The Grove Karl Gilbert Award for Excellence in Geomorphological Research

The GSG Awards Committee invites nominations for the GSG’s the Grove Karl Gilbert Award for Excellence in Geomorphological Research. The award is presented to the author(s) of a single significant contribution to the published research literature in geomorphology during the past three years. Only a book, refereed journal article, or monograph will be considered with an emphasis on refereed research articles. Nominations for the Grove Karl Gilbert Award remain active for two years. The award will be announced during the GSG Business Meeting at the 2024 AAG Annual Meeting.

• The nomination package should include in a single PDF file with nominee’s name included in the file name (ex., “JDoe_GilbertAward”):

1. A copy of the relevant publication.
2. A statement as to why the publication deserves the award.
3. (Optional) supporting letters from colleagues.

To be considered for the 2024 award, the Awards Committee must receive the nomination package and any supporting documentation by  February 1st, 2024.

Please submit materials electronically to the Awards Committee Chair

Past Recipients

2025:

• Davis, M.L., Lombardi, R., Yaw, M., Jawdy, C., and GAge, M.D.,  for “Holocene Thermal Maximum paleofloods improve flood frequency analyses in the lower Tennessee River Basin (USA)”, 2024, Global and Planetary Change, 236 , 104412, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloplacha.2024.104412  Citation read by Joann Mossa.

2024:

• Emily Fairfax and Andrew Whittle,  for “Smokey the Beaver: beaver-dammed riparian corridors stay green during wildfire throughout the western United States”, 2020, Ecological Applications, 30(8), e02225, https://doi.org/10.1002/eap.2225  Citation read by Ranbir Kang.

2023:

• Dongfeng Li, et al.,  for “Exceptional increases in fluvial sediment fluxes in a warmer and wetter High Mountain Asia”, 2021, Science, 374, 599-603, https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abh4455 Citation read by Katherine Lininger.

2022:

• Daniel Shugar et al.,  for “A massive rock and ice avalanche caused the 2021 disaster at Chamoli, Indian Himalaya”, 2021, Science, 373(6552), 300-306, https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.abh4455 Citation read by Ranbir Kang.

2021:

• Samuel Munoz, Liviu Giosan, Matthew Therrell, Jonathan Remo, Zhixiong Shen, Richard Sullivan, Charlotte Wiman, Michelle O’Donnell, and Jeffrey Donnelly for “Climatic control of Mississippi River flood hazard amplified by river engineering“, 2018, Nature, 556, doi:10.1038/nature26145 Citation by Reuben Heine.

2020:

• Christy Swann, Doug Sherman, and Ryan Ewing  for “Experimentally derived thresholds for windblown sand on Mars“, 2019, Geophysical Research Letters, 47(3), doi:e2019GL084484 Citation by Paul Gares.

2019:

• Douglas J. Faulkner, Phillip H. Larson, Harry M. Jol, Garry L. Running, Henry M. Loope, and Ronald J. Goble  for “Autogenic incision and terrace formation resulting from abrupt late-glacial base-level fall, lower Chippewa River, Wisconsin, USA“, 2016, Geomorphology, 266, 7-95, doi:10.1016/j.geomorph.2016.04.016. Citation by Donald Friend.

2018:

• Martin W. Doyle, Jai Singh, Rebecca Lave, and Morgan M. Robertson for “The morphology of streams restored for market and nonmarket purposes: Insights form a mixed natural-social science approach“, 2015, Water Resources Research, 51, 1-20, doi:10.1002/2015WR017030. Citation by Frank Magilligan.

2017:

• Frank Magilligan, Eirik Burass, and Carl Renshaw for “The efficacy of stream power and flow duration on geomorphic responses to catastrophic flooding“, 2015, Geomorphology Vol. 228, 175–188. Citation by Martin Doyle.

2016:

• Edgardo Latrubesse for “Large Rivers, Megafans and Other Quaternary Avulsive Fluvial Systems: A Potential “Who’s Who” in the Geological Record,” Earth Science Reviews Vol. 146, 1–30. Citation by Sheryl Luzzadder-Beach.

2015:

• L. Allan James for “Legacy sediment: Definitions and processes of episodically produced anthropogenic sediment,” Anthropocene Vol. 2., 16–26. Citation by Frank Magilligan.

2014:

• Stanley W. Trimble for “Historical Agriculture and Soil Erosion in the Upper Mississippi Valley Hill Country,” CRC Press. Citation by Andy Ward.

2013:

• Jennifer L. Horwath Burnham and Donald L. Johnson for “Mima Mounds – The Case for Polygenesis and Bioturbation,” Geol. Soc. Am. Spec. Paper 490 Citation by Randall (Randy) Schaetzl.

