Upcoming 2019 Izatt-Christensen Lecture

BYU’s Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Chemical Engineering are proud to welcome Dr. Geraldine Richmond, 2018 Priestley Medal winner and the Presidential Chair in Science at the University of Oregon as this year’s speaker in the Izatt-Christensen lecture series.

Dr. Richmond has served in many leadership positions within international, national, and advisory boards, including the National Science Board, where she currently serves as the U.S. Science Envoy to the Lower Mekong River Countries. She is also the incoming president of the Sigma Xi Scientific Honor Society, and the founding director of COACh, an organization that has helped over 20,000 women scientists and engineers in career advancement within the U.S. and developing countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.

Dr. Richmond has received close to 50 honors and awards for her work in the field of chemistry, including the 2018 Priestley Medal, which is the highest honor conferred by the American Chemical Society.

Dr. Richmond’s lectures will include a general interest public lecture entitled, “Empowering Global Scientific Engagement,” which will discuss her efforts to ensure a sustainable world in the face of climate change and a population soon to reach nine billion. For this, she will discuss how individuals need to seek innovative methods which will allow humans to co-exist with ever-expanding needs for energy, food, water, and a healthy environment. She will share with the audience many stories and insights gained from her collaborative efforts with several thousand scientists and engineers in many developing countries around the globe. This lecture will be held on Tuesday, February 26 in room W140 of the Ezra Taft Benson Building from 4-5 PM.

In the technical lecture geared more to those in the field entitled, “Mulling Over Emulsions: Molecular Assembly at Complex Liquid Surfaces,” Dr. Richmond will discuss the properties of the oil-water interface. Specifically, the lecture will relate the unique nature of the relationship between water and hydrophobic liquids, such as soaps, polymers and macromolecules at both planar and nanoemulsion oil/water interfaces. This lecture will take place on Wednesday the 27 of February, also in room W140 from 4-5 PM.

Dr. Richmond’s lectures will mark the eleventh annual Izatt-Christensen lecture, named for Reed Izatt and James Christensen, and sponsored by the BYU Departments of Chemistry and Biochemistry and Chemical Engineering. Reed Izatt is a Charles E. Maw Professor of Chemistry, Emeritus, at BYU. He and the late James J. Christensen made great strides in the field of macrocyclic chemistry, and created the lecture series in 2007 to celebrate those who also do great work in the field.

Written by Emma Parnell