The National Sunflower Association has awarded its Gold Award to Duane Berglund, former NDSU Extension specialist. The award is presented to individuals who have contributed extraordinarily to the sunflower industry.

Berglund was a newly appointed NDSU agronomist when sunflowers were introduced to the Upper Midwest in the 1970s. He adopted the crop and became a key resource for new growers throughout the region.

Raised on a crop and livestock production farm in east central North Dakota, he earned bachelor's, master's and doctoral degrees from NDSU. He began his career at NDSU in 1970 and retired in December 2006.