ESA Selects Numbere, Three Others as 2022 EEE Scholars
A Lecturer in the Department of Animal and Environmental Biology, University of Port Harcourt, Dr Aroloye Ofo Numbere, is among the four beneficiaries of the 2022 cohort of the Ecological Society of America (ESA) Excellence in Ecology (EEE) Scholars for early – mid career ESA members who have achieved a Ph.D. within the last 20 years.
With this mention, Numbere alongside other scholars will receive an award of 5,000 USD, about N2.2 million, for a period of two years to support travel for a speaking opportunity at an ESA annual meeting or event, research or family/childcare and to facilitate a research topic web event, and publication fees in one of ESA’s open-access journals. The scholarship program targeted at supporting and elevating diverse scientists in the ecological community, hopes to broaden the participation and perspectives in the practice of ecology.
In a remark, the ESA President, Sharon Collinge, stated that the selected scholars are conducting impactful research on a wide range of ecological communities and landscapes, while also active in several community engagement initiatives. The ESA president expressed satisfaction with the incredibly driven and talented group ready to advance in their career paths.
Also, the ESA Diversity Committee Chair, Carmen Cid, noted that “the ESA Excellence in Ecology Scholars program, which is now in its second cohort, is to support career development of diverse ESA ecologists and promote innovative research in social–ecological systems,” adding that the grant is in tandem with the aims of the ESA to meet the environmental problem-solving challenges of the Anthropocene.
Founded in 1915, the Ecological Society of America is the world’s largest community of professional ecologists and a trusted source of ecological knowledge, committed to advancing the understanding of life on Earth. The 9,000-member Society publishes five journals and a membership bulletin that broadly shares ecological information through policy, media outreach, and education initiatives.
The three other excellence in ecology awardees are: Karen Bailey (Assistant Professor, University of Colorado Boulder); Bruno Soares (Postdoctoral Researcher, University of Toronto-Scarborough); and Nikki Traylor-Knowles (Associate Professor, University of Miami).
—JENNIFER EMEJURU