John J. Magnuson

College of Natural Resources, April 24, 2003

John J. Magnuson received a B.S. with distinction (1956) and a M.S. (1958) in fish and wildlife management from the University of Minnesota. After graduating with a Ph.D. in zoology and oceanography at the University of British Columbia (1961), he became Chief of the Tuna Behavior and Physiology Program for the U.S. Bureau of Commercial Fisheries in Honolulu. Six years later, he joined the faculty of the University of Wisconsin, where he served for 32 years. For 17 of those years he served as Director of the Institute of Limnology, one of the premiere freshwater institutes in the world. He is an international authority on the ecology of freshwater lakes and their role in landscape level ecosystems. In recognition of his accomplishments he was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award by the American Society of Limnology and Oceanography in 2002. He has published five books and more than 300 papers in his field. He is also actively involved in public service, having served on numerous advisory boards for the Great Lakes Fisheries Commission and the International Joint Commission on Water Quality. Currently he is an Emeritus and advises three graduate students and continues to lead major visionary activities.