International Prize for Outstanding Contributions to Water Management

The Third World Centre for Water Management has awarded its International Prize for Outstanding Contributions to Water Management for 2011 to Prof. Jun Xia, Director, Key Laboratory of Water Cycle and Related Land Surface Process, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Prof. Xia was recognized for his "outstanding and lifelong achievements and contributions to improve water management in the world in general, and in China in particular". One of the important contributions of Prof. Xia has been to develop a non-linear time-variant model which was tested and verified in over 60 basins in different climatic regions of the world. The work carried out by Prof. Xia has significantly improved our understanding of water-land-environment-human-ecosystems interactions, potential impacts of climate change on water planning and management processes, and scientific management of river basins. Through his role as a teacher, he has educated and influenced a new generation of water professionals who would undoubtedly contribute significantly to efficient and equitable management of water in China, both in terms of quantity and quality”. The Award also commended Prof. Xia for his "contributions in improving cooperation and collaboration between water professionals from China and the rest of the world. In his roles as President of the International Water Resources Association, Vice President of the International Association of Hydrological Sciences and a member of the Board of Governors of the World Water Council, his contributions to North-South and South-South knowledge and experience transfer have been very significant".

Prof. Xia is the first winner of this Prize.

In a colourful ceremony in Xi'an, Prof. Xia received this prestigious Award from Prof. Asit K. Biswas, President of the Third World Centre for Water Management, on 21st October 2011.