Former U of I student gives 10 million for new science center

URBANA, Ill. (WCIA) — Agriculture is a big part of life in Central Illinois. The U of I’s Institute of Sustainability Energy and Environment (ISEE) is looking to improve it.

It just got a multimillion-dollar donation to create a hub for innovation as they try to establish a circular bioeconomy.

Circular bioeconomy means there is virtually zero waste during the agricultural process: from growing, to harvesting to consuming. Right now, about half of the nitrogen that is used in the fields is lost to the environment.

Researchers are trying to limit as much as possible in these steps, and then reuse what cannot be eliminated. Stewart Levenick, U of I alum, and his wife Nancy made a 10-million-dollar donation to establish the Levenick Center.

“This is actually a great opportunity,” ACES Professor Madhu Khanna said. “This is an emerging area of research. And this funding enables us to be really the first in the country to establish such a center and to lead in this effort of developing both the technology as well as thinking about how to scale up that technology.”

She says the center won’t only focus on the technology, but also on getting farmers to buy into the sustainability.

Progress is moving quickly. They are in the process of selecting a director and hope to have it up and running as soon as possible.

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