Dr. Murat Kacira, a controlled environment agriculture engineer, will give two presentations as a JCCC Scholar in Residence. The two lectures are free and open to the public.

Kacira’s first lecture is Engineering Concerns and Opportunities for Sustainable Greenhouse Systems from 8-9 a.m. Monday, Oct. 11, in the Craig Community Auditorium.

The second presentation, Improving Production Quality and Resource Use Efficiency by Plant Sensing and Monitoring, follows at 10:30-11:30 a.m. Monday, Oct. 11, in Craig Community Auditorium.

Kacira, an associate professor, agricultural and biosystems engineering department, College of Agriculture and Life Sciences, and faculty member, Controlled Environment Agriculture Center, at the University of Arizona, has been involved in CEA research and teaching for 17 years in the United States, Turkey and Japan. He specializes in the development of climate-controlled strategies to optimize water and energy use in greenhouses and ways to evaluate the health status of plants by means of robotic sensor-instrumentation networks.

He is an active member of American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers and International Society of Horticultural Science.

Kacira has a bachelor’s degree in agricultural machinery from Cukurova University, Turkey, and a master’s degree and a doctorate in food, agricultural and biological engineering, both from the Ohio State University.

Kacira’s research is relevant to JCCC’s horticultural sciences, environmental science, engineering, biotechnology, business, energy performance and resource management, and sustainable agriculture students as well as agriculture and horticulture industry professionals.

JCCC’s Scholar in Residence program is designed to bring visiting scholars to students, faculty and the public. Kacira’s residency is sponsored by Lekha Sreedhar, associate professor, horticulture sciences. During residency, Kacira will visit JCCC’s Horticulture Science Center and its greenhouse. For more information about Kacira’s residency, contact Sreedhar, at 913-469-8500, ext. 3763.