Presentation
of the 2004 "Albert Einstein" World Award of Science

by Prof. Jean-MarieBouquegneau
Dean Faculty of Sciences

November 8th 2004
I feel very honored this evening to speak about Ralph Cicerone, one of most remarkable scientists of our time, whose research is making us aware of the importance of environmental care and the policies that can preserve it. Currently he is Professor of Chemistry and Chancellor of the University of California in Irvine.

In my short presentation I will use a few sentences of the nomination document that was made available to me by a member of the Einstein prize jury from our Faculty here in Liège; in fact the person who signed that document is a Nobel prize winner (chemistry 1995) who had received the Einstein prize the previous year, namely Prof. Sherwood Rowland.

Ralph Cicerone was one of the first scientists to point out the potential for global ozone depletion by stratospheric chlorine. He, along with co-author Richard Stolarski, was recognized in the Nobel citation for Professors Molina, Crutzen and Rowland, which noted Cicerone & Stolarski’s work as concurrent with that of Molina and Rowland.

Cicerone was a leading scientist in developing the field of biogeochemistry. At a time when most scientists involved in atmospheric chemistry were not interested in the biosphere, Ralph Cicerone turned his attention to methane and the complex systems that produce and destroy it. Cicerone originated one of the first "biogeochemical" research projects by investigating methane emissions from rice paddies. His recent research publications continue to address the key uncertainties in our knowledge of the global budget for CH4, the number-two greenhouse gas, successfully merging field measurements with their implications for global scale.

Global change, including ozone depletion, remains a hotly debated topic, of vital interest to Earth’s environment as a whole, to industry, and to those who must decide how to control it. Cicerone has played a vital and visible role in public policy discussions on the global environment. From 1974 onward he has been invited to testify before the US Congress and State Legislatures on more than eight instances, first on ozone depletion, and then on global warming.

Next year, Ralph Cicerone will become the President of the National Academy of Sciences in the US; as Nature recently wrote, "climate researcher takes academy hot seat"! Still quoting from Nature, as a "balanced and unbiased" person, with an "easy-going personality" and a definite "skill as a consensus-builder", and also being an expert "in the relationship between scientific discovery and sound public policy", Ralph Cicerone will undoubtedly play an important role as President of the Academy. We wish him great success.

It is therefore very clear that Ralph Cicerone has made, and continues to make, major contributions to science and humanity, which are the two cornerstones of the Einstein prize.

As Dean of the Faculty of Sciences, I am extremely happy that the award ceremony should take place in Liège; some researchers from our University have actually contributed to the detection and monitoring of minor constituents of the upper Earth's atmosphere (from the ground, from balloons and from space), i.e. the subjects that Ralph Cicerone has worked on. In fact, looking through the laureate's impressive bibliography, one can find the name of a scientist from Liège, Rodolphe Zander, as co-author on a couple of occasions.

This definitely adds a little something to the pleasure I have in introducing Ralph Cicerone.

Thank you.