Award named for Division of Ag researcher and wife presented to inaugural recipient
By Ryan McGeeney
U of A System Division of Agriculture
Aug. 22, 2017
Fast Facts:
- Lalit and Aruna Verma Award for Excellence in Global Engagement presented to agri engineer Bill A. Stout
- Lalit Verma head of bio & ag engineering for U of A System Division of Ag
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ST. JOSEPH, Mich. – An award named for a University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture professor and his wife has been presented for the first time.
The Lalit and Aruna Verma Award for Excellence in Global Engagement is an eponymously named award recognizing “outstanding contributions made toward global advancement and recognition of the profession of agricultural and biological engineering, and excellence in global engagement and international education, outreach, and research,” according to information from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers. Lalit Verma, head of the Agricultural and Biological Engineering department at the University of Arkansas Fayetteville, is a former president and Fellow of the society.
The award’s inaugural recipient is Bill A. Stout, an agricultural engineer who has been a member of the ASABE for 62 years. In 1980, the society named him a Fellow.
Stout received the award “for 50 years of sustained contributions to the profession through a variety of international assignments and endeavors,” according to information from the society. It was awarded in July during the association’s annual international meeting, held in Spokane, Washington. According to Stout’s biography, he has “focused on renewable energy as a means of limiting global pollution.”
Dr. Clarence Watson, Jr., director of the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station, said the award reflected not only on the work of the recipient, but on the intentions of the progenitors as well.
“This award recognizes the Verma’s lifelong commitment to global engagement and the engineering profession and the potential for improving livelihoods in countries outside the United States,” Watson said.
Among other things, Verma is known for his instrumental role in organizing the Engineering and Technology Innovation for Global Food Security Conference, held last October in South Africa. The conference marked the ASABE’s first action as part of the Global Engagement Initiative. The conference was co-sponsored by the Division of Agriculture, the College of Engineering and other institutions, and co-hosted by Stellenbosch University in South Africa. The next meeting of the Global Engagement Initiative, which will meet biennially, is scheduled for October 2018, and will focus on water security.
To learn about agricultural engineering, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs to all eligible persons without regard to race, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, or any other legally protected status, and is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer.
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By Mary Hightower
The Cooperative Extension Service
U of A System Division of Agriculture
Media Contact: Mary Hightower
Dir. of Communication Services
U of A Division of Agriculture
Cooperative Extension Service
(501) 671-2126
mhightower@uada.edu
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