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Honorary Degree Recipient
F. HERBERT BORMANN
Doctor of Science
F. Herbert Bormann began researching the ecosystems
of New England’s forests more than 50 years ago. The alpine and old growth
forests of the Green Mountains and Sleepers River watershed of Vermont were
his early stomping grounds. Ideas that germinated in those Vermont soils ultimately
led to several novel approaches to research that have become the premier models
for scientific study of ecosystems throughout the world. Bormann pioneered the
“small watershed technique” to study the biogeochemistry of whole
forest ecosystems.
Bormann has been awarded the prestigious World Prize for Environmental Achievement,
Eminent Ecologist Award, and the Blue Planet Prize, among others. His outstanding
scientific contributions are found in nearly 200 articles in the scientific
literature and eight books he authored or co-authored. He has served as mentor
and advisor to 34 Ph.D. ecologists, who serve as professors at universities
throughout the world including the University of Vermont. Bormann is a long-time,
active member of the National Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of
Arts and Sciences – two of the nation’s most prestigious and selective
organizations. Establishing the world-renowned Hubbard Brook Ecosystem Study
in New Hampshire also numbers among Bormann’s lasting contributions to
his field.
While his record as a scientist is unparalleled, Bormann’s contributions
to society truly distinguish him. He has described the role of human activity
as a driver of cycles in natural systems. He has defined the “global environmental
debt” and explained how it influences quality of life, economies and politics.
His book, Redesigning the American Lawn, a Search for Environmental Harmony,
brought his work to a wider audience. An underlying theme of Bormann’s
work is communicating ways that environmental science can serve humanity.
A professor emeritus at Yale University, Bormann has a long association with
the University of Vermont where he holds a formal adjunct professorship in The
Rubenstein School of Environment and Natural Resources. As a founding member
of the Rubenstein School’s Board of Advisors, Bormann takes a key role
in helping UVM fulfill its promise to become the leading environmental university
in the nation.
Perhaps the leading academic voice on environmental matters in the world, Herbert
Bormann’s thinking and investigation models have dramatically changed
our understanding of how forest ecosystems work, how to study these complex
systems, and the relationship between the natural world and humanity.