One of the IGS’s most prestigious lecture opportunities for talented individuals in the geosynthetics industry is now open for nominations.
Nominations are being invited for consideration to deliver the flagship IGS Giroud Lecture at the forthcoming 13th International Conference on Geosynthetics (ICG) in Montreal in September 2026. Nominations from a diverse range of individuals are encouraged, and nominees do not have to be IGS members.
Established in 1994 and first awarded in 1998, the Giroud Lecture on Geosynthetics is one of the IGS’s highest distinctions. Named after J.P. Giroud, a geosynthetics pioneer who coined the terms ‘geotextile’ and ‘geomembrane’ in 1977, it recognizes exceptional achievement and influence in the field of geosynthetics. It is delivered every four years during the opening of the ICG.
The successful candidate would follow in the footsteps of Ennio Marques Palmeira, Professor of Civil Engineering at the University of Brasília, Brazil, the most recent presenter who debuted his Giroud Lecture at the 12th ICG in Rome, Italy, in 2023. In his talk, titled “Geotextile Filters: From Idealization to Real Behavior,” he discussed the behavior of geosynthetic materials and identified factors influencing filter performance. He also shared methodologies for predicting geotextile filter performance under critical conditions, such as unstable soils and clogging incidents.
Previous lectures have been given by Dr. Natalie Touze (2018), Dr Richard Bathurst (2014), Prof. Heinz Brandl (2010), Chris Lawson (2006), Dr R Kerry Rowe (2002), and Dr Robert Koerner (1998).
A list of nominees will be compiled by the IGS Officers before names are forwarded to the IGS Council for selection. If the chosen lecturer accepts, they must submit the title of their talk to the IGS Secretary and ICG organizing committee before March 2025. Lectures should be planned to last about an hour. An accompanying paper will be published, and a plaque presented to the speaker in recognition of this distinguished achievement.
If you know an exceptional individual who deserves to be nominated for this exclusive opportunity, send details by 30 September 2024 to the IGS Secretariat Manager Elise Oatman at igssec@geosyntheticssociety.org.
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Watch the Giroud Lecture given by Nathalie Touze here.
For more about the 13th ICG, visit www.13icg-montreal.org.
For the full Giroud Lecture nomination and submission rules, click here.
