Manjusri Misra is an Indo-Canadian Professor. She is a Tier 1

Canada Research Chair Canada Research Chair (CRC) is a title given to certain Canadian university research professors by the Canada Research Chairs Program. Program goals The Canada Research Chair program was established in 2000 as a part of the Government of Canada ...

in Sustainable Biocomposites at the

University of Guelph The University of Guelph (abbreviated U of G) is a comprehensive Public university, public research university in Guelph, Ontario, Canada. It was established in 1964 after the amalgamation of Ontario Agricultural College (1874), the MacDonald I ...

's School of Engineering and holds a joint appointment in the Department of Plant Agriculture. Misra is also the lead scientist at U of G's Bioproducts Discovery and Development Centre and a Fellow of the

Royal Society of Canada The Royal Society of Canada (RSC; , SRC), also known as the Academies of Arts, Humanities, and Sciences of Canada (French: ''Académies des arts, des lettres et des sciences du Canada''), is the senior national, bilingual council of distinguishe ...

(RSC); the

American Institute of Chemical Engineers The American Institute of Chemical Engineers (AIChE) is a professional organization for chemical engineers. AIChE was established in 1908 to distinguish chemical engineers as professionals independent of chemists and mechanical engineers. Curr ...

(AIChE); the

Royal Society of Chemistry The Royal Society of Chemistry (RSC) is a learned society and professional association in the United Kingdom with the goal of "advancing the chemistry, chemical sciences". It was formed in 1980 from the amalgamation of the Chemical Society, the ...

; the Society of Plastic Engineers (SPE), US; and the Indian Institute of Chemical Engineers (IIChE).

Early life and education

Misra was born in Odisha, India, into a family of academics, to her father, Late Pandit Govinda Chandra Mishra, and her mother, Late Mrs. Suhasini Mishra. She received her High School from Ravenshaw Collegiate School, Cuttack and Bachelors degree from Shailabala Women's College (currently Shailabala Women's Autonomous College). She completed her Master and PhD degrees from Ravenshaw College (currently Ravenshaw University), Cuttack under

Utkal University Utkal University (UU) is a public university in Bhubaneswar, Khordha, Odisha, and is the oldest university in the state, and the 17th-oldest university in India. The university was established in 1943 and was operating from Ravenshaw College ...

before completing her post-doctoral work in Fritz Huber Institute of the Max Planck Society, Berlin and

Technische Universität Berlin (TU Berlin; also known as Berlin Institute of Technology and Technical University of Berlin, although officially the name should not be translated) is a public university, public research university located in Berlin, Germany. It was the first ...

, Germany.

Career

Following her PhD, Misra was a Senior Lecturer in Chemistry at various academic institutes ( Shailabala Women's College, B. J. B. College and Ravenshaw College) under

. She was also a visiting adjunct professor at

Michigan State University Michigan State University (Michigan State or MSU) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in East Lansing, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1855 as the Agricultural College of the State o ...

. While at Michigan State, Misra worked i
Composite Materials and Structures Center
in the Department of Chemical Engineering and Materials Science where she began her various research projects on "Sustainable Biobased and Biodegradable Composites and Green Nanocomposites for Automotives and Packaging Applications." She was also an editor of the

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volume, "Natural Fibers, Biopolymers and Biocomposites," in 2005. Misra eventually joined the faculty of the School of Engineering and the Department of Plant Agriculture at the

(U of G) in 2008. Upon joining the institution, Misra was appointed president of the BioEnvironmental Polymer Society and served as an editor for various journals. She also edited the American Scientific Publishers volume "Packaging Nanotechnology" in 2009. Following this, Misra received the Jim Hammar Memorial Award from the BioEnvironmental Polymer Society and the 2017

Andrew Chase Division Award in Chemical Engineering as an individual with "significant chemical engineering contributions in the forest products and related industries." During her tenure at U of G, Misra co-directed the Bioproducts Discovery and Development Centre with her husband which aimed to produce bio-based, sustainable materials that lower greenhouse gas emissions and reduce the impact of plastics. In 2019, her efforts were recognized with the Synergy Award for Innovation from the

Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada The Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC; , CRSNG) is the major federal agency responsible for funding natural sciences and engineering research in Canada. NSERC directly funds university professors and students as ...

. In December 2020, Misra was named a Tier 1

in Sustainable Biocomposites. She was also recognized by the Women's Executive Networks as one of the Most Powerful Women for 2020. She was specifically recognized for being a "world leader in the development of novel bio-based composites and nanocomposites made from agricultural and forestry resources." The following year, Misra received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the BioEnvironmental Polymer Society for "outstanding contributions to advancing the field of biopolymers, bio-based composite materials." In 2024, Misra was recognized as one of the Global 50 Women in Sustainability under the theme "Embrace Boldness" by SustainabilityX® Magazine for demonstrating exceptional leadership in sustainability and driving transformative change across the globe.

Awards, honours and distinctions

Personal life

Misra is married to Amar Mohanty.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Misra, Manjusri Living people Indian women engineers Utkal University alumni Academic staff of Utkal University Academic staff of the University of Guelph Canada Research Chairs Michigan State University faculty Year of birth missing (living people)