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K-State Today

Division of Communications and Marketing
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September 30, 2019

Rice serving second term as chair of key national academies board

Submitted by Communications and Marketing

Charles "Chuck" Rice

Charles "Chuck" Rice, university distinguished professor of agronomy in the Kansas State University College of Agriculture, has been appointed to his second term as chair of the Board on Agriculture and National Resources, a major program of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine. His appointment takes effect immediately and will end on Dec. 31, 2022.

Rice's reappointment as board chair was made by Marcia McNutt, president of the National Academy of Science and chair of the National Resource Council.

The Board on Agriculture and Natural Resources responds to requests for studies, workshops, expert meetings and other activities from the public — Congress, federal and state agencies — and the private sector — associations, foundations and companies — on a broad range of issues related to agricultural production and natural resource stewardship, including forestry, fisheries, wildlife, and land and water use. These issues frequently have important policy dimensions that arise from conflicts between the growing demand for food and resources and the need to sustain, restore and improve the productivity of natural and managed ecosystems. The board is responsible for developing a portfolio of work that reflects important priorities for the public, for scientists in agriculture and natural resources, for the agricultural industry, and for the agencies that support and regulate agriculture and the food system.

"This reappointment is gratifying as it indicates the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine's confidence in me to lead the board for another term," Rice said. "This is an extremely important time for the board as agriculture faces many challenges and innovations are needed to increase the efficiency of production while providing many ecosystem services for the planet at the same time. The natural resources of soil, water and forestry intersect with agriculture, so the board must deal with synergisms and sometimes conflicting issues."

Rice's first term as board chair began on Jan. 1, 2016, after serving two three-year terms on the board.

A distinguished soil microbiologist, Rice is the inaugural recipient of K-State's Mary L. Vanier University Professorship, an endowed chair that supports innovative faculty members across the university who are doing exceptional work. Rice's research focuses on soil health and global climate change, including carbon and nitrogen cycling in agricultural and grassland ecosystems, and soil carbon sequestration and its potential benefits to the environment. As part of his work, he was a member of the United Nations' Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change that received the Nobel Prize in 2007.

Rice earned an undergraduate degree from Northern Illinois University and a doctorate from the University of Kentucky. He joined the K-State faculty in 1988.