Jeanie Borlaug Laube Women in Triticum (WIT) Mentor Award

WIT Mentor Award

Award Summary

This award, established in 2010 and first awarded in 2011, recognizes mentors who have proven to be excellent mentors of women working in Triticum and its nearest relatives.​ The award is named after Jeanie Borlaug Laube, mentor to many, and daughter of Nobel Laureate Dr.​ Norman E.​ Borlaug.​ Jeanie Borlaug Laube has served as Chair of the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative since October 2009.​

Ron Depauw and a student
Mike and Jemanesh
Silvia German
Commitment to increasing gender parity in agriculture as reflected in the nomination letter
Excellence in mentoring of women working in triticum
Commitment to scientific outputs that contribute to healthy families around the world as reflected in the nomination letter.

Application Process

You will need to submit two supporting letters that, in 500 words or less, illustrate why your nominee meets the stated selection criteria and is a compelling recipient of the award.​ Also, please include a brief two-page CV of the nominee.

Deadline: January 31, 2023

The 2023 nomination period is now closed. Please check back for updates on when the next nomination period opens.

WIT Mentor Winners

2023

Amor Yahyaoui

Tunisia and the United States

The 2023 WIT Mentor awardee is Amor Yahyaoui, Vice President of the Borlaug Training Foundation.

2022

Parveen Chhuneja

Parveen Chhuneja

India

The 2022 WIT Mentor awardee is Parveen Chuneja, Director and Principal molecular geneticist at the School of Agricultural Biotechnology at Punjab Agricultural University.

2021

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Cristóbal Uauy

United Kingdom

The 2021 WIT Mentor awardee is Cristóbal Uauy, a group leader in wheat genetics and genomics at the John Innes Centre where his program focuses improving both yield and quality components in wheat.

2020

Evans lagudah

Evans Lagudah

Australia

The 2020 WIT Mentor awardee is Evans Lagudah, a Chief Research Scientist at CSIRO, Australia, a Fellow of the Australian Academy of Science and an adjunct professor at the University of Sydney.

2019

Dill Macky

Ruth Dill-Macky

United States

The 2019 WIT Mentor awardee is Ruth Dill-Macky, who has served on the faculty of the Department of Plant Pathology at the University of Minnesota for over 26 years.

2018

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Urmil Bansal

India

The 2018 WIT Mentor awardee is Urmil Bansal, who leads the development and validation of molecular markers linked with rust resistance genes in wheat as Molecular Geneticist at the University of Sydney Plant Breeding Institute (PBI), Cobbitty.

2017

Silvia German

Silvia Germán

Uruguay

The 2017 WIT Mentor awardee is Silvia Germán, principal researcher at the National Agricultural Research Institute (INIA) of Uruguay when she retired in 2017.

2016

depauw

Ronald M. DePauw

Canada

The 2016 WIT Mentor awardee is Ronald M. DePauw retired wheat breeder from Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada.

2015

mike pumphrey

Mike Pumphrey

United States

The 2015 WIT Mentor awardee is Mike Pumphrey, the O.A. Vogel Endowed Chair of Spring Wheat Breeding and Genetics at Washington State University (WSU).

2014

Arun joshi

Arun Joshi

Nepal

The 2014 WIT Mentor awardee is Arun Josh, regional director of CIMMYT based in India.

2013

yue jin

Yue Jin

United States

The 2013 WIT Mentor awardee is Yue Jin, an expert in biology and population genetics of cereal rust fungi who has worked extensively to promote gender parity in agriculture.

2012

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Francis Ogbonnaya

Nigeria

The 2012 WIT Mentor awardee is Francis Ogbonnaya is manager of oilseeds and pulses at the Grain Research and Development Corporation.

2011

Lesley Boyd

Lesley Boyd

UK

The 2011 WIT Mentor awardee is Lesley Boyd, a research group leader at National Institute of Agricultural Botany, in Cambridge, UK.

Learn more about opportunities for the cereal rust community

Join the Borlaug Global Rust Initiative LinkedIn Group