Dr. Eric O. Hartwig, Acting Director of Research at the Naval
Research Laboratory (NRL), is the recipient of the 2001 Presidential
Rank Award of Meritorious Executive. Dr. Hartwig is recognized
for his "distinguished leadership in the geophysical sciences
that has had a profound impact on these programs at the
international
and national levels."
Winners of the prestigious
Meritorious
Executive award are presented to individuals who
display strong
leadership, results, and consistently
demonstrate strength, integrity,
industry and a relentless
commitment to excellence in public
service. Candidates are
nominated by their agency heads, evaluated
by boards of private
citizens, and approved by the President.
The Meritorious
Executive award is given for long-term accomplishments.
Only 5
percent of career SES members may receive the award.
Dr. Hartwig was born in Cincinnati,
Ohio, in 1946. He attended Irvin High School in El Paso, Texas
and then obtained his B.S. degree in biological sciences from
the University of Texas at El Paso in 1968 and his Ph.D. from
Scripps Institution of Oceanography in 1974. After completing
his graduate studies, Dr. Hartwig accepted a position as a
researcher
at the Scottish Marine Biological Association (SMBA)
in Oban,
Scotland, where he established a sea-going
experimental marine
microbiological effort.
In 1975, Dr. Hartwig returned
to the U.S., accepting a position at the Chesapeake Bay Institute
of Johns Hopkins University. He conducted shallow water research
concentrated on the Chesapeake Bay and its outflow region, in
active collaboration with many institutions and scientists. This
effort sought to understand the biological dynamics associated
with the Bay's flow regimes, and the underlying water column
and benthic biological processes resulting in the onset of the
seasonal summer anoxia of the Bay.
In 1978, Dr. Hartwig accepted
a position
at Marine Ecological Consultants (MEC), where his
research
centered on understanding the "before operations"
environment at a nuclear generating station. In 1980, Dr. Hartwig
accepted a position at the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory (LBL)
at the University of California at Berkeley, to head-up the
biological
component of a research team studying the concept of
a proposed
Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) plant. His
work involved
extensive interactions with engineers on the
operating characteristics
of the plant and physicaloceanographers
modeling flow regimes
around the plant and to be generated by
the plant.
In 1982,
Dr. Hartwig joined the
Office of Naval Research (ONR), as a
scientific officer in the
Oceanic Chemistry/Biology Program.
When the program was split
into an Oceanic Chemistry and
Oceanic Biology Program, Dr. Hartwig
became Program Manager of
the Oceanic Biology Program. In this
capacity, Dr. Hartwig
developed several major interdisciplinary
research initiatives
for the Navy.
In
1987, Dr. Hartwig was selected
as Director of Ocean Sciences at
ONR. He enhanced both university
interactions with Ocean
Sciences and the stature of ONR Ocean
Science scientific
officers and program managers in the Federal
Government. Dr.
Hartwig, working with the Oceanographer of the
Navy, developed
and implemented the Navy's academic research
vessel rebuild
program, which resulted in more capable oceanographic
vessels
for the next millennium.
As a part of the Navy laboratory
consolidation in
1992, Dr. Hartwig was specifically recruited
to move from ONR
to NRL and assume the position of Associate
Director of
Research for Ocean and Atmospheric Science and Technology.
In
this capacity, he led the effort of integrating the Navy's
geophysical science research, as the Naval Oceanographic and
Atmospheric Research Laboratory (NOARL) was merged into NRL.
On October 15, 2001, Dr. Hartwig assumed his present duties
as
Acting Director of Research of NRL.
In addition to this recent award,
Dr.
Hartwig's was the recipient of a Presidential Rank Award
of
Meritorious Executive in the Senior Executive Service (SES),
in
1996. He has served on the AGU Fellows nomination committee,
the Cody award selection committee, and was Chairman of the
Oceanography
Society Meetings Committee. Dr. Hartwig is on the
Monterey Bay
Aquarium Research Institute Board of Directors, is
the U.S. Representative
to the NATO SACLANTCEN laboratory for
undersea research, and
is President-Elect of the Oceanography
Society and will become
President in 2002.
The U.S. Naval Research Laboratory is the Navy's full-spectrum corporate laboratory, conducting a broadly based multidisciplinary program of scientific research and advanced technological development. The Laboratory, with a total complement of nearly 2,500 personnel, is located in southwest Washington, D.C., with other major sites at the Stennis Space Center, Miss., and Monterey, Calif. NRL has served the Navy and the nation for over 85 years and continues to meet the complex technological challenges of today's world. For more information, visit the NRL homepage or join the conversation on Twitter, Facebook, and YouTube.
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