A University of Georgia environmental engineering professor was named Wednesday a recipient of an esteemed grant for her pollution research.
Jenna Jambeck was named a 2022 MacArthur Fellow, becoming the second UGA faculty member to receive the award, commonly known as a “Genius Grant.” The MacArthur Fellowship is a $800,000, no-strings-attached award, which is described on its website that is given to “extraordinarily talented and creative individuals as an investment in their potential.”
Jambeck’s work provided the first estimate of the amount of plastic waste entering the world’s ocean each year, about 8 million metric tons. Jambeck and her team discovered in a follow up study that nearly 80% of that waste wound up in landfills or in the environment. Additionally, Jambeck and her colleagues found that more than 90% of plastic has never been recycled.
“The University of Georgia is incredibly proud of Dr. Jambeck for this exceptional achievement,” UGA President Jere W. Morehead said in a statement. “Her groundbreaking research exemplifies UGA’s land-grant mission to share knowledge generated through innovative scholarship and to leverage this knowledge to advance communities and the broader world. Our entire university congratulates Jenna on this significant honor.”
Jambeck has also been involved in efforts to develop solutions to address pollution. She co-developed the Marine Debris Tracker mobile app that allows people to share information about the types and quantities of plastic debris to help inform research efforts. Jambeck and her colleagues also developed the Circularity Assessment Protocol, which has been used by communities in more than 30 cities worldwide to work with plastic manufacturers to implement solutions to reduce plastic waste.
Jambeck joined the UGA College of Engineering in 2009 and is affiliated with the college’s School of Environmental, Civil, Agricultural and Mechanical Engineering.
“To have my work spontaneously recognized by my peers is incredibly meaningful, and the fact that this fellowship recognizes creativity is one of the best parts,” Jambeck said in a statement. “I think my creativity has served as a source of strength and perseverance throughout my career. I hope that I can continue to create and communicate science and stories so that community members and decision-makers have the information they need about plastic pollution to feel like they can make the best decisions for them in their context.”
