Handel Appointed Professor at University of California, Irvine

MAY 1, 2007 – IRVINE, California – Steven Handel, Ph.D., the lead ecologist on the Orange County Great Park Design Studio, has been appointed Adjunct Professor of Ecology at the University of California, Irvine.
Dr. Handel’s appointment is in particular recognition of his achievements in the field of restoration ecology and will help build an important relationship between the Orange County Great Park and the deep intellectual resources of the UCI community.

“Dr. Steven Handel has long been a world leader in the science of restoring landscapes that have been degraded through human use. His insights and experience will benefit both the UCI academic community, which already has strong emphases on ecological research, and also the community through his continued efforts with the Great Park,” said Professor Brandon Gaut, Chair of the UCI Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology.

Dr. Handel supervises the overall ecological design for the Orange County Great Park (OCGP), the hundreds of acres of new natural habitats, the compatibility of the Park’s public spaces with its restored habitats and adjacent lands, and the educational mission of the proposed Botanical Garden. With regard to his work on the Orange County Great Park, Dr. Handel said, “The Great Park will be one of the nation’s premier examples of meshing ecological experiences with a beautiful public landscape. Our work on the Design Team is to set the highest standards to show how natural systems can lead to sustainable living for this century. The Botanical Garden will be the hub of this mission, but all parts of the Great Park must be both stunning and compelling, celebrating the natural heritage of southern California.”

In addition to his work with the OCGP and his new position at UCI, Dr. Handel is a Professor of Ecology and Evolution at Rutgers University in New Jersey. Prior to Rutgers, he was a Professor of Biology and Director of the Botanic Garden at Yale University.

Dr. Handel has worked previously with landscape designers on the restoration of native habitats in several major urban areas, including the Fresh Kills landfill and new Brooklyn Bridge Park in New York City, The Duke Farms Foundation 2,700- acre holdings in New Jersey, and the landscape for the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. He has also lectured at over two hundred university and ecology meetings throughout the world teaching his approach to improving the natural environment in urban centers.

Dr. Handel has received an Aldo Leopold Leadership Fellow of the Ecological Society of America. He was an editor for the science journals Restoration Ecology, Evolution, and Urban Habitats. He was named a Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), of the Australian Institute of Biology, and of The Explorers Club. In 2000, he was awarded the Board of Directors Service Award by the Society for Ecological Restoration International.

Dr. Handel received his B.A. degree from Columbia College and his M.S. and Ph.D. in ecology and evolution from Cornell University.

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Maryann Maloney
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