Dokuchaev Award 2010
Dan Yaalon
Dan Yaalon was born in the former Czechoslovakia in 1924. He studied at the Agricultural Universities of Copenhagen and Uppsala. In 1948 he became a citizen of the new state of Israel and in 1954 completed his doctorate in Soil Science at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem.
Since this time he has taught and undertaken research at Institutes and Universities around the world, including Rothamsted Experimental Station, University of California, University of Oxford, and the Australian National University in Canberra.
He has made very significant contributions to advancing the scientific knowledge of soils and sediments in aridic environments and was a lead player in establishing the modern pedological foundation of soil interpretation and research.
In later years he has focused his attention on the roles played by humans in inducing changes in
soils and soil behaviour. In addition within ISSS and IUSS Dan has taken a significant role in encouraging and developing the history of the soil science.