LEE KUAN YEW WATER PRIZE 2016 OPENS FOR NOMINATIONS

This is the first in a series of events in the lead up to SIWW 2016. Other key activities coming up include the Water Convention 2016 Call for Papers, and the inaugural SIWW Technology and Innovation Summit (STIS), to be held on 16 to 17 June 2015.

2 Mar 2015, SINGAPORE –Singapore International Water Week (SIWW), the global platform to share and co-create innovative water solutions, officially opened its call for nominations for the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2016 today.

One of the key highlights of SIWW, the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize honours outstanding contributions by individuals or organisations towards solving the world's water challenges by applying innovative technologies, policies or programmes which benefit humanity. This prestigious international award is named after Singapore's first Prime Minister Lee Kuan Yew, whose foresight and leadership has enabled Singapore to attain a sustainable water supply.

Since its inception in 2008, the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize has gained a standing in the global water arena as the premier Water Prize amongst its peers, by focusing on innovative water technologies, policies or programmes that have been game-changers in their real-world application. The honour roll for the Water Prize includes laureates with ground-breaking solutions in membrane technology, used water treatment, as well as holistic water policies and management that have benefitted the lives of millions. Their achievements represent the pinnacle in sustainable water solutions that have made a difference to cities and people around the world.

The Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2016 laureate will receive S$300,000, a certificate, and a gold medallion at the award ceremony to be held during SIWW 2016.

Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2014 laureate

The Orange County Water District (OCWD) was awarded the Water Prize in 2014 for its pioneering work in groundwater management and water reclamation using advanced water reuse technologies, and achievements in public policy and community outreach that have advanced public acceptance on water reuse.

OCWD was formed in 1933 as a California Special District to manage the large groundwater basin that underlies both north and central Orange County. The groundwater basin provides approximately 70 percent of the water for 2.4 million people in 19 municipal water agencies and special districts.

Other past laureates include Dr. Andrew Benedek, Prof. Gatze Lettinga, the Yellow River Conservancy Commission, Dr. James Barnard, and Prof. Mark van Loosdrecht.

Please refer to Annex A for information on the past laureates.

Call for Nominations
Qualified parties, such as leaders of international water companies and water utilities, top academics in water research, policy and management, heads of international organisations, members of government, or distinguished individuals in the field of water are welcome to submit nominations for the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2016. This can be done online by uploading a citation of the nominee's achievements. Shortlisted nominees will be notified to submit supporting documents for more detailed evaluations by the Nominating Committee (NC).

All shortlisted nominations will undergo two rounds of rigorous selection. The Nominating Committee will thoroughly evaluate all shortlisted nominations and make their recommendations to the Water Prize Council, which will then decide on the prize winner.

Nominations close on 1 Jun 2015. Please refer to Annex B for details on the nomination guidelines and evaluation process.

The Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2016 Call for Nominations is the first in a series of events that will be held in 2015, in the lead up to SIWW 2016. Other key activities coming up include the Water Convention 2016 Call for Papers and the inaugural SIWW Technology and Innovation Summit (STIS), which will be held on 16 to 17 June 2015. The Summit is an exclusive by-invitation event that will bring together global thought leaders and key influencers, to develop a blueprint for municipal and industrial water solutions. The discussion outcomes from STIS will be showcased at SIWW 2016.

For more information, please visit www.siww.com.sg or emailleekuanyewwaterprize@siww.com.sg

About The Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize Sponsor – Singapore Millennium Foundation

The Singapore Millennium Foundation (SMF), a philanthropic body supported by Temasek Holdings, is the sponsor of the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize. With a primary aim to promote research and development of human capital, and enhance Singapore as a centre for research, the SMF partners universities in Singapore as well as research institutes such as Temasek Life Sciences Laboratory, National Cancer Centre Singapore, National Neuroscience Institute, Institute of Mental Health, and Singapore General Hospital. It has supported research into liver cancer, Parkinson's disease, neuromuscular disease, mental health, and biofuel. SMF has future plans to expand into research areas including pedagogy and learning, special needs education, ageing and palliative care, and non-medical bioscience.

About Singapore International Water Week

The Singapore International Water Week (SIWW) is the global platform for the sharing and cocreation of innovative water solutions. Comprising the Water Leaders Summit, Water Convention, Water Expo and Business Forums, it culminates in the presentation of the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, a prestigious international water award to recognize outstanding contributions towards solving global water problems.

The 7th Singapore International Water Week will be held in conjunction with the 5th World Cities Summit and the 3rd CleanEnviro Summit Singapore, from 10 to 14 July 2016 at the Sands Expo & Convention Center, Marina Bay Sands, in Singapore.

