Professor Kaiyu Guan named 2026 MacArthur Fellow for pioneering predictive science of agriculture

September 30, 2026 | Austin Keating
Kaiyu Guan MacArthur
As one of the nation’s largest private philanthropic foundations since 1978, the MacArthur Foundation awards fellowships directly to individuals like ASC Director Kaiyu Guan rather than through institutions. Photo by Chris Brown Photography, courtesy of National Center for Supercomputing Applications

Kaiyu Guan, a Levenick endowed professor of natural resources and environmental sciences at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, has been named a 2026 MacArthur Fellow, commonly known as a “genius grant,” from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.

According to a statement from the MacArthur Foundation, the fellows are chosen as “talented individuals in a variety of fields who have shown exceptional originality in and dedication to their creative pursuits.” 

To read more about this achievement, read the News Bureau’s coverage.

About the Agroecosystem Sustainability Center (ASC): The Agroecosystem Sustainability Center was founded in 2021 to lead global efforts in harmonizing sustainable food production with thriving ecosystems. The Center strives to revolutionize agricultural systems through research, collaboration, and engagement, bridging science and practice for agricultural productivity and ecosystem sustainability. Centered in the heart of Midwest on the campus of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign under the umbrella of both the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences (ACES) and the Institute of Sustainability, Energy, and the Environment (iSEE), ASC is positioned at the critical intersection of academia, industry, policy, and on-the-ground practice. ASC is creating a diverse and dynamic hub for driving change and is committed to transforming its research into practical and scalable solutions, fortifying our ecosystems, bolstering farm profitability, and empowering agricultural systems to proactively mitigate and adapt to the realities of climate change.

Media Contact: Austin Keating (akkeati2@illinois.edu)