Richard Warner
Board Vice President

Richard E. (Dick) Warner is a Senior Scientist with the National Great Rivers Research and Education Center (NGRREC) ((http://www.ngrrec.org/) and Professor Emeritus in the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Sciences at the University of Illinois in Urbana-Champaign (Illinois). Professor Warner has focused on integrated natural resource management in agricultural systems, especially soil, water, and wildlife conservation. Warner has helped develop and lead numerous programs at Illinois that focus on environmental stewardship and sustainability.

He has served as:

·       Inaugural Director of the Office of Sustainability (precursor to the current Institute for Sustainability, Energy, And Environment, positioning Illinois as locally relevant and globally preeminent in helping societies meet the challenges associated with a sustainable future.

·       Assistant Dean in the College of College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, providing leadership to cross-cutting research and extension programs.

·       Director of the Illinois Water Resources Center focused on research and outreach programs on water resources issues critical to Illinois and the Midwest.

·       Director of the Midwest Technical Assistance Center for Small Public Water Systems that addresses the priority needs of small public water systems and Indian Tribal systems in the Midwest.

·       Director of the Illinois-Indiana Sea Grant Program that integrates research, education and outreach efforts to empower southern Lake Michigan communities to secure a healthy environment and economy.

·       Cofounder and leader of MarketMaker. MarketMaker is the leading networked community of users across the food supply chain that can identify potential customers, food sources, processors and distributors. The geospatially referenced information is compiled into individual profiles based on business or farm type and placed in a searchable mappable directory that can be shared across partner web sites. 

Personal Experiences with Tick Borne Diseases

Richard’s daughter, Susanna, became co-infected with Lyme and other tick borne diseases in Illinois over 20 years ago; Susanna was not diagnosed and treated in a timely manner. Several other of Richard’s family members have contracted Lyme disease in Illinois. At the University of Illinois, Dr. Warner was involved in tracking the ecology and status of Lyme disease and other zoonosis in natural areas in Illinois.