Contact: Dr. Michael J. Donahue E-mail: mdonahue@glc.org

For immediate release January 7, 2000

New Fellowship Program to Strengthen Great Lakes Science/Policy Linkages

Ann Arbor, Mich. —The Great Lakes Commission announces an innovative new fellowship program that will advance the environmental quality and sustainable development goals of the organization and its state and provincial members. In partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s National Sea Grant College Program and Great Lakes Sea Grant Network, the Great Lakes Commission is supporting a year-long fellowship open to highly qualified graduate students from a Great Lakes university.

The Great Lakes Commission - Sea Grant Fellow will work with members of the Great Lakes science, policy and information/education communities on leading environmental quality and sustainable development issues. An emphasis will be placed on strengthening the science/policy linkage in the interest of advancing sound public policy. The Fellow will be based at Great Lakes Commission offices in Ann Arbor, Michigan.

Sponsoring organizations have selected Lisa Koch as the initial Great Lakes Commission - Sea Grant Fellow. A Michigan resident with an undergraduate degree from Michigan State University, Koch is a graduate student in the University of Wisconsin’s Department of Wildlife Ecology and is also pursuing certification in Geographic Information Systems. Koch will spend calendar year 2000 working on a variety of Great Lakes Commission projects and will also assist with its intergovernmental relations efforts.

“This new fellowship program adds an important dimension to the work of the Great Lakes Commission,” notes Dr. Frank Kudrna, Chair of Illinois Commission Delegation and a member of the National Sea Grant Advisory Panel. “The student gains practical experience in the policy arena, while we benefit from their scientific expertise.” An added benefit, according to Commission executive director Dr. Michael J. Donahue, is the opportunity to nurture careers in Great Lake science among some of the best and brightest students in the region.

Students interested in the Great Lakes Commission - Sea Grant Fellowship program are encouraged to contact the Commission at 734-665-9135 or glc@great-lakes.net.

The Great Lakes Commission is a nonpartisan, binational compact agency created by state and U.S. federal law and dedicated to promoting a strong economy, healthy environment and high quality of life for the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence region and its residents. The Commission consists of state legislators, agency officials and governors’ appointees from its eight member states. Associate membership for Ontario and Québec was established through the signing of a “Declaration of Partnership.” The Commission maintains a formal Observer program involving U.S. and Canadian federal agencies, tribal authorities, binational agencies and other regional interests. The Commission offices are located in Ann Arbor, Michigan.