Barbara Sherwood Lollar, a University Professor in the department of earth sciences in the Faculty of Arts & Science, with a cross-appointment to the Department of Chemistry, has been awarded the 2025 Wollaston Medal by the Geological Society of London.
The society’s highest distinction, the Wollaston Medal has been bestowed since 1831 in recognition of landmark geoscientific research, with past winners including Charles Darwin and the late U of T Professor John Tuzo Wilson.
Sherwood Lollar is renowned for her research on ancient waters and the deep subsurface biosphere, with over 200 published peer-reviewed scientific papers. Her work has contributed to the evaluation of deep geologic repositories’ potential for disposal of low- and high-level nuclear waste and storage of atmospheric carbon and enabled the identification of new areas of hydrogen-rich rock with potential to contribute clean energy alternatives.