12/19/97
ATHENS, Ohio -- James Tong, professor emeritus of chemistry at Ohio University, has received the Ohio Alliance for the Environment 1997 Award for Distinguished Service in the field of environmental education. Tong received the honor, along with the Individual Contribution over a Lifetime Award, during the alliance's annual conference Dec. 11 in Columbus.
In addition to his regular teaching duties in the Department of Chemistry at Ohio University, Tong has devoted time and energy to encouraging young people to take an interest in science and its relationship to the environment. For four decades, he has worked with students on issues covering radiation, toxics and water quality. He was a member of the committee that created the Master's in Environmental Science Program at Ohio University and has served on its advisory committee since 1975, while supervising many graduate students in the program.
He also participated in the creation of five undergraduate environmental chemistry majors and has led innovative chemistry courses in radiochemistry and toxicology. Nationally, he has given numerous invited lectures on toxicology and has promoted the teaching of toxicology to chemistry students at meetings of the National American Chemical Society.
As a volunteer and community activist, he has assisted citizens in addressing many environmental problems over the years. He began by working with the Soil and Water Conservation District and later served as chair of the Citizen Advisory Committee and Policy Advisory Committee, which oversaw the writing of the EPA Hocking River Basic Water Quality Management Plan. He has been a member of the Hocking River Commission and was a co-creator of the Radiation Safety Committee in 1958.
The Ohio Alliance for the Environment offers educational programs with balanced environmental information, opportunities for discussion of diverse points of view on topics, and leadership for facilitating constructive solutions to problems. Members of the nonprofit organization include representatives from environmental and citizen groups, business, agriculture, government, industry, conservation and education.