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SIU Today - November 15, 2021

SIU students among 23 teams worldwide to get XPRIZE funds to keep carbon in the ground 

Two SIU graduate students and Scott Hamilton-Brehm, assistant professor of microbiology, are among only 23 teams in the world to win the XPRIZE Carbon Removal challenge funded by Elon Musk and the Musk Foundation. The team is working on a system that would liquefy everyday waste biomass – everything from grass clippings to scrap vegetables – for injection into underground voids, such as empty oil reservoirs, with the goal of preventing it from re-entering the atmosphere where it could contribute to climate change.

Updated testing schedule

Faculty, staff and students are reminded to stay safe over the Thanksgiving holiday and to follow COVID-19 safety precautions even when off campus. The university also has an updated on-campus testing schedule based upon the holidays and usage.

Webinar on COVID-19’s impact on rural opioid epidemic and treatment options is Tuesday

Registration is open for a webinar at noon Tuesday, Nov. 16, to discuss how COVID-19 has impacted the rural opioid epidemic. The Illinois Rural Health Summit organizing group, which includes the School of Medicine’s Department of Population Science and Policy, Center for Rural Health and Social Service Development and the SIU Carbondale Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, identified opportunities to treat opioid addiction and reduce fatalities in rural Illinois.

Concert choir, wind ensemble to perform ‘PRISM: Come Sunday’ on Thursday 

The Southern Illinois University Carbondale Concert Choir and Wind Ensemble will perform a variety of works based on spirituality when they present “PRISM: Come Sunday” at 7:30 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 18, at Shryock Auditorium.

Leading policy analyst, former state department official to discuss American ‘renewal’ 

Anne-Marie Slaughter, one of the United States’ most respected policy analysts and CEO of the think tank New America, will join the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute for a virtual conversation at 10 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 18.

Civil service advisory committee to the merit board election is Thursday 

The election for the university’s representative to the State Universities Civil Service Advisory Committee to the Merit Board is Thursday, Nov. 18.

REACH Awards competition applications start Dec. 6

Full-time SIU Carbondale undergraduate students can begin applying for the 2022-23 Research-Enriched Academic Challenge (REACH) award competition on Dec. 6. Students with a GPA of 2.8 or higher are eligible. The application deadline is Jan. 28.   

Ameren Illinois grant to support Paul Simon Institute’s ‘Illinois Authors’ series

The Paul Simon Public Policy Institute recently received a $10,000 grant from Ameren Illinois to expand its “Illinois Authors” speaker series statewide. The institute started “Illinois Authors” in August to meet the writers who bring the Prairie State to life.