SUBJECT:

Establishment of "Food & Fuel for the 21st Century (FF-21)" as an Organized Research Unit at UC San Diego

Following consultation with the Academic Senate and campus administrative officials, we are pleased to announce the establishment of "Food & Fuel for the 21st Century" as an Organized Research Unit reporting to Vice Chancellor Sandra Brown. Stephen Mayfield and Julian Schroeder, Professors of Biological Sciences, will serve as founding co-Directors.

The mission of FF-21 is to support development of innovative, sustainable and commercially viable solutions for the renewable production of food, energy, green chemistry and bio-products using photosynthetic organisms. This Center will incorporate research scientists from the fields of biology, chemistry, engineering, and economics and policy. This Center will also help facilitate the training of young scientists, including undergraduates, graduate students and post-doctoral scholars, by integrating them into the multi-disciplinary research teams. In addition, the center will facilitate the transfer of technology to the commercial sector, as well as facilitate discussions with regional, state and national policy makers regarding the use of photosynthetic organisms for enhanced food production and energy independence.

Membership in the Center is open to all interested faculty members and research scientists/scholars. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Professors Mayfield (smayfield@ucsd.edu) or Schroeder (jischroeder@ucsd.edu).

Suresh Subramani Executive Vice Chancellor - Academic Affairs Sandra Brown Vice Chancellor - Research