WASHINGTON, DC -- (Marketwire) -- 01/30/13 -- Dr. Karl Linden, Professor of Environmental Engineering at University of Colorado Boulder, leads a research team that was recently awarded a grant from the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation for $780,000 for the Reinvent the Toilet Challenge (RTTC). The grant challenges scientists and engineers to design a toilet that uses little or no water, is energy and cost efficient and converts waste into a useful product. Karl Linden's team proposed a design idea that utilizes solar energy to convert waste into biochar, a product that can be used as fertilizer.

Dr. Linden is the President Elect of the International Ultraviolet Association (IUVA), a position he will assume in July of this year. Many of the scientists and engineers who are members of the IUVA design and maintain systems that use ultraviolet light to disinfect water, wastewater and air. These systems are in use across the United States and globally.

Linden will be leading a team of graduate students and collaborating with two other University of Colorado professors: Environmental Engineering Professor R. Scott Summers and Chemical and Biological Engineering Professor Al Weimer. Josh Kearns, a PhD candidate, has been using a biochar process to purify drinking water in developing countries. Kearns will provide his expertise for the RTTC project.

"This project is also very student-driven," said Dr. Linden in a press release issued by University of Colorado. "Students with classroom and field-based experiences in our Engineering for Developing Communities program have provided some excellent ideas, expertise and enthusiasm to make this project possible."

Paul Swain, President of IUVA, has been a colleague of Linden's for some time. "Once again, Karl Linden is at the forefront of critical issues impacting public health and the environment worldwide," says Swain. "The IUVA is fortunate to have a true leader in our field as our next International President," he added.

IUVA's mission is to advance the science, engineering and applications of ultraviolet water disinfection and air pollutant technologies to enhance the quality of human life and to protect the environment. Founded in 1999, it is a 501(c)3 educational association of more than 500 members in 35 countries. IUVA is recognized as the leading knowledge base and voice for UV technologies through its varied conferences and programs. Visit IUVA.org.