Entomological Society of America names Ken Raffa as 2010 Founders’ Memorial Award winner |
Categories: 1980s | Award or honor | Featured
Dr. Ken Raffa. University of Wisconsin-Madison
The Entomological Society of America announced winners of its 2010 Insect Science Awards, including the Founders’ Memorial award to Dr. Ken Raffa ‘81.
At each ESA annual ,eeting, the recipient of this award addresses the conferees during Sunday’s opening Plenary session to honor the memory and career of an outstanding entomologist. Dr. Ken Raffa is a professor in the Department of Entomology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He studies the ecology of tree-feeding insects, with special emphasis on complex interactions that influence whether herbivore populations remain stable or erupt to landscape-scale disturbances. These studies have included explorations of host plant relationships, predator-prey interactions, and symbioses. Chemical signaling has been a driving theme throughout much of this work.
Ken grew up exploring nature in Delaware, and received a B.S. in biology from St. Joseph’s College in Philadelphia in 1972. He then wandered about doing odd jobs, until fortuitously finding temporary positions with the U.S. Forest Service in Asheville, NC during the summers of 1973 and 1974. Experiences with aerial sketch-mapping and ground-truthing outbreaks spurred his love of forest entomology. He received an M.S. in entomology from the University of Delaware studying biological control of gypsy moth, and a Ph.D. in 1981 from Washington State University studying conifer-bark beetle interactions. Ken was a research entomologist for DuPont from 1981-1985, helping to develop strategies for delaying insecticide resistance and incorporating plant-insect interactions into agricultural crop protection. Ken joined UW in 1985.
During the course of his career, Ken has collaborated with outstanding scholars from a diverse array of disciplines. These joint studies have helped improve our understanding of the complex and often subtle roles that insects play in the health of forest ecosystems, and helped devise management practices when external forces or human interests place our goals in conflict. Ken has served on numerous state and federal agency committees, many dealing with invasive species. He has received several honors, such as the Silverstein-Simeone Lecture of the International Society of Chemical Ecology, the Spitze Land Grant Faculty Award, the Beers-Bascom Professorship in Conservation, and the ESA Comstock Award.
Ken teaches classes in plant-insect interactions, forest protection, and scientific presentations. His proudest contribution is his role in the training of undergraduates, graduate students, and postdoctoral associates who have gone on to successful and fulfilling careers. Many of them are now providing strong leadership in academia, government, and industry.
The awards will be presented at the Opening Plenary Session of the ESA Annual Meeting in San Diego, California, Sunday, December 12, 5:30-7:30 p.m.
Tags: 1981, chemical signaling, ecology, entomologist, entomology, Founders Memorial Award, plant-insect interaction, research, University of Wisconsin
