17 January 2006

Highest honour for Dundee Scientist

A lifetime’s research dedicated to the field of plant biology has been honoured by the British Phycological Society, with the presentation of Honorary Life Membership to University of Dundee Professor, John Raven.

A Principal Investigator in the Division of Environmental and Applied Biology in the School of Life Sciences, Professor Raven’s research interests include understanding how the world’s oceans remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere and how the resulting acidification of the oceans affects the organisms that live there.

Professor Raven examines the carbon transport processes of aquatic photosynthetic organisms that could help predict the future patterns of biodiversity in the sea and interactions with global environmental change. He led a major Royal Society report last year which showed that our oceans are being acidified, with potentially very significant consequences for some ocean life.

Honorary membership of the British Phycological Society (BPS) is the highest honour that the Society gives. The primary criterion for honorary membership is great distinction in the science of phycology, which is the study of algae. The Society has over 400 members and permits a maximum of 10 Honorary Life Members.

Professor Raven is a committee member of the Council of the Marine Biological Association and is on the University Research Fellowship Panel of the Royal Society of London. He has also been made a ‘Corresponding Member’ of the Australian Society of Plant Scientists, and in 2002 received the Award of Excellence from the Phycological Society of America.

Professor Mike Guiry, BPS President said, "John Raven has been one of the staunchest members of the Society: he has attended virtually all of the Annual Meetings since he joined, and always has a kindly word for students and young researchers attending the meetings."

Professor Raven said "I am delighted and humbled by recognition from the Society which promotes the study of algae in Britain and elsewhere, and I shall continue to support the Society to the best of my abilities. Algae in the ocean are responsible for about half of the photosynthesis which occurs on Earth, and continued study of them is essential in understanding their roles in providing our life support systems in a changing world."

John was presented with his award at the Annual General Meeting in Plymouth on Friday 6 January 2006.

Notes to Editors

The British Phycological Society was founded in 1952 and now has over 400 members in more than 50 countries worldwide. The primary aim of the Society is to promote the study of algae and act as a forum for the exchange of ideas and information. It is a member of the Biosciences Federation and will soon be a member of the Federation of European Microbiological Societies (FEMS). The Society publishes the European Journal of Phycology, which is the highest ranked international phycological journal, and The Phycologist, a bi-annual newsletter. The Society hosts an annual conference at the beginning of January and prizes are awarded for the best oral and poster presentations.

For more information contact:

Roddy Isles
Head of Press Office
University of Dundee
Tel: 01382 384910
Email: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk