Panicker Receives 2023 Conservation Research Award

Dr. Girish Kumar Panicker, an ASA member for 39 years, has received the 2023 Conservation Research Award from the Soil and Water Conservation Society (SWCS). Panicker is the director of the USDA Conservation Research Program and a tenured professor at Alcorn State University. The SWCS is a nonprofit, scientific, and educational organization advocating for conservation professionals and science‐based practices, programs, and policies.

“This is a great recognition for my contributions in the field of soil and water conservation in Asia, Africa, and North America,” says Panicker, who has been certified as a CPAg and CCA for several years. As the director of the Conservation Research Center at Alcorn, established by the USDA‐NRCS and USDA‐ARS in 1988, Panicker has curated the largest global C‐factor (Cover and Management) databank on horticultural crops. With more than 140,000 readings on 45 crops and an investment of more than $6.5 million, this information is utilized worldwide for erosion prediction, nutrient management, conservation planning, and combating soil erosion and climate change.

Panicker has received numerous accolades throughout his career, including the Pride of India Award and the Organic Achievement Award from ASA's Organic Management Systems Community, among others.