The Dow Chemical Company recently recognized the inaugural winners of its Sustainability Innovation Student Challenge - an awards competition established to encourage and promote solutions to the world's most pressing social, economic and environmental problems. Graduate students and their professors from around the globe were recognized at a ceremony held at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor.

"Sustainability is the cornerstone of our continuing success at Dow," said Neil Hawkins, Dow's vice president of Sustainability and Environment, Health and Safety. "We are rewarding students and universities who recognize the importance of innovation and excellence in solving challenges, because they will certainly contribute to a more sustainable future. Innovations that help Dow reduce its own footprint, and that enable our customers to deliver sustainable solutions to their marketplaces, will drive progress," said Hawkins.

Among the winning students and universities:

• Can Bayram, Cynthia Pierre, Zachary Lindemann, Yann Manibog, Eric West and Suelyn Yu - Northwestern University in Chicago, Illinois, USA
• Melissa Bailey, Stanley Eosakul, Konstantinos Tsioris, and Noah Wilson-Rich - Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts. USA
• Katie Cychosz, Ian Dailey, Eric Graham, Shally Madan, Siddharth Sinha, Elizabeth Uhlhorn, Rachel Arndt, Rebecca Cheney, Jamie Cohen, Allison Craddock, Stephanie Etkin, Caitlin Greeley, Brendan Moriarty, Nicholas Posavetz, and Christopher Gaines - The University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, Michigan, USA
• Judith Sykes, Ulf Narloch and Sina Bonyadi - Cambridge University in Cambridge, UK
• Yan Ning, Zhao Chen, Cai Zhipeng, Fan Xiaobing, Bi-Jie Li, Bing-Tao Guan, Chang-Liang Sun, Zhenqiang Xu, Feng Wang, Ting Yang, and Huanghuang Yan - Peking University in Beijing, China
• Boutros Fouad Sarrouh - The University of Sao Paulo in Sao Paulo, Brazil

Award winners were selected using a peer review process by the participating universities with guidance from high-level criteria provided by Dow. Some of the project highlights included:

• Building a community-based sustainable food system
• Energy efficient low-income homes in South Africa: evaluation of international support mechanisms
• New generation transportation fuels based on coal, natural gas and biomass: toward sustainable and green
• Biotechnological production of xylitol using sugarcane bagasse - evaluation of operational parameters and economical feasibility

Graduate student teams selected for their research and innovations received $10,000 for use at the students' discretion. In addition, The Dow Chemical Company Foundation donated $20,000 in financial support directly to each university to offset costs of managing the selection process and travel for students to the recognition event.

Attendees were also treated to a special presentation and exchange of dialogue with John Warner, Chief Technical Officer and Chairman of the Board of the Warner Babcock Institute of Green Chemistry and co-author of the book Green Chemistry: Theory & Practice.

"It was The University of Michigan's great pleasure to host this year's recognition event," said Professor Donald Scavia, Special Counsel to the President on Sustainability at The University of Michigan. "Our students continually amaze us with their talents and leadership on this important topic, and it was enriching to meet future leaders from universities around the world with equally impressive accomplishments."

About Dow
Dow is a diversified chemical company that combines the power of science and technology with the "Human Element" to constantly improve what is essential to human progress. The Company delivers a broad range of products and services to customers in approximately 160 countries, connecting chemistry and innovation with the principles of sustainability to help provide everything from fresh water, food and pharmaceuticals to paints, packaging and personal care products. In 2008, Dow had annual sales of $57.5 billion and employed approximately 46,000 people worldwide. The Company has 150 manufacturing sites in 35 countries and produces approximately 3,300 products. On April 1, 2009, Dow acquired Rohm and Haas Company, a global specialty materials company with sales of $10 billion in 2008, 98 manufacturing sites in 30 countries and approximately 15,000 employees worldwide. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted. More information about Dow can be found at www.dow.com.

OLD - Dow Chemical Company

OLD - Dow Chemical Company

With annual sales of $54 billion and 46,000 employees worldwide, Dow is a diversified chemical company that combines the power of science and technology with the "Human Element" to constantly improve what is essential to human progress. The Company delivers a broad range of products and services to customers in around 160 countries, connecting chemistry and innovation with the principles of sustainability to help provide everything from fresh water, food and pharmaceuticals to paints, packaging and personal care products. References to "Dow" or the "Company" mean The Dow Chemical Company and its consolidated subsidiaries unless otherwise expressly noted.