Prof. Jörg E. Drewes received the Willy Hager Medal 2025 for his work on the impact of wastewater discharges on drinking water production and the aquatic environment through pathogens and organic trace compounds. His research on targeted reduction through engineering and nature-based processes is groundbreaking and contributes to closing local water cycles in order to avoid risks to public health and the environment and conserve fresh water resources through targeted and safe water reuse.
The Head of the Chair of Urban Water Systems Engineering received his degrees as Dipl.-Ing. and Dr.-Ing. in Technical Environmental Protection from the Technical University of Berlin. His doctorate was honored with the Willy Hager Foundation Prize in 1998. After working at universities in the USA, Australia and Saudi Arabia from 1997 onwards, he took over the Chair and Research Institute for Urban Water Systems Engineering at TUM in 2013.
In 2020, he was appointed to the German Advisory Council on Global Change (WBGU) and has been its Co-Chair since 2024. The WBGU's current main report on “Water in a heated world” was produced with his significant involvement. Jörg E. Drewes is deputy spokesman of the German Drinking Water Commission and a member of expert commissions on public health, drinking water supply and water reuse in the USA, Australia, Germany and the EU.
The Willy Hager Medal is awarded every three years by the Willy Hager Foundation to individuals who have made outstanding contributions to scientific research into the principles and processes of water and wastewater treatment. The award is endowed with 15,000 Euro. The award was presented during a festive colloquium on 23 May 2025 at Dechema House in Frankfurt am Main.