The “Water Nobel” to Professor Andrea Rinaldo of the University of Padua

On Tuesday, 21 March, Andrea Rinaldo, Professor of Hydraulic Constructions at the University of Padua, was awarded the Stockholm Water Prize.

The Prize, also known as the “Nobel Prize for Water”, is awarded by the Stockholm International Water Institute (SIWI) to individuals and organisations that record particularly outstanding water-related achievements. It is organised in partnership with the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences.

Professor Rinaldo’s research has shown that the dominant ecological processes in the river landscape are strongly constrained by both hydrology and the matrix for interactions of living communities, making them de facto quantifiable. His contribution is crucial for the emergence and establishment of ecohydrology as an autonomous science in its own right, absolutely topical and key to understanding and solving multiple problems controlled by the waters of the hydrological cycle.

“Sustainable management of an essential asset, such as water, a precious resource to be safeguarded because it is finite, is an essential challenge for our society,” says Daniela Mapelli, Rector of the University of Padua. The University of Padua is, therefore, proud of the prestigious award given to Professor Andrea Rinaldo, whom I would like to congratulate. The award seals not only his extraordinary academic competence, but also the strong civic passion that has always underpinned his commitment to the fair distribution of water, a fundamental objective for pursuing the reduction of economic and social inequalities in the world”.

The Award Ceremony will be held in the Golden Hall of Stockholm City Hall, in the presence of King Charles XVI on 23 August 2023.