The Institute for Integrative and Innovative Research (I³R) will host Debora F. Rodrigues on April 18 and 19 for a special event and spring speaker series presentation.

She currently serves as the Ezekiel Cullen Professor of Environmental Engineering at the University of Houston and serves as the president of the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors organization.

"From her experiences at NSF to her groundbreaking research in nano-drug delivery systems, Dr. Rodrigues will inspire and energize us about the future," Ranu Jung, associate vice chancellor and I³R founding executive director, said.

This week's event schedule includes:

"From fundamental to translational research: Opportunities at NSF for faculty at all career stages" — April 18 from 3-4 p.m. at the Cordia Harrington Center for Excellence, room 324.

Rodrigues, having just completed her rotation at NSF, will deliver a special talk to U of A faculty detailing the different programs and funding opportunities at NSF under the new Technology, Innovations and Partnerships directorate. This includes information on NSF I-Corps, Partnerships for Innovation, SBIR/STTR, Convergence Accelerators, Regional Innovation Engines, Pathways to Enable Open-Source Ecosystems and others.

Finally, she will touch on potential funding supplements available for multi-disciplinary and cross-directorate programs, including the Mid-Career Advancement program, the Future of Work at the Human-Technology Frontier and Bioinspired programs for which she served as a program officer.

"The Future of Fighting Foodborne Illnesses" — April 19 from 9-10 a.m. at the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute, room 159, and via Zoom

Rodrigues will discuss her study on plant-based polymeric nano-drug delivery systems as a potential game-changer for treating gut infections. Her presentation will share how this system offers a promising solution by releasing medicine gradually and precisely, reducing the amount of antibiotics used and the risk of drug resistance.

"Our speaker series aims to bring to campus the leading-edge research that is changing the world. Dr. Rodrigues' work is a great example of this vision at work," Jung added.

I³R Spring Speaker Series events are open to all U of A faculty, students and staff as well as the public. To learn more about these events, visit the calendar here.

Debora Rodrigues

Debora F. Rodrigues is the Ezekiel Cullen Professor of Environmental Engineering and director of the Environmental Engineering Graduate Program at the University of Houston, Texas. She is also the president of the Association of Environmental Engineering and Science Professors. In December 2023, she finished her rotation at NSF and service as NSF program officer for the Partnerships for Innovation, Mid-Career Advancement, Future of Work at the Human-Technology Frontier, Engineering Research Center, Accelerating Research Translation and Bioinspired programs.

She also played an advisory role at NSF for the ADVANCE program and Open Science Initiative. Her research interests are in the water-energy nexus field. Her unique and transformative interdisciplinary research has led to new alternative biotechnological and nanotechnological water treatment and membrane desalination technologies. As a result of her exceptional contributions to the water field, she was honored with the National Science Foundation Career Award in 2012, given to a small number of high-potential junior faculty nationwide.

She also received several prestigious awards in her career; just to name a few, she was the recipient of the U.S. Dept. of Energy, the C3E Research Award in the area of water-energy nexus and the Environmental Award honoree at the 28th HENAAC Conference. Her contributions were noted by the National Academy of Engineers, where she was nominated and invited to participate in the prestigious Frontiers of Engineering program of the National Academy of Engineering in the U.S. She has an h-index of 49, more than 110 publications with more than 9,177 citations in her field of expertise.

About the Institute for Integrative and Innovative Research (I³R): Established through a $194.7 million gift from the Walton Family Charitable Support Foundation, the University of Arkansas Institute for Integrative and Innovative Research pioneers solutions to wicked problems through convergence research across academic, industry, government, and non-profit sectors to make a positive societal impact by creating and deploying innovations to scale. Learn more at i3r.uark.edu.