W.E. Wood Award
Rewarding excellence in Salinity Research and Development
What is the W.E. Wood Award?
The W.E. Wood award previously recognised outstanding research on the understanding and management of dryland salinity. The focus is now being expanded to include research into any aspects of water processes and management, and water-related land management, in the Western Australian landscape and the implications for agriculture, environment and society.
The award is named in recognition of the author of an early landmark scientific paper on the region’s hydrological and geochemical processes.
With support from the Centre for Water and Spatial Science (CWSS) and the Centre for Environmental Economics and Policy (CEEP) at the University of Western Australia, the award is being restarted in 2024 after a gap of 20 years, at the initiative of the previous Award winners and to coincide with the centenary of the first publication on Australian salinity processes.
Award Eligibility
It is open to researchers from any scientific discipline, including social scientists.
You can enter yourself or nominate someone else.
Applicants must be able to summarise the nominee’s contributions and achievements in advancing our understanding and management of landscape hydrology and related processes in Western Australia by addressing three key criteria:
Scientific content
Innovative thinking
Significance to Australia
See the nomination form for specific details.
Winners
The winner will receive a trophy and be invited to present a public lecture.
More information
UWA Media Release: Centenary of salinity research marked by award relaunch
The Conversation: Even far from the ocean, Australia’s drylands are riddled with salty groundwater. What can land managers do?
Key Contacts
Dave Pannell, CEEP Co-Director: david.pannell@uwa.edu.au
Nik Callow, CWSS Director: nik.callow@uwa.edu.au
SUBMISSION GUIDELINES 2024
Submit a completed nomination form to ceep@uwa.edu.au by 5pm (Perth time) on 31 May 2024.
The Legacy of WE Wood
Salinity continues to affect millions of hectares of productive land across Australia, driven by the processes described 100 years ago by the railway engineer WE Wood.
The W.E. Wood Award continues to recognise the importance and legacy of this pioneering work. Traditional owners, individual farms and regional communities are still seeking socially, environmental and economic solutions. One hundred years on, the search for viable and just solutions to combat or adapt to salinity continues.
Past winners (and their affiliation(s) at the time of their award):
Glenn Walker - CSIRO
Richard George - Department of Agriculture, WA.
Tom Hatton - CSIRO
Ed Barrett-Lennard - Department of Agriculture WA and CRC for Plant-Based Management of Dryland Salinity
David Pannell - University of Western Australia and CRC for Plant-Based Management of Dryland Salinity
“Research has derived some practical and economic solutions to reverse salinity, but it remains an ongoing struggle and requires innovation.”