Three Arizona State University professors are being honored with the highest faculty award possible — Regents Professor.
The three are internationally recognized experts at the top of their fields, and on Thursday, they joined an elite rank when their nominations were approved by the Arizona Board of Regents. The new Regents Professors are:
- Hao Yan, director of the Biodesign Center for Molecular Design and Biomimetics and the Milton D. Glick Distinguished Professor in the School of Molecular Sciences.
- Amber Wutich, director of the Center for Global Health, President’s Professor in the School of Human Evolution and Social Change, and a 2023 MacArthur Fellow.
- Jim Bell, professor in the School of Earth and Space Exploration, director of ASU’s NewSpace Initiative, and chief scientist of MILO Space Science Institute.
“On behalf of the entire academic community at ASU, I congratulate and celebrate our three newest Regents Professors,” said Nancy Gonzales, executive vice president and university provost. “From the microscopic worlds of DNA and nanotechnology, to global water systems, to interplanetary exploration, the genius of these scholars embody the scale and breadth of faculty expertise at ASU. They join an elite community of Regents Professors who continue to advanced ASU’s reputation as a leader in groundbreaking research. We are immensely proud of their achievements.”
To receive this designation, the new Regents Professors must be recognized by peers nationally and internationally. Groups of tenured faculty members make the nominations, which are evaluated by an advisory committee following an established review process. ASU President Michael Crow then considers the recommendations and forwards them to the Arizona Board of Regents for final approval.
Here’s more on the new Regents Professors, who will be inducted in a ceremony Feb. 13 at the Memorial Union.
Hao Yan
Yan is a leading figure in the fields of DNA nanotechnology, biomimetics and DNA origami engineering. His groundbreaking work has redefined those scientific areas and established ASU as a global leader in molecular design and biomimetics. For more than two decades, he has created novel DNA-based structures and devices that have advanced understanding and application of molecular assembly for diagnosing diseases, enhancing computing and innovating materials science.
Yan’s research has been cited in more than 230 publications, including the journals Science, Nature and Cell, and he has been recognized as a Web of Science Highly Cited Researcher.
Yan, who joined ASU in 2004, has been awarded the Foresight Institute Feynman Prize in Nanotechnology (2020), the Alexander von Humboldt Research Award (2013) and fellowships with the National Academy of Inventors, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and the American Institute for Medical and Biological Engineering. He was elected to the European Academy of Sciences earlier this semester.
One reviewer wrote: “Professor Yan’s influence extends beyond research through his role as a prominent science communicator and mentor. … His leadership has built a community of cross-disciplinary researchers and nurtured young scientists, resulting in a robust network of collaborators who continue to push the boundaries of what is possible in DNA nanotechnology and biomimetics.”
Amber Wutich
Wutich, a world-renowned expert on water insecurity, directs the Global Ethnohydrology Study, a cross-cultural study of water knowledge and management in more than 20 countries.
She has authored or co-authored six books and more than 200 research papers, edited the journal Field Methods and raised more than $80 million in research funds. With over 15,000 citations and an h-index of 56 by Google Scholar, she is among the most prolific of her school’s faculty. She leads Action for Water Equity, which develops water solutions with water-insecure communities in the United States.
The Carnegie Foundation named Wutich the Arizona Professor of the Year for 2013–14, and she received the ASU Outstanding Faculty Mentor Award from the Faculty Women’s Association in 2020. And last fall, her work earned her a MacArthur “genius grant.”
One reviewer wrote: “Professor Wutich is not just a first-rate expert on water insecurity, she has launched new fields of scholarship, including in the areas of water insecurity measurement, water and global mental health, and household water sharing. She also co-authored foundational papers for the major theoretical approaches dominating research on water insecurity; her work in socio-hydrology and household water insecurity literally defined these fields.”
James Bell
Bell has played key roles in such NASA missions as Mars Pathfinder, NEAR, Mars Odyssey and the Mars Science Laboratory. Bell led the development of the Panoramic camera (Pancam) on the Mars rovers Spirit and Opportunity, and he’s a co-investigator on Psyche, the first ASU-led deep-space NASA mission, which launched last fall.
He has been a prolific and impactful scholar, with 42 first-authored peer-reviewed publications and co-authorship on more than 280 additional papers.
Bell was president of the Planetary Society from 2008–2020. His work earned him the prestigious Carl Sagan Medal for Excellence in Public Communication from the Division for Planetary Sciences (2011). The International Astronomical Union honored him by naming asteroid 8146 Jimbell in recognition of his science contributions. He has been a key communicator in bridging the gap between space exploration and public understanding and is a member of the Penguin Random House author speakers bureau.
One reviewer wrote: “Bell has been an exceptional mentor, guiding many of his students to become leaders in planetary science while encouraging them to take lead authorship on major publications. … His advocacy for transparent data release and his authorship of ‘Postcards From Mars’ and several other science books have made him a key communicator in planetary science, effectively bridging the gap between space exploration and public understanding.”
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