Professor Sander van der Leeuw, the Dean of the Arizona State University (ASU)’s School of Sustainability, has won the 2012 United Nations Champions of the Earth award for his work in human-environmental relations and the systematic study of advancement as a societal process.
Sander van der Leeuw is one of the 2012 United Nations Champions of the Earth. (Photo by: Anick Coudart)
Along with Professor van der Leeuw, five others have won the award. The winners received the Champions of the Earth awards in a ceremony held on June 4, 2012 in Rio de Janeiro.
Professor van der Leeuw first guided a string of regional archaeological research projects in France, Holland and Syria to understand the continuing progression of the connection between societies and their surroundings. He then studied today’s land degradation and desertification issues to understand the impact of environmental changes on economic, sociological and technological changes. Nearly 60 scientists from 11 European nations involved in this work, focusing on research regions in all the Northern Mediterranean rim states. His group was the first to design the complex adaptive systems method to handle the environmental issues.
Rob Melnick, who serves as Executive Dean of ASU’s Global Institute of Sustainability and its School of Sustainability, informed that Sander is known for his efforts to understand the mechanism adopted by Earth's complex systems to handle the process and stress for innovation and the impact of these factors on social change and human evolution. Moreover, Sander’s work has been helpful to scientists, faculty and students to identify the adaption strategies for ensuring a successful, sustainable future.
Source: http://www.asu.edu
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