The Story Exchange announced the winners of its second annual Women In Science Incentive Prize. This grant program recognizes innovative female scientists working on solutions to our time's most pressing environmental issues. CEE Professor Sunni Ivey was among the prize recipients for her work using supercomputers and wearables to monitor air pollution. This year, the non-profit organization is awarding $5,000 grants to female scientists working to improve public health as chemicals, microplastics, and other pollutants contaminate our air.
While attending high school in Atlanta, Ivey was a devoted member of Earth Tomorrow, a club that collects recyclable items and participates in conservation activities. "We were kind of not the cool kids, but I was always inclined to do environmental advocacy work," said Ivey. Today, Ivey has taken that early interest, in conjunction with computational skills developed at Georgia Institute of Technology, and turned it into highly regarded work on "wearables," which are fast-response monitors giving small households the capability to measure exposure to dangerous air pollutants.
The five winners were selected after a two-pronged application process, following a rigorous scientific review by judges from several universities and an assessment by The Story Exchange editors. To be eligible, applicants need advanced degrees in engineering, environmental science, or closely related fields and work in the air industry as researchers or entrepreneurs.