The Centre for Invasion Biology (C·I·B) congratulates Core Team member Prof Sabrina Kumschick on being named the winner of the Distinguished Young Woman Researcher Award in the special category Innovation for Impact: Women Leading Change at the 2026 South African Women in Science Awards (SAWiSA).
The annual SAWiSA awards celebrate outstanding women contributing to science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), and the Humanities and Social Sciences. Hosted by the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) during Women’s Month, the 23rd annual awards ceremony was held under the 2026 theme, ‘Placing Women at the Centre of Science, Technology and Innovation.’
Prof Kumschick’s research focuses biological invasions, with emphasis on assessing and predicting the environmental and socio-economic impacts of invasive alien species. Her work brings together ecology, risk assessment, environmental management and policy to develop evidence-based approaches to biodiversity conservation and ecosystem management.
She has played a leading role in developing globally adopted impact assessment frameworks, including the IUCN Environmental Impact Classification for Alien Taxa (EICAT). In 2018, Prof Kumschick formally established the IUCN EICAT Authority to oversee, coordinate and review EICAT assessments for the IUCN. She currently serves as Chair of the EICAT Authority and Vice-Chair of the IUCN Invasive Species Specialist Group’s EICAT, as well as a member of South Africa’s national Alien Species Risk Analysis Review Panel.
Prof Kumschick holds an NRF B2 rating and has authored 81 peer-reviewed publications, including research published in leading international journals such as Trends in Ecology & Evolution and BioScience. She has also supervised three PhD, four master’s and nine honours students, and mentored two postdoctoral fellows.
The award recognises Prof Kumschick’s scientific excellence and the far-reaching impact of her research. Her work continues to advance our understanding of biological invasions and strengthen evidence-based approaches to invasive species management and biodiversity conservation in South Africa and internationally.
Prof Kumschick received the award during a special awards function on 20 August 2026. Watch the video here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a-nP2HLMucU
Congratulations, Sabrina!
