This book shows, through real and current examples from the field of environmental and wetland science, that personal and professional success depends on persistence and a refusal to compromise on "doing the right thing" which for Professor Mitsch meant saving some of the world’s most important ecosystems, as well as educating future researchers and the general public along the way. Case studies described in this book illustrate that persistence pays off especially when the cause is motivated by something as important as improving our natural environment. They explain clearly that success is not easy, disasters and failures are part of the process, but having goals result in meaningful steps toward it.
Features
- Emphasizes how it is possible to develop long-term goals and persistence for success both in the academic and environmental world.
- Offers examples set in universities across America and highlights important national wetlands such as the Florida Everglades, the Kankakee River Marshlands in the Great Lakes region, and Ohio’s Olentangy River Wetland Park, a Ramsar Wetland of International Importance.
- Speaks to scientists from across the country and the world.
- Discusses chronologically the developments and the achievements of environmental /wetland fields on a global scale.
- Explains how his personal achievements contributed to the growth of wetland and environmental sciences.
Students and professionals in the physical and biological sciences, including chemistry, environmental science, ecological fields, and environmental policy, and especially environmental consultants such as scientists, managers, and engineers, will feel a sense of camaraderie with Professor Mitsch. His longstanding career and devotion to environmental and wetland sciences are an inspiration to all who currently work in the field, aspire to, or simply harbor a sense of appreciation about the natural world and want to learn more about steps that can be taken to manage and protect our planet and the environment.
Biography
William J. Mitsch has been an environmental science/engineering professor for 47 years in five USA universities. His longest service was 27 years at The Ohio State University, including 20 years as Director of the Olentangy River Wetland Research Park that he founded in 1991. Dr. Mitsch’s awards include four USA Fulbright awards (to Denmark, Botswana, Poland, and Wales), the 2004 Stockholm Water Prize (considered to be the equivalent of a Nobel Prize in Water), an Einstein Professorship from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (2010), a doctorate honoris causa from the University of Tartu, Estonia (2010), and the First Odum Award from the American Ecological Engineering Society (2018). He was most recently the Director of the Everglades Wetland Research Park in the Water School at Florida Gulf Coast University and Juliet C. Sproul Chair for Southwest Florida Habitat Restoration and Management for 2012–2022. Dr. Mitsch has authored or co-authored 770 research papers, abstracts, and other publications, including 23 books, such as the textbook Wetlands (John Wiley & Sons, Inc.), now in its fifth edition and also translated to Chinese.
