The UC Center for Environmental Implications of Nanotechnology (UC CEIN) has been awarded the California Governor's Environmental and Economic Leadership Award in the field of green chemistry. The award was announced this week at a ceremony at the California Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in Sacramento.
The center earned the award for its efforts to improve nanotechnology environmental health and safety. Since its inception in 2008, UC CEIN has become a world-class research facility focused on the responsible use and safe implementation of nanotechnology in the environment.
Housed in the California NanoSystems Institute at UCLA, with a second research hub at UC Santa Barbara, the center engages researchers at nearly two dozen research institutions in the United States and worldwide. On a recent visit to UCLA, EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson praised the center for the creation of more than 100 new green jobs in the state since 2008.
UC CEIN is widely respected globally for implementation of novel approaches to assess nanomaterial properties that determine hazard, environmental exposure and impact on marine and terrestrial ecosystems. These efforts have helped create a paradigm shift for investigating nanomaterial hazard and risk at a scale commensurate with the rate of new nanomaterial development. The center also plays a critical role in educating the next generation of nano-scientists, engineers, and policy makers to anticipate and mitigate potential future environmental hazards associated with nanotechnology.
"The ability to address nanotechnology safety is key to advancing nanomaterials in the marketplace," said Dr. Andre Nel, director of the UC CEIN and professor of medicine, pediatrics and public health at UCLA. "UC CEIN developed frameworks, methodologies, and tools that are not only being used by state and federal agencies, but are also being adopted by industries across the United State and internationally."
Pictured above: Dr. Andre Nel
