “Asia is a major player in economic growth and development, and also
in environmental degradation,” she pointed out. “It is essential to include
Asia in any discussion about sustainability.”
Kerr
is an expert in curriculum development and implementation of green
chemistry, which reduces the use or generation of hazardous substances
during chemical processes. By implementing green chemistry in student
laboratories, she explained, schools immediately reduce their negative
impact on the environment. More importantly, they prepare future scientists
to develop benign approaches to chemical processes.
Under
Kerr’s direction, WSC adopted a green chemistry curriculum for its organic
laboratory sequence three years ago, putting the College well ahead of the
curve. “Worcester State is the only college in the area that has a green
chemistry program,” she stated. “The skills our students are learning are
becoming increasingly valuable in the workplace.”
Kerr,
who will be in Thailand throughout the fall 2007 semester, is one of
approximately 800 U.S. faculty and professionals who will travel abroad
through the Fulbright Scholar Program this academic year.
The
Fulbright Program, America’s flagship international educational exchange
program, is sponsored by the United States Department of State, Bureau of
Educational and Cultural Affairs.
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