Profiles Newsletters
Message from our Department Chair – Doug Soldat
As you are probably aware, higher education is currently facing unprecedented challenges due to recent and ongoing federal actions undermining its value and funding. Unfortunately, our department has been directly affected, as grant funding has been rescinded and job opportunities for our graduates have evaporated. We have been through tough times before, and we will survive this one as well. Nevertheless, it is certainly a discouraging time to be a scientist and a bleak time to be a recent graduate. In times like these, we could use a reminder of the importance of perseverance, and the enduring impact of good science. In early May, Emeritus Professor Steve Ventura delivered such a message during the commencement ceremony for the Soil Science and Environmental Sciences graduates.
Professor Ventura’s address emphasized that soil and environmental sciences differ from basic sciences like physics and chemistry, because soil and environmental sciences have an ethical framework, concerned deeply with benefiting society and the planet. He encouraged graduates to uphold the Wisconsin Idea by using their high-quality education to actively challenge misinformation and advocate for sound environmental science and policies. He drew upon the legacy of influential figures from our department like F.H. King and Francis Hole, he urged our new graduates to “speak truth to power” and blend rigorous science with an appreciation of our natural world.
As higher education continues to face political adversity, the voices and actions of our faculty, staff, and alumni become increasingly important. To read Professor Ventura’s inspiring commencement remarks in full, please visit our website at www.soilenvsci.wisc.edu.
Doug Soldat, Department Chair, Soil and Environmental Sciences
The University of Wisconsin–Madison is distinctive in its scale and breadth, the premium we place on our relevance to society, and our commitment to inclusivity in the broadest sense.
Rebecca M. Blank, Former Chancellor
Follow us on Instagram
uw.soilscience
