The Scientist of the Year: Dr. Cagan Hakki Sekercioglu

From fashion to politics, from sports to science, Radikal has chosen the people who shaped 2010. A familiar name to our readers, Assistant Professor Dr. Cagan Hakki Sekercioglu has been selected “Scientist of the Year”. He is president of KuzeyDoga Society and faculty member at University of Utah Department of Biology. 

Intelligent, knowledgeable, passionate…

NTV Science Editor Inan Aran had this to say about the selection of young scientist for the honor:
“In 2010, Cagan Hakki Sekercioglu became one of the the most-cited 1% of all scientists of the past decade. In 2008, he won the Whitley Gold Award, informally referred to as the “Environmental Nobel”, with his Lake Kuyucuk conservation, biodiversity research and ecological restoration project. There is usually a price to be paid for such academic achievement. We expected to meet one of the most boring people in the world. What a disappointment! First of all, he is intelligent. It is obvious from the words he chooses. Knowledgeable. He is also handsome, young and charming. Where necessary, angry and passionate. He tells a sad story of environmental massacre. From Stanford to Kars. From Costa Rica to Africa. Birds, bears, mountains and rocks… Study, measure, assess, examine, demonstrate, think, write. As if all that is not enough, come out and explain it to the public. Besides embarrassment, only one other thought crosses my mind: such a person IS possible! That is why NTV Bilim (Science) considers Sekercioglu not only the most important scientist of 2010, but also one of the most important scientists of the past century, and enjoys the happiness of having had a 15-minute talk with him.”

Dr. Sekercioglu, recently described his work in eastern Turkey for Robert College Alumni Magazine, that he is a class of 93. You can reach and read this article : “The Challenges of Protecting Turkey’s Biodiversity”

See all this coverage and more information on his campaign at www.kuyucuk.org

(Turkish Journal)