UH Manoa Professor Wins International Award for Excellence In Marine Science

University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa
Contact:
Shawn Nakamoto, (808) 956-9095
University & Community Relations
risten Cabral, (808) 956-5039
University & Community Relations
Posted: Oct 16, 2001

David Karl, Professor of Oceanography at the University of Hawaiʻi at Manoa, has been named the winner of the prestigious 2001 A.G. Huntsman Award for Excellence in Marine Science. The A.G. Huntsman Award is administered by the A.G. Huntsman Foundation, which is based at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia.

Karl will be presented with the award, which is a specially designed and engraved sterling silver medal, in December by the Royal Society of Canada during a ceremony at the Bedford Institute of Oceanography. He also has the privilege of delivering a distinguished lecture in his field of specialty.

"Dave Karl is, without doubt, one of the foremost marine microbiologists in the world," said Edward Laws, Interim Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Education at UH Manoa.

He has published more than 200 papers in peer-reviewed scientific journals, including one regarding the discovery of a previously unknown type of bacteria found in water samples collected from the Pacific Ocean at the Hawaiʻi Ocean Time-series Station ALOHA, which is located about 100 km north of Oʻahu. Details of the discovery and the bacteria recently appeared in an issue of the journal Nature.

"He is one of only a few people to have twice won the University of Hawaiʻi‘s Regents‘ Medal for Excellence in Research, once as an associate professor and later as a full professor," said Laws. "In addition to being a world-class researcher, Dave is an outstanding teacher and mentor of students."

Besides conducting numerous research projects, Karl has also supported oceanography students through the many grants he has received from organizations including the National Science Foundation and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Since 1991, he has brought in between $750,000 and $1 million per year in extramural funding to the University.

He has been at the University of Hawaiʻi since 1978, and has participated in more than 70 major oceanographic cruises and has served as a research submersible observer on more than 30 dives. In 1997, he was designated one of the University of Hawaiʻi‘s "Ninety Fabulous Faculty" on the occasion of the University‘s 90th anniversary.

He is also actively involved in community service, having served as a judge for the State of Hawaiʻi Science and Engineering Fair for 14 years, on numerous University committees, and on numerous national organization committees and boards.

"I have personally watched him give stimulating talks to audiences ranging from kindergarteners to prison inmates," said Laws. "The quality, breadth, and depth of his contributions and activities are truly remarkable."

The A.G. Huntsman Award was established by the Canadian marine science community to recognize excellence in research and outstanding contributions to marine sciences. The award, which is recognized as a major international prize, honors marine scientists of any nationality who have had and continue to have a significant influence on the course of marine scientific thought. It is presented annually in one of three categories: 1) marine geosciences, 2) physical/chemical oceanography, and 3) biological oceanography. This year‘s award was presented in biological oceanography.