The American Society of Agronomy (ASA) has announced the following 2021 award recipient to be formally presented at the ASA Awards Ceremony on November 8, 2021 during the scientific society’s Annual Meeting in Salt Lake City, Utah. The annual awards are presented for outstanding contributions to agronomy through education, national and international service, and research.
Om Parkash Dhankher is a Professor at the Stockbridge School of Agriculture, University of Massachusetts Amherst. Om received his M.Sc. from Kurukshetra University, India, and Ph.D. from Durham University, United Kingdom
Dr. Dhankher is an internationally recognized leader in the field of phytoremediation
of arsenic-contaminated soils, glutathione homeostasis, developing climate-resilient crops, and environmentally safe nanomaterials for sustainable agriculture.
He has published over 100 refereed papers, 3 edited books, and 6 international patents, and mentored numerous new generation scientists. He provides leadership at the international, national, and regional levels. He is active in the Crop Science Society of America, American Society of Agronomy, American Society of Plant Biologists, International Phytotechnology Society (IPS), etc. Om has been awarded many outstanding and notable awards including the Award of Excellence for outstanding Research, an elected vice president of the IPS, etc.
ASA Fellow is the highest recognition bestowed by the American Society of Agronomy.
Members of the Society nominate worthy colleagues based on their professional achievements and meritorious service. Up to 0.3 percent of the Society’s active and emeritus members may be elected Fellow. The award consists of a certificate, a complimentary ticket to the award ceremony, and ASA Fellow pin. In 2021, up to 13 individuals may be elected as Fellow of the American Society of Agronomy.
Dr. Dhankher and his students are currently at work on several projects, including genetic refinement of plants to maximize their ability to remove pollution from soil, the development of rice cultivars best suited to resist the uptake of arsenic from soil, and the engineering of oil seed crops into bio-fuels. Dr. Dhankher's work represents some of the cutting-edge research happening at Stockbridge School of Agriculture every day.