Photo by Peg Skorpinski

Jay Keasling, a senior faculty scientist in Biological Systems and Engineering, professor at UC Berkeley, and CEO of the Joint BioEnergy Institute (JBEI), has been named a Distinguished Scientist Fellow by the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Science.

He and the other recipients – Gregory W. Hammett of Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory and L. Ruby Leung of Pacific Northwest National Laboratory – will be celebrated at a virtual ceremony on October 20.

This award, now in its third year, recognizes research relevant to Office of Science programs, and in particular, scientific leadership and engagement with the academic and research communities, significant mentoring of early-career scientists or engineers, the quality of publications in high-impact journals, and service to the research community.

Keasling was recognized for his “national scientific leadership in synthetic biology that has advanced DOE’s strategy in renewable energy, especially the realization of biofuels and bioproducts that enable biomanufacturing at scale and inspire and grow the U.S. bioeconomy,” according to the Office of Science award citation.

“Jay has been a pioneer in demonstrating the capability of synthetic biology to address grand challenges,” said Berkeley Lab Director Mike Witherell. “This well-earned award will help him start an exciting new project with promise for improving human health and the health of our planet.”

Read more at the Berkeley Lab News Center