Paul D. Robillard, associate professor of agricultural and biological engineering, has been chosen to receive the W. LaMarr Kopp Faculty International Achievement Award. The award acknowledges faculty members who have made a noteworthy contribution to Penn State's international mission. 

Robillard is well known for his research in the design of water quality monitoring networks, knowledge-based systems in water quality control processes and international water resources engineering applications. As a Fulbright Scholar in 1995-96, he worked with Ecuadorian engineers and scientists to develop water quality monitoring networks for some of the world's most important ecological reserves and ‘hotspots’ for biodiversity: Cayambe-Coca, Cotatcachi-Cayapas, Cordillera Cucutu and Yasuni.   

As a result of his work, Robillard has established linkages between Penn State and several universities as well as international conservation foundations, including the Polytechnic University and the University of San Francisco (Ecuador), Boston University, the Center for Tropical Agriculture in Colombia, the European-Latin American Research Institute (Chile), the International Conservation Data Center, the Agency for International Development and the International Center for Water Engineering (Canada).

Fluent in Spanish, Robillard served as civil engineer designing community water supply systems during his stint in the Peace Corps. He was also an engineering advisor during the UN Water Decade (1980-90). In concert with Penn State's World Campus and the Inter-American Distance Education Consortium, he is currently directing a project to craft on-line courses, in English and Spanish, for undergraduates at North and South American universities, interested in biodiversity and science education as they relate to water resources.