BERKELEY, CA —  Berkeley, CA- The World Technology Network has voted Ashok Gadgil, a scientist at the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (Berkeley Lab), winner of the 2002 World Technology Award in the Energy category, for individual accomplishment.

Gadgil, who is a scientist with Berkeley Lab's Environmental Energy Technologies Division (EETD), was honored for his lifetime achievement in developing energy-efficient technologies, as well as his invention of the UV Waterworks device, an energy-efficient technology for disinfecting water.

"With this device," says Gadgil, "we can disinfect one ton of drinking water using only 1/16 of a kWh of electricity." UV Waterworks technology has been commercialized and is now in use in a number of developing countries, including the Philippines, Mexico, and India.

Cited for its research and development in energy-efficient technologies, Berkeley Lab's EETD was a finalist in the Energy category for the 2002 World Technology Award for corporate accomplishment.

The winners were announced at the World Technology Summit on July 22 in New York City. The decision was the result of a six month long selection and voting process in which 100 eminent authorities from 20 technology-related fields drew up their list of potential nominees for consideration by the World Technology Network's current membership of 430 leading technologists eligible to cast votes. There are 20 individual and 20 corporate awards given each year, chosen from five finalists in each category. The award is given "to honor innovative individuals whose recent work will have the greatest likely future significance and impact over the long-term... and who will likely become or remain "key players" in the technological drama unfolding in coming years."

The World Technology Network was created to "encourage serendipity" --happy accidents--among individuals and companies deemed by their peers to be the most innovative in the technology world. It brings together leading individuals and corporations from 20 technology-related disciplines to share knowledge and develop new working relationships.

Additional Information

For more information on UV Waterworks, see http://eetd.lbl.gov/iep/archive/uv/

A complete list of 2002 World Technology Network award winners may be found at:
http://www.wtn.net/awards/awards2002/welcome.html

The Berkeley Lab is a U.S. Department of Energy national laboratory located in Berkeley, California. It conducts unclassified scientific research and is managed by the University of California. Visit our Website at www.lbl.gov