Awards

The biennial Rien van Genuchten award is issued for outstanding contributions to the understanding of flow and transport processes in soils. It is dedicated to recognizing outstanding scientific achievements made by well-established researchers in the field of soil and vadose zone sciences. Granting merit to the scientific findings and breakthroughs in the soil and hydrological sciences by Rien van Genuchten, the award honors a senior/mid-career scientist with a certificate and a cash award of $2,000. Along with the RvG Award, an Early Ccareer Scientist ISMC Award and the Harry Vereecken Lectureship Award is issued. The Early Career Award is dedicated to recognizing outstanding scientific achievements made by early career researchers in the field of soil and vadose zone sciences, and honors an early career scientist with a certificate.

Nominators: ISMC members, self-nominations

Nominee: Open to the public; Availability for the ISMC Conference
Early career scientist: Less than 7 years from PhD
Senior/mid-career scientist: More than 10 years from PhD

Arbitration: The Award Review Panel firstly consists of selected members of the ISMC Executive Board and Advisory Board, who are later replaced by former awardees similar to the principle used at EGU. Members of ISMC Executive and Advisory Board cannot be nominated.

Nominations are possible via the ISMC coordination office (ismc.coord@gmail.com) until 1^_st May 2026. A decision is made by the Award Review Panel, and shall be communicated to the recipients until 01^st August 2026 and made public during the International Soil Modelling Conference 2026 at Rio, Brazil. Nominations should include the following:

• Nomination letter (one page). This must clearly detail why the candidate deserves this recognition, in particular focus on the candidate's scientific contributions to the field, their impact on the discipline and their implications for the future. The new views and insights that have been stimulated by the candidate's work are particularly relevant.
• Curriculum Vitae (two pages max). A summary of the candidate's CV, including the candidate’s name, address, history of employment, degrees, research experience, honors, and service to the community.
• Selected bibliography (two pages max). A list of selected publications by the candidate that best support the nomination. It should also state briefly the candidate’s total number and types of publications and citations.
• Supporting letters. Three letters of support (maximum one page each) should be submitted. These letters should clearly establish the nominee's recognized contribution to the field.

Harry Vereecken Lectureship Award

The Harry Vereecken Lectureship award honours a scientist who advances the representation of soil processes in Earth system science, strengthens multidisciplinary applications, and fosters an inclusive, collaborative ISMC community. The awardee delivers the Harry Vereecken Lecture as an ISMC Conference keynote and engages early-career researchers through a mentoring or tutorial event, with materials shared openly via ISMC channels.

What is the awardee expected to do?

Keynote: Deliver the Harry Vereecken Lecture at the ISMC Conference.
Community engagement: Host one interactive ECR session (e.g., clinic, roundtable, or tutorial) within 12 months.
Knowledge sharing: Provide slides/materials for open access via ISMC channels.

Selection emphasis?

Scientific impact: Clear advances in representing soil processes (theory, data, or modelling) with demonstrated uptake beyond soil science.
Community service: Meaningful contributions to ISMC activities and international collaboration.
Mentorship & inclusion: Evident support and inclusive practices for early-career researchers.
Open science: Reproducible code, data, or training materials where feasible.

Nominations are possible via the ISMC coordination office (ismc.coord@gmail.com). A decision is made by the Award Review Panel. Nominations should include the following:

Nomination letter (one pages). This must clearly detail why the candidate deserves this recognition, in particular focus on the candidate's contribution in advancing soil processes how the canditate contributed to ISMC activities and metorship & inclusion. An outline of planned activities (lectures, round tables, or tutorials).

Curriculum Vitae (two pages max). A summary of the candidate's CV, including the candidate’s name, address, history of employment, degrees, research experience, honors, and service to the community.

ISMC Publication Award 2026

Nominate a paper published in 2024 to 2026 that will likely make a significant impact in modeling soil processes, consistent with the mission of ISMC (https://soil-modeling.org/about/mission). The ISMC Publication Award 2026 will be awarded to honour outstanding peer-reviewed publication of the Year 2024 to 2026.

Nominators: ISMC members. ISMC Executive Board members cannot be first authors of nominated papers. Justification for Nomination and DOI (with title and abstract) need to be included. Deadline 1^st May 2026. Submission here:

Early Career ISMC Presentation Awards 2026

Early Career ISMC Presentation Awards 2026 will be awarded to honour outstanding presentations at the ISMC Conference 2026.