On June 11, 2019 Geri Richmond, Presidential Chair in Science and University of Oregon Professor of Chemistry, spoke with NPR Science Correspondent Joe Palca. Part of the Director’s Distinguished Women in Science Speaker Series, the event is a venue for prominent women scientists to share their work and perspectives with the Lab community.
Geri Richmond has held numerous leaderships roles in the national and international scientific arena throughout her career. She is currently serving on the National Science Board (Obama appointee) and is Secretary of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Richmond recently served as U.S. State Department Science Envoy to the SE Asian Lower Mekong River countries of Thailand, Myanmar, Cambodia, Vietnam, and Laos (Kerry appointee) and is the recent president and chair of the Board of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS).
A strong advocate for diversity in the scientific workforce, Richmond is the founding and current director of COACh, a grassroots organization formed in 1998 that has helped in the career advancement of more than 20,000 women scientists and engineers in the U.S. and in over 20 developing countries in Asia, Africa, and Latin America.
Awards for her education, outreach, and scientific efforts include the Presidential Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics and
Engineering Mentoring, the ACS Award for Encouraging Women in the Chemical Sciences, and the ACS Charles L. Parsons Award.
Richmond’s research at the University of Oregon uses laser spectroscopy and computational methods focuses on understanding environmentally and technologically important processes that occur at liquid surfaces.
