43787.CFR Annual text.indd - School of Environmental and Forest ...

Transforming world-class educationin an urban-to-wildland living laboratoryLearning across the gradient — city streets to forest soilsSustaining urban ecosystems6From studies of wildland soils, to monitoring rare plant populations, to restoration of riparianwetlands, to meeting the challenges of maintaining healthy urban environments, students inthe College are exposed to a dynamic array of field experiences. Donor support makes a crucialdifference in the quality of the research, teaching, and learning environment, providing supportfor international travel, scholarships and fellowships, and professorships to attract and retainthe best faculty.The Denman Professorship in Sustainable Resources Sciences, an endowment created in 2004with generous support from Mary Ellen and Richard Denman, will give Professor JohnMarzluff, the first holder of the professorship, an unparalleled opportunity to enhance hiswildlife science and urban ecology research and teaching. This will benefit his students in theCollege’s graduate and undergraduate programs focusing on the sustainability of our naturaland managed landscapes.After an intense four years of planning and construction, the Center for Urban Horticulture’snew Merrill Hall was well on its way to reopening at the end of fiscal year 2004. The newMerrill Hall houses the Elisabeth C. Miller Library, the Otis Douglas Hyde Herbarium, and officesand laboratories for faculty and students, including those involved in the College’s education,research, outreach, and rare plant care programs.The building was designed to incorporate the College’s and the Center’s mission ofsustainability, and will be the greenest building on the Seattle campus and one of the handfulin Seattle built following Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) standards— considered the nation’s gold standard for sustainable buildings. Merrill Hall, which will likelybe the second UW building to attain LEED certification, boasts features that include a way torecycle storm water, take advantage of natural ventilation and solar panels, and incorporaterecycled and renewable products, such as furniture hand crafted from salvaged urban trees andother certified wood products.The new Merrill Hall will provide enhanced resources for the public and for teachers, students,and learners of all ages in fulfillment of CUH’s mission to “apply horticulture to natural andhuman-altered landscapes to sustain natural resources and the human spirit.” Truly a part ofits urban community, as well as serving as a regional and national horticultural resource, CUHcomplements other College programs that contribute to sustaining our urban ecosystems forfuture generations.Photo left: Forest soils class on one of many field trips.Photo above: Urban ecology faculty and students studying in Berlin with theircounterparts at Humboldt State University.Photo right: Merrill Hall, just prior to formally reopening in January 2005.