Brazilian Professor to present on Conservation of Large Rivers

WHAT: The University of Illinois Springfield will host a lecture on “The Impact of Hydroelectric Dams on Aquatic Communities,” by Professor Luiz Felipe Machado Velho from the Universidade Estadual de Maringa. The event is free and open to the public.

WHEN: Monday, July 17, 2017 at 2 p.m.

WHERE: UIS Brookens Auditorium, located on the lower level of Brookens Library

DETAILS: Professor Luiz Felipe Machado Velho’s lecture is part of a summer exchange program with UIS on the theme of Conservation and Restoration of Two Large Rivers in the Americas, partially funded by a grant from the Innovation Fund from the Coca-Cola Foundation-sponsored competition, “100,000 Strong in the Americas.”

Velho and four UEM students are spending three weeks studying restoration projects in the Illinois River floodplain.

Their hosts at UIS include Keenan Dungey, UIS associate professor of chemistry, Michael Lemke, UIS professor of biology, Jonathan GoldbergBelle, senior director of UIS International Programs. Additionally, five UIS students are participating in the program.

All participating students recently collected samples from the Therkildsen Field Station at Emiquon and will be comparing their results to those based on samples they collected on the Parana River in Brazil last month.

“This exchange program builds on our 10-year collaboration with the Universidade Estadual de Maringá, creating additional student research opportunities, sharing our aquatic ecology projects with a broader audience, and contributing to public policy on river management,” said Dungey.

It is expected that the eight Innovation Fund grants, handed out internationally in 2016, will result in 115 students studying abroad, preparing them to be more globally competent for the 21st century workforce.

For more information, contact Derek Schnapp, UIS director of public relations, at 217-206-6716 or dschn3@uis.edu.