Marian Nkansah

Biography

Marian Asantewah Nkansah, an Associate Professor at the Department of Chemistry of the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST), Kumasi; was born in the late seventies in Ghana to Mary and Joseph Nkansah both educationists. She has three brothers and two sisters. Marian started her basic school in St. Anthony’s Experimental School, Nkawkaw in the Eastern Region of Ghana. Prior to her university education, she majored in Science at the St. Roses’ Secondary School, Akwatia-Ghana; one of the most prestigious High Schools for girls in Ghana. She holds a PhD in Environmental Chemistry from the University of Bergen-Norway and obtained her BSc. and MSc. from KNUST in 2002 and 2005 respectively. She teaches Practical Chemistry, Nuclear/Radiochemistry, Chemistry and Society, and Petroleum Chemistry. Marian has been a faculty member since January 2007. Her research interests span a wide range of fields including finding solutions to environmental problems associated with levels and fate of toxic substances like heavy/trace metals, persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in food, water, soil, rocks, sediments and other environmental samples and the interaction of these pollutants with each other in the environment. She has a number of peer reviewed articles and books to her credit. Her research work in Environmental Chemistry, especially in the areas of contamination and pollution of the environment by toxic substances, has set a high standard in bringing public awareness to researchers and civil society. She serves as reviewer to a number of local and international journals. She is a member the Ghana Young Academy and affiliate of the African Academy of Sciences. She was named the inaugural recipient of the FM Al-Kharafi TWAS Prize in 2016. She is committed to the mentorship of female university students as well as role model for young girls at the basic level of their education. She was  is the Warden of Africa Hall of residence at KNUST from 2016-2020. Marian’s membership of the Global Young Academy (GYA)  is for 2017/2022. She was an Executive Committee Member of the GYA from May, 2019 to June, 2020.  She enjoys teaching and loves to share her experiences with the people she meets. She also enjoys traveling and hiking.

Awards