ANN ARBOR—Two faculty members affiliated with the University of Michigan will teach and conduct research abroad as recipients of Fulbright Scholar grants.

They are professor Steven Wright and former U-M professor Thomas O’Donnell.

Wright, the Arthur F. Thurnau Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering, will go to Concepcion, Chile, where he will carry out ecological studies on hydroelectric power in Patagonia.

“Until recently, there really have been no environmental laws in Chile, so development took place in the most convenient ways. We hope our ecological studies will help guide future development,” Wright said. “I’m honored to have this opportunity.”

O’Donnell, who taught at U-M from 2001 to 2007, will travel to Caracas, Venezuela to compare that country’s oil markets and politics with those in Algeria. O’Donnell now teaches at the New School in New York.

“These countries have quite different models,” O’Donnell said. “I plan to look at what model will sustain the people of those nations and what that will mean for U.S. relations.”

In Venezuela, O’Donnell said, the government takes a percentage of oil company profits and puts it toward social programs. Algeria has a more privatized set-up.

Fulbright recipients are chosen for academic or professional achievement and for demonstrating extraordinary leadership potential in their fields.

Established in 1946 under legislation introduced by the late Sen. J. William Fulbright of Arkansas, the program’s purpose is to build mutual understanding between the people of the United States and other countries.

Wright and O’Donnell are among approximately 800 scholars in the United States who will take part in this program during the 2007-2008 academic year. The Fulbright Scholar Program operates in more than 150 countries worldwide.

About 800 foreign faculty members will come to the United States as well, and U-M will welcome seven of them:

• Vincent Ball; France
• Federico Davila; Argentina 
• Nataliya Gorodnia; Ukraine 
• Barbara Havelkova; Czech Republic (and other affiliations)
• Akli Khenous; Algeria 
• Sindani Kiangu; Democratic Republic of the Congo (and other affiliations)
• Danilo Nikolic; Montenegro

The U.S. Department of State, Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs sponsors the program.