Athens, Ga. (Sept. 7, 2006) - James E. Kundell, senior public service associate and director of the Environmental Policy Program at the Carl Vinson Institute of Government, has been appointed to the Scientific Advisory Committee of the Joseph W. Jones Ecological Research Center at Ichauway in Newton, Georgia.

The committee, which consists of six eminent scientists and natural resources professionals, serves in an advisory capacity to the center staff and to the Robert W. Woodruff Foundation, which provides the core financial support for the facility. The only other person from the University of Georgia to serve on the committee is the late Eugene Odum, founder of UGA’s Institute of Ecology. Current members, in addition to Kundell, are Dr. Gene Likens, Director of the Institute of Ecosystem Studies in Millbrook, New York (Chair); Dr. Jerry Franklin, Professor of Ecosystem Management at the University of Washington; Dr. Malcolm Hunter, Libra Professor of Conservation Biology, University of Maine; Dr. Robert Naiman, Professor of Fisheries, University of Washington; and Mr. Leon Neel, Forest and Wildlife Consultant in Thomasville, Georgia.

Located in Baker County, Georgia, the 29,000-acre Jones Center is a nationally recognized research and education outdoor laboratory dedicated to natural resources management and conservation in the southeastern coastal plain of the United States, particularly in relation to the ecosystem of the longleaf pine and aquatic ecology and water resources. Established as a quail hunting reserve in the 1920s by Coca-Cola founder Robert Woodruff, the area was transformed into an ecological center in 1991 and named in honor of former Coca-Cola senior vice president and Woodruff Foundation chair emeritus Joseph Jones.

In addition to his appointment in the Vinson Institute, Kundell is a professor in the Institute of Ecology, where he teaches a graduate course in environmental policy and management and advises master’s and doctoral students on their research. He is the author of more than 150 books, articles, and reports on environmental topics. Most recently his work has focused on conducting water policy research relating to Georgia’s efforts to develop a comprehensive state water management plan.

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This article was posted on Friday, September 8th, 2006 at 2:42 pm and is filed under News, Personnel.