June 12, 2009
AMES, Iowa — Participants in an Iowa State University course focused on biorenewables will present exhibits of their work Monday, June 15.
The poster session is open to the public. It will be held from 3:30 to 5 p.m. in the Sun Room and South Ballroom, Memorial Union, on the Iowa State campus.
The poster session coincides with BioEnergy Awareness Day, which recognizes the importance of bioenergy as one of the approaches in the nation's effort to achieve sustainable energy security. June 21, the summer solstice, is the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere — the day when the most energy from the sun reaches the Earth. The day is organized by the National Center for Food and Agricultural Policy.
About 50 mostly graduate students from around the world have been studying biorenewable production in a two-week intensive course at Iowa State since June 3. Students are attending from Europe, Asia, South America as well as from the United States. Monday is the last day of the course.
The course has included more than 60 hours of instruction, farm visits and tours of Cargill's Minneapolis facilities. It has focused on creating biorenewables, from growing the plants to the fuels, chemicals and products made from them. Course instructors have included 15 Iowa State faculty and five from other institutions.
Iowa State is a co-sponsor of the course with Cargill. It was hosted by ISU's Bioeconomy Institute and the Center for Crops Utilization Research.