Media Advisory for Thursday, February 21

CONGRESSMAN MARIO DIAZ-BALART PRESENTS CHECK TO THE
UNIVERSITY OF MIAMI'S HI-TECH ENVIRONMENTAL FACILITY

WHAT: The University of Miami receives a $2 million check for the Center for Southeastern Tropical Advanced Remote Sensing (CSTARS), a component of the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science, to conduct research using remote sensing data received from earth orbiting satellite systems.

WHO: Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart will present the check to CSTARS. In addition to Congressman Diaz-Balart, other speakers will include Donna E. Shalala Ph. D., president of the University of Miami and Otis Brown, Ph.D., dean of the Rosenstiel School of Marine and Atmospheric Science.

WHEN/WHERE: The event will take place on Thursday, February 21, at CSTARS, located at the Richmond campus, 11811 SW 168 Street. The program begins at 10 a.m. with a tour of the facilities led by Hans Graber, Sc. D., co-director of CSTARS and chair of the  University’s division of Applied Marine Physics, followed by a program and check presentation at 10:30 a.m.

WHY: The money is the latest installment of more than $14 million in federal appropriations provided to CSTARS since the facility’s opening in 2003.  Thanks to the support of Congressman Mario Diaz-Balart, the facility in southern Miami-Dade provides data for environmental monitoring of the Equatorial Atlantic region; northern South America, Central America, the Caribbean Basin, Gulf of Mexico and the Southeastern US. The center, not only helps to assess the health of ecological communities in these regions of the world, but also gathers data to assist in predicting environmental disturbances. It offers information to support humanitarian efforts both before and after natural disasters, and aids in homeland security efforts.

Media Contact for the University of Miami:     

Marie Guma-Diaz                                              
m.gumadiaz@umiami.edu
305-284-5500

Media Contact for Congressman Diaz-Balart:
Adriana Pereira

305-225-6866