For more information, visit www.siww.com.sg

Annex A – Factsheet of Past Laureates (2008-2014)

Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2014 Laureate – Orange County Water District
Orange County Water District (OCWD) was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2014. The impact of their successful water reuse programme extends far beyond the county to the states of Texas and Colorado in the United States, and has also been replicated in countries such as Australia, Singapore to achieve water sustainability through water reuse, benefitting millions in the process.

Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2012 Laureate – Prof Mark van Loosdrecht
Prof. Mark Van Loosdrecht was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2012 for his breakthrough contributions in used water treatment, with his completely autotrophic nitrogen removal process – Anammox. Prof. van Loosdrecht has introduced a paradigm shift in the understanding of the used water treatment process. His ground breaking work in marrying nature and engineering has formed the basis for many variants in use today.

Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2011 Laureate – Dr James Barnard
Dr James Barnard was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2011 for inventing a biological method to treat used water so that it can be returned safely to lakes and rivers. His technology, Biological Nutrient Removal (BNR), uses naturally-occurring micro-organisms instead of conventional chemicals to remove nitrogen and phosphorous from used water.

Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2010 – Yellow River Conservancy Commission
Yellow River Conservancy Commission (YRCC) was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2010 for its outstanding accomplishments in integrated basin management that is unrivalled in scale. YRCC has secured water supply for over one hundred million people, restored extensive areas of wetlands and biodiversity, and protected some 90 million people living in the flood-prone areas.

Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2009 – Professor Gatze Lettinga
Professor Gatze Lettinga was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2009 for this breakthrough, environmentally sustainable solution for the treatment of used water using anaerobic technology His revolutionary treatment concept enables industrial used water to be purified cost-effectively, and produces renewable energy, fertilisers and soil conditioners.

Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2008 – Dr Andrew Benedek
Dr Andrew Benedek was awarded the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2008 for his outstanding work in pioneering the development of low-pressure membranes in water treatment. He has shown how drinking water can be produced from different water sources, even those that are highly polluted.

Annex B – Nomination Guidelines and Evaluation Process

(a) Nomination Guidelines

1. The Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize honours outstanding contributions by individuals or organisations towards solving the world's water problems by applying innovative technologies, policies or programmes which benefit humanity.

Nomination Process

2. A valid nominee for the LKYWP should have made outstanding achievements in any water-related field. The work should have demonstrated the innovativeness of technologies, policies or programmes. The work should have proven impact or demonstrated great potential to be a game-changer in the future.

3. The submission of nominations for Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize 2016 follows a rigorous two-stage process. The first stage is for the nominator to submit a citation of the nominee. Self-nominations and nominations by family members of nominees will not be accepted. Self-nomination includes nomination made by an individual from the same organisation as the nominee. In the second stage, shortlisted nominees and their nominators will be informed to submit a full nomination, including a detailed write-up of the cited technological innovation and/or the implemented water policy and programme, recommendation letters and additional supporting documents.

(b) Selection Process

4. All nominations will be examined by the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize Nominating Committee. The Committee will make its recommendation to the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize Council, which will make the final selection of the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize Laureate. Both panels consist of prominent thought leaders, distinguished academics and water experts from the public and private sectors. All received nominations will be evaluated on the following criteria:

a. Role of nominee
The nominator should describe the role of the nominee in the development and implementation of the specific technologies, policies or programmes that underpin the nomination. In particular, the leadership of the nominee as well as the nominee's instrumental contributions should be highlighted.

b. Innovativeness and merits of the technologies, policies or programmes
The innovativeness and benefits of the referenced technologies, policies and programmes should be described in detail. Nominators are encouraged to include comparisons with the state-of-the-art technologies or existing policies and programmes, and depict how the nominee's work has been proven to be a game changer or show great potential to do so.

c. Impacts on humanity
The current level of readiness and scale of implementation of the referenced technologies, policies and programmes should be described. Nominators should quantify the impact of nominee's work in benefitting humanity, or project any long-term benefits in cases where the level of readiness and scale of the implementation is currently low.

(c) Call for Nominations

5. The first stage of nomination is open. Submission should be completed by 1 June, Monday, 6pm (+8 GMT) through the online portal: https://www.gevme.com/lee-kuan-yew-water-prize-2016.

6. For additional information on the Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize, please contact:

leekuanyewwaterprize@siww.com.sg
Singapore International Water Week
Lee Kuan Yew Water Prize Secretariat
40 Scotts Road, #22-01, Environment Building
Singapore 228231