The International Water Association (IWA) is very pleased to announce the appointment of new 2022 IWA Fellows and Distinguished Fellows. The individual water professionals are being recognised by their peers for their sustained outstanding contribution to the water profession, and to delivering the IWA mission of creating a water-wise world, improving the wellbeing of societies and the environment. The IWA Board of Directors confirmed seven new IWA Distinguished Fellows and fifteen new IWA Fellows.

The aim of the IWA fellowship programme is not only to recognise the impact of particular individuals on the water profession and for the sector. It is also to foster the transdisciplinary community and to propel its empowerment to combine leading-edge scientific breakthroughs, technological developments and creative mindsets from the laboratory with the best water management practices in the field. The 2022 IWA Fellows and Distinguished Fellows were honoured at an official ceremony during the IWA World Water Congress & Exhibition, in Copenhagen.

2022 IWA Distinguished Fellows

The IWA Distinguished Fellows are outstanding water professionals, recognised for their unique contributions to advancing water science and management and to supporting the IWA’s mission and objectives.

Professor Min Yang serves as the director of the National Engineering Laboratory for High-Concentration Refractory Organic Wastewater Treatment Technology and of the Center for Excellence in Water and Environment of the Chinese Academy of Sciences-Academy of Sciences for Developing Countries. He is also the chairman of the National Village and Township Sewage Treatment Expert Committee of the Ministry of Housing and Urban-Rural Development. His research interests include identification, transformation mechanism and control technology of harmful pollutants in water, and he has achieved a series of research results in industrial wastewater treatment, environmental transmission of antibiotics and drug-resistant genes, risk assessment and control of drinking water quality, etc. He has a total of 350 published research papers and more than 200 SCI articles, applied for more than 100 invention patents. Within IWA, Prof. Yang has organized many IWA activities. He is, without doubt, one of the key leading water professionals who have helped IWA in achieving great success in China and throughout Asia.

Juan Lema is Professor of Chemical Engineering at the University of Santiago de Compostela (Spain). He has supervised 51 PhD Thesis, authored more than 350 papers and book chapters and 11 patents (3 European). Juan’s current research interests include removal of micropollutants from wastewater; Anaerobic co-digestion; Development of innovative wastewater treatment plants; Biorefinery. He is a member of several Specialist Groups and his long-term involvement with IWA and IWAP has been outstanding, especially to the water world of Spanish speaking countries.

Professor Rao Surampalli has had a highly distinguished career for more than 40 years; and is currently President and Chief Executive Officer of the Global Institute for Energy, Environment and Sustainability. He was with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for 29 years and retired as an Engineer Director. He has conducted research on over fifty (50) environmental engineering topics from site and groundwater remediation to water and wastewater treatment and published over 370 refereed journal articles. In addition, he is an Adjunct Professor in seven universities and Distinguished/Honorary Visiting Professor in five universities. Within IWA and globally, he is recognized as a leader in the development of Innovative/Sustainable Environmental Technologies and in humanitarian technology transfer efforts (to over 25 countries) for social good and global sustainability. A Distinguished Alumnus and Hall of Fame inductee of both the Oklahoma State and Iowa State Universities, he has received over 30 national awards/honours: including election as an IWA and WEF Fellow, Member of the European Academy of Sciences and Arts (EASA), Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), Member of the U.S. National Academy of Construction (NAC), and recognized as a Distinguished Member of the American Society of Civil Engineers – the highest honor of ASCE.

Maria Helena Alegre has wide national and international R&D experience on urban water systems, particularly in the fields of performance assessment and strategic asset management; she led the team who developed the IWA PI system, as well as the team who developed the Portuguese national regulatory system for the quality of services assessment. Currently, she is the Head of the Hydraulics and Environment Department at LNEC, the National Civil Engineering Laboratory of Portugal. Within IWA, Dr. Maria Helena Alegre needs no introduction. Former IWA Senior Vice-President, she has made great contribution to IWA as member of the IWA Strategic Council, chair of the IWA Strategic Asset Management Specialist Group and Management Committee Member of the Benchmarking and Performance Assessment Specialist Group; she is also series co-editor of the Manuals of Best Practice of IWA Publishing and member of the editorial Board of the Journal of Water Supply: Research and Technology—AQUA.

Being recognised nationally, regionally and globally, Jaime Baptista is an experienced researcher and an expert in water regulation.  Jamie is the author and co-author of more than 500 scientific and technical publications, and I have organised a large number of national and international technical and scientific events. His field of expertise includes public policy, regulation, rehabilitation, modelling, and performance assessment of water services, and he has developed about twenty large research projects for the water industry. Within IWA, he has been a member of the IWA board of directors between 2012 and 2016 and, in 2012, was honoured with the IWA Award for Outstanding Contribution to Water Management and Science. Since 2016, he is the coordinator of the Lisbon International Centre for Water (LIS-Water), with support from European Commission.

Professor Aijie Wang is a renowned water leader in China and globally. A recipient of National Outstanding Youth Science Fund Award, she was awarded as Distinguished Professor of Yangtze River Scholar (by Ministry of Education of China) in 2011. Professor Aijie Wang has published more than 170 papers in world reputed journals, authorized more than 20 patents and written 4 scientific books. Within IWA, she is involved in the IWA Resource Recovery Cluster, the IWA Anaerobic Digestion Specialist Group and the IWA Anaerobic Digestion China Chapter.

Eveline Volcke is a full professor in the Department of Green Chemistry and Technology of the University of Ghent where she founded and is leading the Ghent University ‘Biosystems Control (BioCo)’ research group. The group focuses on efficient and sustainable process design and control with specific expertise in biological wastewater treatment, considering innovative techniques and sustainability aspects such as greenhouse gas emissions. With an outstanding academic background and having led IWA Specialist Group and the programme committee of the 2022 Word Water Congress, Eveline perfectly qualifies to take up this important function as an IWA ambassador, keeping the content and values of the association high.

2022 IWA Fellows

The IWA Fellows are recognised professionals who have made outstanding contributions to the national and regional water sector, as well as to IWA. In alphabetical order:

With these new appointments in 2022, IWA continues its mission to strive to address the urgent water and environmental challenges our world is facing. Please follow the IWA Fellows and IWA Distinguished Fellows on IWA-Connect, the global platform of water professionals!

The IWA would like to congratulate the incoming Fellows and Distinguished Fellows!

About the IWA Fellowships

The IWA Fellows appointment recognises sustained outstanding contribution of an experienced water professional to the national and regional water sector, as well as to IWA. Their nomination is initially for a period of 5 years and their role is to support IWA’s mission and leadership in the implementation of the organisation’s Strategic Plan, promoting IWA, supporting the network’s growth, and increasing the engagement of its members.

The Distinguished Fellows designation is an honorific recognition limited in number, and is for IWA Fellows (and a restricted number of other professionals) who have been recognized for their long-term (at least 10 year) extraordinary contributions to the global water sector and leadership role performed in supporting IWA’s mission and objectives. Distinguished Fellows are appointed for life and their role is to support IWA’s mission and leadership in the implementation of the organization’s Strategic Plan of IWA at international level to advance the aims and reputation.