DRI President's Medals for 2003 Awarded
Desert Research Institute President Stephen G. Wells has awarded four DRI
President’s Medals for 2003 to acknowledge individuals and organizations that have
provided outstanding support for the institute’s programs, and for
higher education in Nevada. The medals, awarded annually as part of the Nevada Medal awards
ceremonies in Reno and Las Vegas each spring, are presented by DRI in lieu of the
honorary doctorates or similar acknowledgments traditional among the University and Community
College System of Nevada’s teaching campuses. The 2003 recipients included: - Joe Dini, Jr., Speaker Emeritus of the Nevada Legislature, and Nevada’s longest serving
state assemblyman, for his longtime support of DRI and the university system. Dini,
known statewide as “Mr. Speaker,” retired after the 2001 session, capping 36 years in
the State Assembly that included four special and 18 regular sessions. The long time operator
of Dini's Lucky Club in Yerington, Dini was noted for his bi-partisan legislative
approach that deftly combined an awareness of environmental concerns with his understanding
of business issues and the challenges to Nevada’s agricultural community. - Rudolf Gunnerman, for establishing and underwriting the Rudolf W. Gunnerman Silver State
Award for Excellence in Science and Technology, an annual acknowledgment of Nevada-based
science and technology achievement administered by DRI. The award includes
a $25,000 prize and minted medal. Gunnerman is a Reno industrialist, inventor and
environmentalist who has developed numerous clean air technologies to reduce emissions
from fossil fuel combustion. A recent recipient of the international science award, the Albert
Einstein Medal, he is also a trustee of the DRI Research Foundation. - The Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, selected for its international humanitarian leadership
and innovative research partnership with DRI. The Hilton Foundation has sponsored DRI
research for more than eight years as part of an innovative program of advanced groundwater
research and local training to provide clean and reliable water resources in rural West
African communities. Foundation President Steven M. Hilton and Vice President of Programs
Dyanne M. Hayes accepted on behalf of the Hilton Foundation. Their acceptance remarks
emphasized the dramatic improvements in health and quality of life in the communities served
by the program, known as the West African Water Initiative. - Troy E. Wade II, for his leadership in developing the concept for the joint DRI, U.S.
Department of Energy, and Nevada Test Site Historical Foundation program which will occupy
new DRI’s Science & Technology Building in Las Vegas. Wade is president of the
historical foundation, and chairman of the Nevada Alliance for Defense, Energy and Business, a
group of more than 30 technology companies working to bring new science and technology
programs to the Nevada Test Site. Wade served as deputy manager of DOE’s Nevada Operations
Office, as director of the Idaho National Engineering Laboratory, and as assistant secretary
of DOE for defense programs during the Reagan Administration. He is also a trustee of the DRI
Research Foundation. A nonprofit, statewide division of the University and Community College System of Nevada,
DRI pursues a full-time program of basic and applied environmental research on a local, national,
and international scale. Nearly 500 full- and part-time scientists, technicians, and support
staff conduct some 150 research projects at DRI annually. More than 85 percent of DRI's annual
$33 million operating budget consists of research grants and contracts obtained by its
scientists. The balance is received from the state of Nevada for administrative costs.
Joe Dini, Jr., Rudolf Gunnerman, Conrad N. Hilton Foundation, Troy
E. Wade II honored