IN FOCUS: GRSS Awards Celebrate Excellence, 2026 Nominations Open

By Joanne Van Voorhis

Each year, the IEEE Geoscience and Remote Sensing Society (GRSS) honors individuals and teams whose work has significantly advanced the field of geoscience and remote sensing. Through a comprehensive and carefully managed awards process, GRSS recognizes impactful and long-standing contributions to research, professional activities, and community service. The GRSS Awards Program exists not only to honor past achievements but to inspire future contributions across academic, governmental, and industrial sectors, and honors individuals at all career stages. These awards help highlight the importance of remote sensing in addressing global challenges and promote continued technical progress across diverse disciplines.

Awards Categories and Areas of Focus

GRSS Awards fall into four different categories, Major Awards, Special Awards, Publication Awards, and Symposium Awards. Major Awards recognize significant, career-long achievements and foundational contributions. Examples include the Fawwaz Ulaby Distinguished Achievement Award for technical and scientific contributions, the Outstanding Service Award for exceptional service to the society, the Education Award for impactful educational contributions, the Industry Leader Award for contributions in industrial remote sensing, and the Golden Florin Award for microwave remote sensing contributions.

Special Awards are given in recognition of unique contributions to the remote sensing community and serve to honor singular efforts, historical achievements, or collaborative accomplishments. They include the Early Career Award for young scientists under 35, the David Landgrebe Award for contributions to remote sensing image analysis, the Regional Leader Award for growing GRSS in a specific region, and the Chapter Excellence Award and Student Branch Chapter Excellence Award for outstanding local chapters.

Publications Awards acknowledge outstanding contributions to the society’s journals and conferences, celebrating excellence in scientific writing, innovation, and technical merit. Symposium Awards are given for exceptional work presented at GRSS-sponsored conferences, such as the International Geoscience and Remote Sensing Symposium (IGARSS). Publication and Symposium Awards have unique procedures and timelines throughout the year, while the Major and Special Awards have similar nomination processes.

The Nomination Process for Major and Special Awards

With a wide range of awards, the process of encouraging and reviewing nominations represents a great deal of work, and highlights the dedication of volunteers throughout the nomination, review, selection, and presentation stages. “We have an extensive review process, managed by many volunteers who dedicate their time to nominating and identifying those who most deserve recognition,” explains IEEE GRSS Past President Alberto Moreira, who has chaired the IEEE GRSS Major Awards Committee since 2017. “I cannot fully express our gratitude to the people who work tirelessly to make the GRSS Awards possible,” he adds.

Nominations for GRSS awards are open to the global community. While some awards may require IEEE or GRSS membership, or restrict eligibility by career stage, most are open to anyone whose work aligns with the award criteria. This inclusive approach ensures that contributors from all backgrounds and geographic regions have the opportunity to be recognized. Most Major and Special Awards require initial nomination by an IEEE GRSS member through the Awards Nomination Tool on the GRSS website. The nominator typically needs to submit a package including a nomination letter, the candidate’s curriculum vitae (CV), and recommendation letters. All Major and Special awards, except Chapter Awards, have annual nomination deadlines of December 15. The Chapter Excellence Award and Student Branch Chapter Excellence Award are decided based on Chapter activities throughout the year, and are not nomination-based, unlike the other Special Awards.

Global Perspective and Encouragement

“Our goal is to encourage a good number of high-quality nominations from around the world, as we don’t want to miss out on recognizing well-deserved contributions,” explains Jaya Sreevalsan Nair (International Institute of Information Technology, Bangalore) and Chair of the IEEE GRSS Special Awards Committee. “Each year, we are privileged to review the accomplishments of many dedicated individuals and groups – it’s quite inspiring to acknowledge the achievements of all the nominees,” she adds.

Encouraging applications is a year-round effort at GRSS. Once the current year awards have been presented, typically at IGARSS, the cycle for new nominations begins again. To broaden participation, GRSS promotes the call for nominations through regional chapters, technical committees, newsletters, and social media platforms. “As you can imagine, the review process is extensive and time consuming,” Jaya adds. “We have volunteers across all time zones working collaboratively to identify next year’s honorees….it’s such an important aspect of the work of GRSS, and it really matters to each of us,” she says.

Award Evaluation, Recognition and Visibility

IEEE GRSS abides by specific guidelines for each award, and depending upon the specific award are guided by technical merit and innovation, impact on the field and community, service and leadership within GRSS or related professional societies, and educational contributions and mentorship. “We have strict criteria that help guide us in our selection of award winners,” Alberto explains. “We take the award review and evaluation process very seriously and the selection committees frequently undertake multiple rounds of review and discussion before arriving at the award winners,” he adds.

Award recipients are formally honored during the IGARSS Awards Ceremony, which draws researchers, engineers, educators, and industry representatives from around the world. Each recipient is introduced with a citation describing their achievements and receives a commemorative plaque or certificate. Beyond the ceremony, winners are frequently spotlighted across GRSS communications channels, including the IEEE GRSS Magazine, newsletters, and social media platforms. Many recipients are also invited to present lectures, lead panels, or mentor students at future GRSS-sponsored events, expanding the reach and impact of their recognition.

How to Support GRSS Awards

The awards process is strengthened when more members of the GRSS community actively participate. Whether you’re nominating a colleague or providing a letter of support, your engagement helps ensure that deserving individuals receive recognition for their work. If you know someone who has made a significant impact in the field of geoscience and remote sensing, please consider preparing a nomination. All nominations are submitted via the Award Nomination Tool after logging in as an IEEE member and the deadline is every December 15. To find out more about nomination guidelines, review past recipients, and learn about current awardees, please visit the GRSS Awards website. We look forward to your recommendations and support.