Mary Poulton

Dr. Mary Poulton is a University Distinguished Professor with appointments in Geosciences, Mining and Geological Engineering, Law and Public Health. She was the first woman to lead an engineering department in the history of the University of Arizona, serving from July 1, 2000 to January 1, 2015. She founded and directs the interdisciplinary Lowell Institute for Mineral Resources (IMR), the largest minerals research and education center in the US. Dr. Poulton directs the Western Mine Safety and Health Training Resource Center. She created the Latin American Natural Resources Academy with US State Department support to promote student exchange in mineral resources. She is also a founding member of the Pan American Hub for Compatible Mining. Dr. Poulton is co-founder and vice-president of NOAH, LLC, a water and energy management technology company and co-founder and principal of Custos Fratris L3C, a safety training company. Dr. Poulton has more than 90 publications on the application of computational neural networks to pattern recognition problems in the earth sciences, including geophysics, mining, mineral and petroleum exploration, hydrology, and atmospheric science. She is the author of a book on the use of neural networks for geophysical data analysis. She has led or participated in nearly $29 million in research funding. She has chaired the Mine Safety and Health Research Advisory Committee for NIOSH and the Board on Natural Resources for NASULGC (now APLU). Dr. Poulton was appointed to serve on three National Research Council Committees including co-authoring the 2007 report on critical minerals. She currently chairs the NRC Committee on Earth Resources and also serves on the Board on Earth Science and Resources. Dr. Poulton has given testimony before Congress on workforce issues in the mining industry and helped draft the Energy and Mineral Schools Re-Investment Act which passed the US House of Representatives in 2006.