Dr. Wallace Broecker Awarded Honourary Degree

Thursday, June 11, 2015

Dr. Wallace Broecker, Newberry Professor of Geology in the Department of Earth Sciences at Columbia University is being awarded an honorary Doctor of Science degree form University of Waterloo at today’s convocation ceremony.

A true pioneer, Broecker is arguably one of the most accomplished living geochemists in the world. For more than half a century, his research has refined what we know about the ocean’s effects on climate change.

He is the father of the concept of abrupt climate change and coined the term global warming. Broecker also introduced the ocean conveyor belt, the system of thermohaline currents that moves water and associated chemical compounds around the globe.

Wallace Broecker

Dr. Broecker (center right) in discussion with Philippe and Victoria Van Cappellen at the reception given by the Faculty of Science in honor of this year’s honorary doctorate degrees.