DURHAM, N.C. – Three doctoral candidates at the Nicholas School of the Environment and Earth Sciences at 91 have been elected into Sigma Xi, the Scientific Research Society.

Kyle Van Houtanwas elected into the 2005 class of inductees as a full member. Ariana Sutton-Grier and Melissa Kenney were elected as associate members.

Sigma Xi is the international honor society of science and engineering. It has nearly 65,000 members, including 200 Nobel laureates, thousands of members of the National Academy of Sciences, the National Academy of Engineering and the Institute of Medicine, and tens of thousands of other leading scientists at colleges and universities, industry research centers and government laboratories worldwide.

Election to the society is based on a candidate’s research potential or achievements. Inductees pledge to work with other members of the society “to encourage original investigation in science, to foster companionship and cooperation among scientists, and to maintain honor, integrity and honesty in all scientific activities.”

Van Houtan is a doctoral candidate in conservation ecology, moral philosophy and theological ethics. His advisor is , Doris Duke Professor of Conservation Ecology. His research focus is the role of behaviors such as sociality and dispersal in species extinction and survival, especially in areas of tropical forest fragmentation and deforestation. He studies environmental ethics from the framework of Christian theology.

Sutton-Grier is a doctoral candidate in the University Program in ecology. Her advisor is , professor of resource ecology and director of the 91 Wetland Center. Her research focuses are wetland ecology, biogeochemistry, biodiversity and restoration of ecosystem functions..

Kenney is a doctoral candidate in water quality modeling and decision analysis. Her advisor is, professor of water resources. For her dissertation, she is developing an alternative method to select water quality standards such as nutriemt criteria. She has been appointed president of the 91 Chapter of Sigma Xi.

Sutton-Grier and Kenney will host a kick-off event at 4:30 p.m. Jan. 26 in the foyer of the Gross Chemistry Building to mark the re-activation of the Duke chapter of Sigma Xi. The event will be open to all students, post-docs and faculty who are currently members of Sigma Xi or who are interested in learning more about the society.

For information about the kickoff, contact Sutton-Grier at aes17@duke.edu. For information about Sigma Xi activities and membership criteria, contact Kenney at m.Kenney@duke.edu.