IA congratulates 2021 award recipients

Each year the Irrigation Association honors those who have made significant contributions to the irrigation industry. The following outstanding individuals were recognized as the 2021 IA Award recipients.

Industry Achievement Award

This award is the IA’s highest honor and recognizes an individual whose career demonstrates outstanding contributions to the advancement of the irrigation industry, as well as its products and programs. In 2021, the IA honored two outstanding recipients with this award.

Angelo Mazzei is the chairman/CEO of Mazzei Injector Company LLC. During his over 40-year career, he has not only built a successful company but also worked to create multiple innovative solutions to solve irrigation issues. Mazzei has received 20 patents, including the Mazzei Injector in 1978, an innovation he crafted in his garage workshop. This injector revolutionized the irrigation industry and is at the heart of a wide range of high-impact innovations in agriculture, human health and the environment. It also led to the start of the Mazzei Injector Company.

Mazzei has remained committed to supporting research and education and has worked closely with Fresno State; California State University, Bakersfield; Cal Poly San Luis Obispo and UC Davis, donating funds, equipment and technical expertise. He has been deeply involved with projects at Fresno State’s Center for Irrigation Technology and helped establish its International Center for Water Technology.

Jackie Robbins, PhD, PE, CID, TSP, former president and CEO of Robbins Association/Irrigation-Mart Inc., is truly a pioneer in the microirrigation field. Over 55 years ago, as microirrigation technology was just becoming available in the United States, he recognized the potential benefits that the technology could provide and began conducting research on its uses and viability as an option for commercial farming operations in the southern region of the United States. His research, publications, teaching and work with extension and producers played a significant role in seeing microirrigation technology adopted as a primary method used to irrigate a wide variety of crops in a region where surface and sprinkler irrigation, or no irrigation, had previously been used.

Robbins has dedicated significant time and energy to the IA, serving on the Certification Board, the Board of Directors and, most recently, the Standards and Codes Committee. He was heavily involved in the development of the certification program, helping create its initial structure, the supporting education programs, exam writing and even hand grading early exams.

Innovator Award

The IA’s Innovator Award honors individuals who have made significant, tangible contributions to the irrigation industry within the past five years.

Reece Andrews is a product manager for Lindsay Corporation. He has led the development of numerous industry-advancing technologies during his career, which have resulted in a number of products that significantly support growers in improving the health of their crops, while conserving natural resources. His work in developing remote pivot technologies has helped growers save water and reduce their fuel costs, labor, and wear and tear, while also reducing the carbon footprint.

Andrews holds numerous patents for irrigation products, and many of the products he led development of have been recognized with awards from the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineers and World Ag Expo, as well as the IA. Two of the irrigation control systems he was directly responsible for were winners of the 2007 and 2014 IA New Product Contests. Most recently, he led the development of the FieldNET Pivot Watch universal pivot monitoring solution.

Excellence in Education Award

This award recognizes a person who teaches irrigation, water management and/or water conservation in affiliation with a two- or four-year institution and has a commitment to not only elevating the level of education but also promoting the field of irrigation as a viable and sustainable career to students.

Over the past 20 years, in addition to being a role model for female students, Florence Cassel Sharma, PhD, has excelled in teaching, research, student advising and leadership skills that allow her to be a beacon for her students interested in pursuing a successful career in irrigation and water conservation. She has demonstrated that she is truly dedicated to her students’ success, incorporating a number of strategies to raise awareness of irrigation career opportunities.

Cassel Sharma has been highly involved in the IA’s workforce development programs, presenting numerous workshops and sessions at the Faculty Academy events and participating in the E3 program. She is the faculty advisor for the Fresno State Irrigation Student Club. As the only female faculty member on campus involved in teaching and research related to irrigation, she is a mentor for female students exploring a career in an area that has predominantly employed men.

The 2021 IA Awards were sponsored by Hunter | Senninger. These outstanding individuals have been featured guests on the “Coffee with the IA” webinar series that began Sept. 28 and continued through Nov. 2. Watch these webinars on the IA’s YouTube channel. The 2021 Vanguard Award winner will be featured in the Winter 2022 issue.