Worldwatch Fellow Sandra Postel Named One of Scientific American 50

  Postel was honored for promoting "sweeping changes aimed at preserving the world's dwindling supplies of freshwater." A prolific writer and experienced water analyst, Postel is author of the Worldwatch Institute's publication, Pillar of Sand: Can the Irrigation Miracle Last? (W.W. Norton. 1999), which spotlights the unsustainability of current global irrigation practices and calls for fundamental reforms in agricultural water use.

  Editor-in-Chief of Scientific American John Rennie said that the magazine's Board of Editors "wanted to recognize some of the most outstanding visionaries who are advancing technology and guaranteeing a brighter future for all of us."

  Says Postel: "Few challenges loom as large as meeting the food and water needs of the world's growing population while at the same time protecting the freshwater ecosystems that sustain life itself. I am honored to be recognized by Scientific American, with its unique stature in the field. I share the honor with my colleagues at Worldwatch and others with whom I have collaborated over the years."

  The magazine's 50 awards cover categories ranging from agriculture, medical diagnostics, defense, environment, and communications. The complete list of winners will appear in the December 2002 issue of Scientific American, as well as on the magazine's web site (www.sciam.com).

  Postel is currently working on a book on river conservation, due out in summer 2003.