In Brief

Abigail Gyamfi Honored for Excellence in Mentorship and Community Impact

October 6, 2025

Image with blue and gold on either side, female wearing red dress holding a plaque

Chemistry and Biochemistry Ph.D. student Abigail Gyamfi was recognized by the California Section of the American Chemical Society Summer Experiences for the Economically Disadvantaged (SEED) Program and the Women Chemists Committee (WCC). “This is the first time a graduate student has...

New Partnership Offers Training for Valley Entrepreneurs

Early-stage entrepreneurs can learn how to build their businesses alongside a support network of startup and business experts through a new joint venture of the Founder Institute and UC Merced....

New Tools Indicate How Thinning and Fire Affect Forest Water Use and Boost Runoff

Forest-management actions such as mechanical thinning and prescribed burns don’t just reduce the risk of severe wildfire and promote forest health — these practices can also contribute to...

New Study Finds Media Coverage Could Discourage Many from Guiding Groundwater Use

Superficial media coverage of California’s Sustainable Groundwater Management Act (SGMA) could discourage democratic engagement on resource-management issues by having focused on relatively few...

Professor Emeritus Mark Aldenderfer Honored with Dickson Chair

Esteemed anthropologist and archaeologist Professor Mark Aldenderfer, who retired this month from UC Merced, has been awarded the Edward A. Dickson Emeriti Professorship Endowed Chair, the university...

Podcast Focuses on New Agriculture and California’s Future

On a hot June evening, UC Merced Professor Josh Viers joined farm advocate and small farmer Tom Willey on his front porch near Fresno to talk about California’s water, disadvantaged...

Three Awarded UC Pre-Professoriate Fellowships

UC Merced graduate students Anabel Castillo, Veronica Lerma and Sammy Villa are recipients of the University of California’s inaugural President’s Pre-Professoriate Fellowship (PPPF)....

Professor Explores Green Lubricants for Mechanical Systems with NSF Grant

Mechanical systems, such as car engines and manufacturing equipment, use petroleum-based lubricants and solvents that are considered hazardous. After use, those compounds mostly end up in the earth...

UC Merced Wins Best Practice Awards for Sustainability Efforts

UC Merced is the only campus to win three best practice awards in the California Higher Education Sustainability Conference ’s 2020 energy and sustainability competition. The annual...

Prestigious Award Recognizes Wang’s Work in Materials Science

UC Merced Professor Yue “Jessica” Wang has been named one of 10 winners of the 2020 Beckman Young Investigator Award, which recognizes promising researchers in chemical and life...