Carnegie Mellon’s Steinbrenner Institute Attracts Top Editors to Third Annual Environmental Media Fellowship

June 18, 2007
Contact: Chriss Swaney
(412) 268-5776

PITTSBURGH—Carnegie Mellon University’s Steinbrenner Institute for Environmental Education and Research (SEER) will host three top journalists June 18–21 at its third annual environmental media fellowship.

The national journalists include Bette Hileman, senior editor of Chemical @ Engineering News; Kara Sissell, senior editor of Chemical Week; and John Sullivan, editor of Environmental News. The editors will spend four days on the Carnegie Mellon campus, meeting faculty and getting a personal look at some of the university’s environmental research.

“The fellowship enables leading science journalists to broaden and deepen their knowledge of environmental issues, and provides a unique opportunity for Carnegie Mellon faculty to share their research findings with a group that can communicate those findings widely,” said Dave Dzombak, faculty director of the Steinbrenner Institute and the Walter J. Blenko Sr. Professor of Environmental Engineering.

The editors meet informally with researchers in labs and in the field. Their interviews span topics ranging from green design and green buildings to air and water quality, risk management, and alternative energy issues. The journalists will also visit the National Energy Technology Laboratory (NETL) in Pittsburgh, where Carnegie Mellon faculty are working collaboratively on a variety of research projects with NETL scientists and engineers.

“The faculty have been great about participating and sharing their broad range of work with media,” said Deb Lange, executive director of the Steinbrenner Institute. “We really want journalists to go away with the knowledge that they can use Carnegie Mellon as a resource for stories.”

Working as a catalyst, the Steinbrenner Institute is charged with developing and enhancing the impact of environmental research and education. The educational focus includes an emphasis on helping all Carnegie Mellon undergraduate students understand the complexity of environmental problems, as well as the methodologies and practical solutions that can lead to a more sustainable world.

In the past three years, SEER has allocated more than $300,000 in grants to a variety of Carnegie Mellon research and educational initiatives, including industry and media panel sessions and fellowships.

About Carnegie Mellon: Carnegie Mellon is a private research university with a distinctive mix of programs in engineering, computer science, robotics, business, public policy, fine arts and the humanities. More than 10,000 undergraduate and graduate students receive an education characterized by its focus on creating and implementing solutions for real problems, interdisciplinary collaboration, and innovation. A small student-to-faculty ratio provides an opportunity for close interaction between students and professors. While technology is pervasive on its 144-acre campus, Carnegie Mellon is also distinctive among leading research universities for the world-renowned programs in its College of Fine Arts. For more, see www.cmu.edu.