The
Lena and Maria van der Ploeg Fund and the Kirkham Fund
Rienk R. van der Ploeg, professor of soil physics at the University
of Hannover, Germany, established the Lena and Maria van der Ploeg Fund
in memory of his late sister, Lena, and in honor of his wife, Maria.
Dr. van der Ploeg established this permanent endowment to recognize
scholarship in soil physics, presenting a check to the Agronomic Science
Foundation (ASF) at the 1997 Soil Science Society of America (SSSA)
annual meeting in Anaheim, CA.
The endowment, along with the Kirkham Fund, supports two programs; first,
the Don and Betty Kirkham Soil Physics Award. This award is presented
annually at the SSSA meeting to recognize a mid-career scientist who
has made both outstanding scholarly achievements and educational contributions
to advance soil physics. Awardees receive a certificate of achievement
and a $1,000 US honorarium. In addition, the four most recent awardees
help select the theme of the quadrennial Kirkham Conference.
Second, the endowment supports the Kirkham Conference series. Kirkham
Conferences are by-invitation conferences focusing on a topic of particular
interest in soil physics. Their off-the-record forum encourages scientists
to explore disciplinary and interdisciplinary topics in a depth seldom
possible at national or international meetings. The first Kirkham Conference
was held in November 2000 at Iowa State University, immediately prior
to the SSSA meeting in Minneapolis, and the second is scheduled for
November 2004 at Utah State University. Additional conferences are planned
every four years.
Both the Lena and Maria van der Ploeg Fund and the Kirkham Fund are
managed by the Agronomic Science
Foundation. More than 100 friends and professionals have supported
the funds. For a limited time, gifts of $1000 US will be matched by
Don and Joanne Nielsen. Financial contributions to these efforts can
be sent to:
Agronomic
Science Foundation
677 S. Segoe Road
Madison, WI 53711-1086
Valerie J. Breunig, Director of Development
Phone: (608) 273-8090 ext. 315
Email: vbreunig@a-s-f.org
For more
information or to make a gift online, see www.a-s-f.org
or contact Valerie Breunig at the address above.
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