News

Miami donates protective gear to area health care facilities

March 31, 2020

Area health care workers benefitted from donations of personal protective equipment (PPE) collected across Miami University's Oxford and Regionals campuses last week. As Miami faculty and staff closed down campus laboratory facilities in preparation for Gov. Mike DeWine's (Miami '69) stay-at-home order last week, unused protective gear was collected for donation to health care workers …

Faculty and students research the return of beavers to the Midwest and Miami's campus

March 17, 2020

Bartosz Grudzinski, professor of geography and fluvial geomorphologist, has been collaborating with graduate and undergraduate students to research the return of beavers to Ohio and their impact on the environment and local water quality …

Environmental activist Peggy Shepard shares how to address climate change in a just and equitable manner

March 13, 2020

On March 5, Peggy Shepard, co-founder and executive director of WE ACT for Environmental Justice, gave a talk entitled "Climate Justice: Addressing Climate Change in a Just and Equitable Manner," where she presented ways on how to address climate change impartially …

Why anthropology matters now: Dr. Augustín Fuentes gives the International Anthropology Day lecture

March 4, 2020

The Department of Anthropology presented its International Anthropology Day lecture on Thursday, February 27. University of Notre Dame professor Dr. Augustín Fuentes spoke about his experience as a bio-cultural anthropologist and the ways in which anthropology helps us understand human history and culture …

Planetary scientist and educator describes "tales of life and death" in her study of rocks from space

February 24, 2020

On February 17, Dr. Meenakshi Wadhwa, director of the School of Earth and Space Exploration at Arizona State University, discussed the study of rocks from elsewhere in the solar system and how they provide insights into the origins and destruction of materials in our corner of the universe …

Refresh your recycling know-how during RecycleMania 2020

February 18, 2020

Cecil Okotah, Miami University's recycling coordinator, and Olivia Herron, sustainability coordinator (both graduate students in environmental science) are helping the Miami community improve its recycling prowess during RecycleMania 2020 …

Want to Change Your Diet? Change the Way You Think About Food

February 13, 2020

Why are 2/3 of adults now overweight or obese, and why are more and more spiraling downward into debilitating, even life-threatening chronic conditions? "Food is not good or bad," says Pamela Nisevich Bede '03, registered dietitian and author of the new book Sweat. Eat. Repeat. The 90-Day Playbook to Change Your Food Habits. "It's fuel and it's a tool to potentially move you toward your goals or away from them." So according to Nisevich Bede, the solution begins by changing the way we think about food, which, she says, can make all difference …

Next steps on Miami's path to carbon neutrality

February 6, 2020

The sustainability committee suggests a move to empower faculty, staff and students. Based on its research and findings, the committee recommends that Miami become a signatory of the Presidents' Climate Leadership Commitments …

Craig Williamson's OPUS grant will provide new insights on effects of browning in lakes worldwide

January 29, 2020

Craig Williamson, Ohio Eminent Scholar of Ecosystem Ecology and Miami University professor of biology, has built one of the world’s largest research databases on water transparency in lakes. Williamson's long-term and in-depth research on lake water transparency has been recognized with an Opportunities for Promoting Understanding Through Synthesis (OPUS): Core Research Synthesis grant for nearly $200,000 from the National Science Foundation (NSF) …

Undergraduate Summer Scholarship sparks yearlong research project

January 23, 2020

Alyssa Bley came one step closer to achieving her dream of a career as a scientist when she was awarded a Miami University Undergraduate Summer Scholarship in 2019. She conducted research in David Berg's Aquatic Biodiversity and Conservation Laboratory, which brought opportunities beyond what she could have imagined …

8 ways to be environmentally friendly at Miami and at home

January 22, 2020

We've put together 8 tips to help you become more environmentally friendly at Miami and at home …

Prosecution Project examines how sociopolitical crimes are prosecuted

January 16, 2020

A visiting assistant professor of sociology and social justice studies at Miami University, Michael Loadenthal directs the Prosecution Project, which seeks to understand how terrorism, extremism, and hate crimes are prosecuted in the U.S. justice system. The Prosecution Project's dataset includes all crimes of political violence, without regard to the identity of the targets or the ideology of the perpetrators, so it paints a uniquely comprehensive picture …

Polar deserts could provide first look at climate change effects in Antarctica

January 9, 2020

Miami University microbiologist Rachael Morgan-Kiss is one of dozens of scientists who have been investigating an Antarctic polar desert's ecosystems through the McMurdo Long Term Ecological Research (MCM LTER) project …

Opening Minds through Art initiative expands to medical schools, allied health partnerships

December 10, 2019

A new contract with the Ohio Department of Medicaid will help Miami University's Opening Minds through Art (OMA) initiative link students at the state's medical schools and schools of allied health with older Ohioans living with dementia. OMA has signed a three-year, $872,907 contract with Ohio Medicaid committing to establish 36 such partnerships, which could include required field placements, clinical placements and capstone courses, said Elizabeth Lokon, director and founder of OMA, which is based in Miami's Scripps Gerontology Center …

Microbiology faculty provide rich research opportunities in the health sciences for undergrads

December 6, 2019

The Department of Microbiology offers numerous research opportunities to undergraduates looking for experiences outside the classroom that will expand their knowledge and lab skills …

Jill Korach honored for global impact in environmental education

December 4, 2019

For her work in 16 countries, Miami University's Jill Korach received the 2019 award for Outstanding Service to Environmental Education by the North American Association for Environmental Education …

Sierra Club names Miami one of top 100 "Coolest Schools" in green colleges ranking

December 4, 2019

Miami University is 70th among the Sierra Club's "Coolest Schools" 2019 ranking for the greenest colleges. Miami is the top Ohio public university on the list of 282 schools based on food, energy, waste, research, transportation, and curriculum …

Zoologist Kay Holekamp gives enlightening insight into hyenas for the 45th annual Hefner Lecture

November 27, 2019

Kay Holekamp, director of Michigan State University's interdisciplinary program in Ecology, Evolutionary Biology & Behavior, was invited to Miami to discuss her work with hyenas in honor of the Hefner Museum of Natural History's 45th annual lecture. The presentation, "A Hyena's Tale," was held in Benton Hall on November 7 …

Moving off steam: Utility Master Plan provides a path toward carbon neutrality

November 18, 2019

Just 9 years ago nearly all of Miami University's Oxford campus buildings were heated by carbon-intensive steam. Today, just under half (49%) of those buildings are heated by steam. The physical facilities' energy systems office, directed by Doug Hammerle, has done more in 2018-2019 than in any other year on conversions of energy systems throughout campus. These conversions have reduced energy use and energy costs, and increased energy efficiency …

Zero Waste Oxford: Student organization fights local pollution and promotes sustainability