Water Institute Symposium Poster Awards

At the Water Institute Symposium, over 90 student poster presenters competed for four awards of $1,000 each to support their participation at future academic conferences. The competition was sponsored by The Florida Section of the American Water Resources Association and the UF Water Institute.

Each student poster was judged by three independent judges. Students were scored based on their hypothesis, their methodology, the results, conclusion, and impact, the display aesthetics and format of their poster, and their presentation skills. The top scoring posters showed that the student’s research work was original, significant, and had a large potential for impact. The students also showed a high level of knowledge of the subject and had creative, visually interesting, and a highly professional caliber poster.

From left to right: Rio Bonham, Dr. Matt Cohen, Luna Philips, and Dr. Paloma Carton de Grammont with Rio receiving the student poster award.

Rio Bonham
University of Florida
Agricultural and Biological Engineering
TEK in Tech: Evaluating Baseline Flood Models for Fusion with Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK)

From left to right: Baylie Reisch, Dr. Matt Cohen, Luna Philips, and Dr. Paloma Carton de Grammont with Baylie receiving the student poster award.

Baylie Reisch
University of Florida
Biology
Microplastic Analysis Originating from Water and Sediment Samples in Florida: A Multi-Site Study

Water Institute Symposium Student Poster Award certificate for Alex Webster.

Alex Webster
University of Florida
Physiological Sciences
A Novel HPLC–GIS Framework for Tracking Septic Tank Leachate Using Caffeine as a Biomarker

From left to right: Zamil Limon, Dr. Matt Cohen, Luna Philips, and Dr. Paloma Carton de Grammont with Zamil receiving the student poster award.

Zamil Limon
University of South Florida
School of Geosciences
Advancing Historical Wetland and Lake Mapping with GeoAI-Driven Analysis of Grayscale Aerial Imagery

With great sadness, we share the tragic loss of a member of the UF Water Institute community. Zamil Limon was a graduate student in the School of Geosciences at the University of South Florida, where he used GeoAI to advance our understanding of wetland change in Florida. He presented his research at the 10th Biennial UF Water Institute Symposium and was recognized as one of this year’s student award winners.

Tragically, Zamil and his close friend, Nahida Bristy — a graduate student in the Department of Chemical, Biological and Materials Engineering at USF — were victims of a brutal act of violence. We mourn their loss alongside their families in Bangladesh, as well as their advisors, classmates, colleagues, and friends at USF.

If you would like to support their families during this unimaginably difficult time, please consider donating through the GoFundMe page established in their honor.