Greg Constable, one of the world's most renowned cotton scientists, has been named ‘2015 Researcher of the Year’ by the International Cotton Advisory Committee (ICAC).

The announcement was made during the inaugural session of ICAC's 74th Plenary Meeting and recognised Constable for the advancements he has made in cotton breeding and crop management systems. His knowledge of cotton physiology has been instrumental in the development of many new cotton varieties, several of which are used extensively in cotton-producing countries around the world.

“Around the world, scientists have made great strides in reducing cotton's environmental footprint, which has been cut in half over the last 20 years or so," Constable said, adding, “I believe that reductions in the usage of pesticides and herbicides, combined with the major gains we've made in water use efficiency, have brought us to the point where cotton has a smaller impact on the environment than synthetic fibres like polyester do.

" Constable has spent much of his 46-years career working for The Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (CSIRO), one of Australia's primary scientific research organisations, and has achieved an extensive list of accomplishments during that time including inaugural chair of the first World Cotton Research Conference, which was held in Brisbane in 1994, first and current Chairman of the International Cotton Researchers Association, and key organiser of the first meeting of cotton breeders and molecular biologists in Australia, which eventually became the International Cotton Genome Initiative.

www.icac.org