Robert M. White, First NOAA Administrator, Receives 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award from National Marine Sanctuary Foundation |
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Washington, D.C. — In recognition of his lifelong commitment to the environment and decades of distinguished scientific leadership to the United States while serving under five U.S. presidents, Dr. Robert M. White, the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration’s first administrator, will be honored with the 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award today by the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation at its Annual Leadership Awards Dinner at the Ronald Reagan Building in Washington, D.C.
“We are pleased to honor Dr. White, who has been a central figure in environmental issues throughout his career and a pioneer in weather forecasting and climate change research,” said Lori Arguelles, president and CEO of the National Marine Sanctuary Foundation. Dr. White, appointed the first administrator of NOAA by President Richard Nixon in 1970, helped revolutionize the U.S. Weather Warning System by encouraging the use of satellite observation and computer technology. He has also served as the president of the National Academy of Engineering, president of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research, chief of the Weather Bureau, U.S. commissioner to the International Whaling Commission, U.S. permanent representative to the World Meteorological Organization, representative to the International Oceanographic Commission, and was the Karl T. Compton lecturer at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Currently, Dr. White is a director with the Washington Advisory Group, where he advises on issues related to the environment, energy and climate change. The recipient of many prestigious awards, Dr. White has received the Vannevar Bush Award, the Tyler Prize for Environmental Achievement, and the Charles A. Lindbergh Award. He is also a member of the French Legion of Honor and the Academies of Engineering in Great Britain, Japan, and Australia. Dr. White received his B.A. degree in geology from Harvard University and received his M.S. and Sc.D. degrees from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. He also holds many honorary degrees. The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation’s Leadership Awards Dinner is held in conjunction with the 2007 Capitol Hill Ocean Week, a three-day symposium that features ocean policy experts from government, private industry, nonprofits and academia. Participants seek to raise awareness of the important ocean and coastal issues among our nation’s leaders and to build bridges among various ocean constituencies. The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation is the private, non-profit partner to the federally managed National Marine Sanctuary Program. It was created to inspire all people to preserve, protect and promote our nationwide network of marine sanctuaries. The 14 sites within the National Marine Sanctuary System protect special places in the oceans and Great Lakes from the Florida Keys to the Hawaiian Islands and from Lake Huron to the Gulf of Mexico. |