2012:

• Inci Güneralp and Bruce L. Rhoads for “Influence of floodplain erosional heterogeneity on planform complexity of meandering rivers,” Geophysical Research Letters Vol. 38, L14401. Citation by Melinda Daniels.

2011:

• Joshua J. Roering, Jill Marshal, Adam M. Booth, Michele Mort, and Qusheng Jin for “Evidence for biotic controls on topography and soil production,” Earth and Planetary Science Letters 298:183-190. Citation by Judy Haschenburger and Frank Magilligan.

2010:

• Sheryl Luzzadder-Beach and Timothy Beach for “Arising from the wetlands; mechanisms and chronology of landscape aggradation in the Northern Coastal Plain of Belize.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 99(1): 1-26. Citation by Dick Marston.

2009:

• No award given

2008:

• David Leigh, Pradeep Srivastava, and George Brook for “Late Pleistocene braided rivers of the Atlantic Coastal Plain, USA..” Quaternary Science Reviews 23 (1-2): 65-84. Citation by Frank Magilligan.

2007:

• Basil Gomez for “The potential rate of bed-load transport.” Proceedings of The National Academy of Sciences of the USA 103 (46): 17170-17173. Citation by Frank Magilligan.

2006:

• William H. (Bill) Renwick (with Smith, Bartley, and Buddemeier) for “The role of impoundments in the sediment budget of the conterminous United States.” Geomorphology 71: 99-111. Citation by W. Andrew Marcus and Jonathan D. Phillips.

2005:

• Mark Fonstad and Andrew Marcus for “Self-Organized Criticality in Riverbank Systems.” Annals of the Association of American Geographers 93(2): 281-296. Citation by Dick Marston.

2004:

• Anne Chin for “The periodic nature of step-pool mountain streams.” American Journal of Science 302: 144-167. Citation by Carol Harden.

2003:

• Ellen Wohl and Dave Merritt for “Bedrock channel morphology.” Geological Society of America Bulletin 113(9): 1205-1212. Citation by Greg Springer and Andrew Wilcox.

2002:

• Michael C. Malin and Kenneth S. Edgett for “Evidence for recent groundwater seepage and surface runoff on Mars.” Science 288: 2330-2335. Citation by Martin Doyle.

2001:

• Karl F. Nordstrom for Beaches and Dunes of Developed Coasts, Cambridge University Press (2000). Citation by Douglas Sherman.

2000:

• Ellen Wohl, Doug Thompson and Andy Miller for “Canyons with undulating walls.” Geological Society of America Bulletin 111: 949-959. Citation by Frank Magilligan.

1999:

• T.R. Paton, G.S. Humphreys and P.B. Mitchell for Soils: A New Global View, Yale University Press (1995). Citation by Randy Schaetzl.

1998:

• David Butler for Zoogeomorphology: Animals as Geomorphic Agents. Cambridge University Press (1995). Citation by Richard A. Marston.

1997:

• Jonathan Phillips for “Deterministic Uncertainty in Landscapes.” Earth Surface Processes and Landforms 19 (5): 389-401. Citation by Judy Haschenburger.

1996:

• James C. Knox for “Large increases in flood magnitudes in response to modest changes in climate.” Nature 361: 430-432. Citation by Frank Magilligan.

1995:

• No award given

1994:

• Nelson Caine for “Sediment transfer on the floor of the Martinelli Snowpatch, Colorado Front Range.” Geografiska Annaler. Series A, Physical Geography 74: 133-144. Citation by John Dixon.

1993

• William C. Mahaney for Ice on the Equator, Wm. Caxton Press (1990). Citation by Ron Dorn.

1992:

• Don Currey for “Quaternary palaeolakes in the evolution of semidesert basins, with special emphasis on Lake Bonneville and the Great Basin, U.S.A.” Palaeogeography, Palaeoclimatology, Palaeoecology 76: 189-214.

1991:

• Alan Howard for “Theoretical Model of Optimal Drainage Networks.” Water Resources Research 26(9): 2107-2117.

1990:

• Don Johnson and Donna Watson-Stegner for “Evolution model of pedogenesis.” Soil Science 143: 349-366.

1989:

• No award given

1988:

• Ron Dorn for Studies of Alluvial Fans, Death Valley.

1987:

• Derek Ford for Studies in Karst Geomorphology and Quaternary Chronology, Castleguard.

1986:

• Karl Butzer for Archaeology as Human Ecology, Cambridge University Press (1982).

1985:

• Athol Abrahams for Studies of Channel Networks.

1984:

• Will Graf for Studies of Fluvial processes in the Southwestern U.S.

1983:

• J. Ross Mackay for Studies of Permafrost in the Mackenzie River Delta Area.