The 2021 Laudise Medal, awarded for outstanding achievements in industrial ecology by a researcher under the age of 36, was awarded to Andrea Hicks, an Associate Professor at University of Wisconsin-Madison in Madison, WI, USA, and Yuan Yao, an Assistant Professor at Yale University in New Haven, CT, USA.
Andrea received her BS and MS degrees in environmental engineering from Michigan Technological University and Clemson University, respectively, and her PhD degree in civil engineering from University of Illinois Chicago where she also had a short postdoc experience. Andrea’s research focuses on the sustainability of emerging technologies using life cycle assessment combined with exposure analysis, surface chemistry, and environmental toxicology. In her nomination, Andrea’s PhD advisor Thomas Theis describes her as “a gifted researcher, an ardent environmentalist, and an articulate spokeswoman.” Her scientific contributions have been recognized by many awards, including the prestigious US National Science Foundation CAREER Award and Sustainable Nanotechnology Organization Emerging Investigator Award. She currently serves as an Associate Editor of the journal Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management.
Yuan has a BS degree in metallurgical engineering from Northeastern University, Shenyang, Liaoning, China and PhD degree in chemical engineering from Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA. She was an assistant professor at North Carolina State University before she joined the faculty at Yale University. Yuan works on systems-based environmental analysis using multi-scale analysis—on forest residues and on green supply management—and integrated modeling—on biochar and on agricultural systems. In Yuan’s nomination, Reid Lifset highlights “her ability to combine industrial ecology methods with chemical, process, and other related engineering expertise to be productive and important for the results she obtains and for the development of IE.” She also received the prestigious US National Science Foundation CAREER Award, and was on the “35 under 35” list from the American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE). Yuan serves on journals including the Journal of Industrial Ecology as a guest editor and Resources, Conservation & Recycling as an Associate Editor. She has been a board member of the ISIE LCSA section since 2017.
