The author of the critically acclaimed and influential text on coastal marine ecosystems, Marine Ecological Processes, Dr. Ivan Valiela, Professor of Biology, Boston University Marine Program, Woods Hole, will be featured as the 14th Annual Wiese Distinguished Lecturer this November. The public is invited to his talk “Global Coastal Change” on Tuesday, November 13, 7pm at the John Counts Room at the Mitchell Center, University of South Alabama (USA).

Dr. Valiela is recognized as both an excellent educator, having advised more than 50 masters and Ph.D. students, and as a groundbreaking research scientist. In his 35 years as a researcher, he has authored over 200 papers, many seminal to the field of estuarine research. His latest book, Global Coastal Change, is a review of the history and facts related to the human-driven agents of ecological change affecting the world’s coasts.

“Dr. Ivan Valiela is truly a scientist-educator. His work on human impacts on estuarine systems has become more relevant and critical as the coasts become ever more crowded. His scientific writings have become the gold standard in the field of coastal estuarine research. Not content with being the authoritative voice on coastal research, he is also recognized as an excellent educator, one whose students revere him long after they’ve left his lab. We are privileged to have him as our Wiese Distinguished Lecturer,” said Dr. Bob Shipp, Chair, Department of Marine Sciences, University of South Alabama.

Dr. Valiela received the 2005 William Niering Outstanding Educator Award from the Estuarine Research Federation.

The Wiese Lecture Series is endowed by a generous gift from the late Peter Wiese and his wife Marty of Fairhope, Alabama. Each year the series brings an eminent scientist to the University of South Alabama and the Dauphin Island Sea Lab. The scientist interacts with students and faculty and presents a lecture for the public on a topic of general interest in marine science.

This lecture is sponsored by the Department of Marine Sciences, University of South Alabama and the Dauphin Island Sea Lab.

Admission is free and open to the general public.
For more information, call 460-7136.