TAPPI awards Art Ragauskas its 2014 Gunnar Nicholson Gold Medal, highest honor the association can bestow upon an individual; Ragauskas has trained key scientists in industry, conducted research such as current focus on biofuels, bio-based materials

Debra Garcia

ATLANTA , January 22, 2014 (press release) – Art Ragauskas has been named the recipient of TAPPI’s 2014 Gunnar Nicholson Gold Medal Award. The award, the highest honor that the Association can bestow upon an individual, will be presented to Dr. Ragauskas at the 2014 PaperCon Conference Awards Dinner on Tuesday, April 29, 2014 in Nashville, Tennessee

“TAPPI is very pleased to announce that Art Ragauskas will receive the 2014 Gunnar Nicholson Gold Medal award in recognition of the many important contributions he’s made to the industry as both an educator and as a prominent research scientist,” notes Larry N. Montague, president and CEO of TAPPI. “This award recognizes the importance and the impact of his work. He’s been instrumental in training many of the key scientists at work in the industry today while also conducting important research that has advanced our understanding of the science in areas such as his current focus on biofuels and bio-based materials.”

Ragauskas is Professor, BioEnergy Science Center, School of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Institute of Paper Science and Technology, at Georgia Institute of Technology. He held the first Fulbright Chair in Alternative Energy and is a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, International Academy of Wood Science and TAPPI. He is the recipient of the 2014 ACS Affordable Green Chemistry award. His multifaceted research program at Georgia Tech is seeking to understand and exploit innovative sustainable bioresources to develop new and improved applications for renewable biopolymers for biofuels, biopower, and bio-based materials and chemicals.

Ragauskas is an Associate Editor on several major industry journals including Biofuels, Bioproducts and Biorefining, Industrial Biotechnology, and TAPPI Journal and also serves on several advisory boards and review panels including National Science Academy, USDA, DOE and the TAPPI Research Management Committee. He holds a Ph.D. from the University of Western Ontario and H. B.Sc. from University of Western Ontario.

Established in 1928, the Gunnar Nicholson Gold Medal is granted to those "who have made preeminent scientific and engineering achievements of proven applied benefit to the world’s pulp, paper, board, and forest product industries.” It’s named for former TAPPI President and Gold Medal winner Gunnar W. E. Nicholson and includes a cash honorarium.

About TAPPI:
TAPPI is the leading association for the worldwide pulp, paper, packaging and converting industries and publisher of Paper360° and TAPPI JOURNAL. Through information exchange, events, trusted content and networking opportunities, TAPPI helps members elevate their performance by providing solutions that lead to better, faster and more cost-effective ways of doing business. It has provided management training and networking to the industry’s leaders for more than 99 years. Visit www.tappi.org.

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