Tailored Professional Tribute

David Jenkins

Distinguished Departed Pioneer

Professional background

David Jenkins (1935-2021) was Professor of Civil and Environmental Engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. He received his PhD in Public Health Engineering from King’s College, University of Durham, England in 1960. Throughout his career, David was fondly known as “FlocDoc” for his advancement of the activated sludge process. In his academic career spanning over 6 decades, David left a rich legacy of ideas, practical solutions, and contributed to numerous industry leading publications and references in the wastewater field.  His legacy is also assured in the numerous students and practitioners who have been trained by David and continue to make significant advances in the industry using the “David Jenkins way”.  Accordingly, David was elected to   the US National Academy of Engineering in 2001. 

Major Contributions to IWA

David Jenkins held various leadership and scientific roles in IWA. He was Chair of the USA National Committee of IWA and a member of the IWA Governing Board from 1990-92. He was a member of the IWA Program Committee and Chair of the Specialist Group on Nutrient Removal. Among his many scholarly contributions to IWA, David along with Jiri Wanner (Prague) compiled the book “Activated Sludge – 100 Years and Counting”, based on the invited papers of the conference in Essen, Germany in 2014. The scale of his contributions can be evidenced from the list of IWA honours he received. For his outstanding service to IWA, David was recognized with Samuel H. Jenkins Medal in 1992, a prestigious award named after his father, a legendary IWA pioneer.  He received the Arden-Lockett Award (2001), IWA Global Award (2010), and Distinguished Fellow (2014), which symbolize the significance his contributions to IWA. 

Authors: Krishna Pagilla and Paul Pitt, USA