Scholarship Information:
This Fund shall honor the lives of Bruce and Kathy Maunder and their passion and commitment to education in a global perspective and the students in the College of Agricultural Sciences and Natural Resources. It will pay tribute to and recognize the careers of Dr. Bruce Maunder and Dr. Norman Borlaug and their shared efforts in educating the next generation on the importance of Global Food Security.
Dr. A. Bruce Maunder, University of Nebraska-‐Lincoln alumni in agronomy, focused his career on improving global food security. He developed a strong interest in international agriculture and food security from a year of experience overseas as a high school senior and through his career as DeKalb’s worldwide sorghum research director. Dr. Maunder was responsible for hybrids that were being grown or tested in 45 countries year-‐round leading to the development of more than 150 commercial sorghum hybrids. His research emphasized biotic and abiotic stress tolerance affecting crop improvement. Dr. Maunder always felt fortunate to have worked on the right crop at the right time with some exceptional scientists born in the U.S. and around the world.
In 1970, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to Dr. Norman E. Borlaug for his efforts in improving global food security through plant genetics. Dr. Borlaug left an impressive legacy of improved wheat varieties with higher yields, which subsequently saved millions from starvation around the world. He has often been called the father of the “Green Revolution” because of these efforts. Dr. Borlaug is also responsible for the creation of the World Food Prize which recognizes individuals who make contributions to the world supply of food by improving quality, quantity, or availability, and the Global Youth Institute which is designed to nurture and develop the next generation of scientists.
Dr. Maunder indicated that his work with Dr. Norman Borlaug was a significant part of his post-‐retirement career. For seven years, Maunder served as an active member of The World Food Prize family and continues to embrace its mission.
“The World Food Prize has allowed me to be acquainted with outstanding contributions to reducing famine and raising the standard of living,” he said. “I was fortunate to be active in plant breeding the second half of the 20th century, a time frame that allowed basic genetic principles to feed twice as many people from virtually the same amount of land.”
The Maunder-‐Borlaug Food Security Scholarship honors the careers of those two plant geneticists for their passionate dedication and exceptional accomplishments in improving global food security.
When Dr. Borlaug and Dr. Maunder were pursuing their bachelor’s degrees, they were unaware of the eventual leadership roles and impact they would each have in addressing global food security. However, it was their undergraduate degrees that provided the foundation for them to master their life-‐long purpose. In the same tradition, the Maunder-‐Borlaug Food Security Scholarship will enable current students to aspire to improve global food security with the same passion for international involvement and commitment to service that characterized the careers of Dr. Borlaug and Dr. Maunder.