Science & Outdoors
UW-SP receives funding for WIST
The Pointer
nmeye177@uwsp.edu
Seventh District Congressman Dave Obey announced on Wednesday, March 11, that the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point will receive more than $1.4 million to fund the Wisconsin Institute for Sustainable Technology through President Obama’s economic recovery package.
UW-SP will receive $1,408,000 to establish the institute to help make the state a leader in the area of sustainable technology. The hope is that developments made by the institute will benefit the environment, enhance energy production and stimulate state and regional economies by providing students with state-of- the-art education.
“If you compare this to building a house, we’ve dug the hole for the foundation,” Provost Mark Nook said in an interview with the Stevens Point Journal. “This money is going to let us pour the footings and build the foundation.”
The funding will allow the institute to hire a full-time executive director who would coordinate the operations of the institute and would eventually be able to secure more funding for the project.
The institute is intended to provide industries in Wisconsin dealing with sustainable resources, like the forestry and paper industries, with technical consulting and practical application-based research, according to Gerry Ring, department chair of the College of Natural Resources, who has worked on developing WIST for about two years.
The institute will also strive to develop new technologies. The WIST will continue efforts already started in the area such as cellulose biofuel research being conducted by professors Don Guay and Erik Singsaas.
“Faculty who participate with WIST may come from any discipline on campus that can provide solutions to industry and economic problems,” said Ring. “It actually represents the first time that a coordinated research activity will be available at UW-SP.”
Students will be employed to work on research projects on a part-time basis providing real-world experience with problems facing the state. It will also allow them to gain contacts with potential employers, according to Ring.
The institute has great potential for helping a struggling Wisconsin economy. The hope is that WIST will attract investment to the new technologies it helps develop and stimulate growth for new businesses in central Wisconsin, as well as provide technical support for an industry that no longer can afford to keep technical departments and keep those businesses in Wisconsin.
“The economy of central Wisconsin is suffering from having few high-tech industries when compared to Illinois and Minnesota,” said Ring. “WIST will strive to develop new technologies and create new businesses in central Wisconsin.”
