News
SAWISA 2026 Finalists
DSTI
17 August 2026
2 min read
Back to all news
As South Africa commemorates the 70th anniversary of the historic 1956 march of 20 000 women to the Union Buildings, the Department of Science, Technology and Innovation (DSTI) is proud to showcase the extraordinary finalists for the 2026 South African Women in Science Awards (SAWiSA).. Sheena Kumari Pillai is a finalist in the Distinguished Woman: Natural and Engineering Sciences, Distinguished Professor of Environmental Sciences and Water Research at DUT, where she holds the SARChI Chair in Wastewater Treatment and Reuse. As a leading voice in water research across South Africa and the Global South, Prof. Kumari Pillai's career is defined by high-impact contributions to sustainable wastewater treatment, public health protection and the translation of scientific innovation into public infrastructure. Her research addresses the urgent challenges of inadequate wastewater management in rapidly urbanising regions. 
Prof Kumari Pillai's prolific contributions have resulted in over 160 peer-reviewed publications and more than 8 300 citations, yielding a Google Scholar h-index of 44 and a Scopus h-index of 40. She holds an NRF C2 rating, reflecting sustained recognition of her research impact over the past decade, with 79% of her publications having appeared in Q1-ranked journals.
Her global and local service spans NRF rating and standing panels, international advisory and funding bodies, and editorial roles with Springer Nature and Frontiers journals. Her accolades include the SAWiSA Distinguished Young Women Researcher First Runner Up (2019), the DUT Top Impact Factor Author Award (2020), and the Vice-Chancellor's Award for Creative Project (2022).
Prof. Kumari Pillai has dedicated her career to developing future generations of scientists, particularly women in STEM. She has successfully graduated 20 PhDs (including 14 women) and 19 master's students (including 15 women). She currently supervises 13 PhD (nine women) and 11 master's students, and has mentored 21 postdoctoral fellows (including eight women and seven South African researchers), alongside more than 20 honours students, contributing significantly to regional capacity building.
Prof. Kumari Pillai's career represents a powerful combination of academic distinction, applied innovation and meaningful societal impact.
