The UIS Prizes are awarded within the framework of the International Congresses of Speleology (ICS) and recognize the most outstanding accomplishments in speleology. They honor excellence in publications, posters, discoveries, and scientific achievements. The prizes were first awarded at the 11th ICS in Beijing (1993) and were officially incorporated into the International Regulations of the UIS in 2013.
2025 (19th ICS, Brazil)
Most Significant Publication About Caves or Karst: Alberto Sendra (Coord.) – Habitantes de la oscuridad
Most Significant Publication About Caves or Karst – 1 st Honorable Mention: Jo De Waele & Francisco Gutiérrez – Karst Hydrogeology, Geomorphology and Caves
Most Significant Publication About Caves or Karst – 2 nd Honorable Mention: Pavel Herich – Demänovské Jaskyne (Atlas of Karst Phenomena of the Demänová Valley, Slovakia)
Best Special Book: Leda Zogbi & Allan Calux – Luzes na Escuridäo (Vol. 3)
Best Special Book – 1 st Honorable Mention: Philippe Crochet Annie Guiraud, Patrice Tordjman – Dans les Profondeurs de la Terre
Best Special Book – 2 nd Honorable Mention: Mariana Barbosa Timo (Coord.) – Cavernantes Mirins
Best Special Book – 3 rd Honorable Mention: Veronica Chiarini & Jo De Waele – Shapes and Voids
Best Poster in Scientific Research: Mateus Henrique Simões et al. – To be or not to be Troblobitic? Troglomorphisms in Brazilian cave fauna
Best Poster in Scientific Research – 1 st Honorable Mention: Emili Fonseca et al. – Survey of Fungi from the air and sediment of Lapa da Cachoeira do Funil Cave in Mambaí, Goiás, Brazil: Preliminary data
Best Poster in Scientific Research – 2 nd Honorable Mention: Allan Calux & Elisandra Goldoni – The use of environmental compensation as mechanism for protecting speleological heritage
Best Poster in Cave Exploration (popular vote): Gabriel Redonte et al. – Los relevamientos topográficos en el sistema cavernario Cuchillo Curá, Neuquén, Argentina
Greatest Scientific Achievement: Alessandro Mastella et al. – The Cave Voice: Acoustic Monitoring of Floods in Spurga delle Cadene (Italy)
Greatest Scientific Achievement – 1 st Honourable Mention: Alice Salussolia et al. – Taxonomy, phylogeney and evolutionary history of niphargid amphipods (Crustacea, Amphipoda) in Alpine groundwaters
Most Significant Cave Discovery/Exploration: Subcomisión de Espeleología del Centro de Montaña Tandil (Coord. Dino Mendy) – “La Cañada” Piping Caves (Provincia de San Juan, Argentina)
2022 (18th ICS, France)
Best Publication: Ernest Geyer, Ralf Benischke, Josef Hasitschka (Austria) – Caves and Karst – Styrian Warscheneck Massif
Best Publication – Honorable Mention: Johannes Mattes (Austria) – Cultures of Knowledge in the Subterranean. A Biographical Lexicon of Speleology
Best Special Book: Antonio de Vivo, Francesco Sauro (Italy) – Into the Heart of the World – La Venta, 25 Years of Exploration
Best Poster: Fabien Hoblèa (France) – The Subpolar Karst of Madre de Díos
Best Poster – Honorable Mention: Charlotte Honiat (France/Austria) et al. – Last Interglacial Alpine Stalagmite Hunting
Best Poster – Honorable Mention: Rebeca Martin-García (Spain) – Complex behavior of speleothems.
Greatest Scientific Achievement: Francesco Sauro (Italy) – Lava Tubes on Earth, Moon and Mars
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration: La Venta (Italy) – NAICA: The Crystal Caves
2017 (17th ICS, Australia)
Best Publication: Annette Summers Engel (USA) – Microbial Life of Cave Systems
Best Special Book: Marcus Thomaz, Neil Silverwood (New Zealand) – Caves – Exploring New Zealand’s Subterranean Wilderness
Best Special Book – Honorable Mention: Luis Enrique Sánchez (Brazil) – Guidebook of Good Environmental Practices in Karst Areas
Best Special Book – Honorable Mention: Johannes Mattes (Austria) – Travels into the Underground. A Cultural History of Cave Exploration
Best Scientific Poster: Gustavo Soares (Brazil) – Iron-rich Rocks: A Little Recognized Habitat
Best Caver’s Poster: Joyce Lundberg – Analysis of Scallops in Gomantong Caves
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration: Perovo-Speleo Team (Russia) – Veryovkina Cave Expeditions
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration – Honorable Mention: Krzysztof Starnawski & Team – Hranická Propast, 404 m deep
2013 (16th ICS, Czech Republic)
Best Special Book: Jan J. Fairchild (UK), Andy Baker (Australia/UK) – Speleothem Science – From Process to Past Environments
Best Special Book: Heros Augusto Santos Lobo, Luiz Eduardo Panisset Travassos (Brazil) – O ser humano e a paisagem cárstica (Humans and Karst Landscape)
Best Poster (Scientific Committee): Melissa Wilks (USA), Hazel A. Barton (USA) – Predation Mediated Carbon Turnover in Limited Cave Environments
Best Poster (General Public): Anamaria Häuselmann (Romania), Adam Hasenfratz (Switzerland), Hai Cheng (China), Lawrence Edwards (USA), Dominik Fleitmann (Germany) – Holocene Temperature Fluctuation in Central Europe Recorded in Stalagmite M6
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration: Fort Stanton Cave Study Project (USA)
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration – Honorable Mention: Sistema K’oox Baal Project (Mexico)
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration – Honorable Mention: Hang Sơn Đoòng Project (Vietnam)
2009 (15th ICS, USA)
Best Publication (tie):
* Olivier Grunewald, David Wolozan (France) – Tsingy – Stone Forest – Madagascar
* Rémy Wenger (Switzerland) – Cavernes – Face Cachée de la Terre
* Philippe Brunet, Bernard Dupré, Marc Faverjon (France) – La Grotte de Saint Marcel d’Ardèche
* Petar Bron et al. (Bulgaria) – Caves and Speleology in Bulgaria
* Marek Audy (Czech Republic) – Brány do Ztraceného Světa
Best Special Book (tie):
* Arthur N. Palmer (USA) – Cave Geology
* Derek Ford (Canada), Paul Williams (New Zealand) – Karst Hydrology and Geomorphology
Best Poster: John C. Tinsley III, Kenneth Miller, Robert A. Johnson (USA) – Sedimentology of particulate accumulation and its remediation, Skull Ice Cave
Best Poster (2nd prize): Erminio Canevese, Roberta Tedeschi, Paolo Forti (Italy) – Laser scanning
use in cave contexts
Best Poster (3rd prize): Bogdan P. Onac (Romania) – Mineralogical and stable isotope investigations of minerals from caves in Cerna Valley
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration: Hong Meigui Cave Exploration Society
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration – Honorable Mention: Mexican-led Ocotempa Team
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration – Honorable Mention: USA Deep Caving Team
Special Award for Speleological Art: Claude Chabert, Andre Prous, Ezio L. Rubbioli, Luís B. Piló, Ana E. Brina, Lilia S. Horta – Atlas do Janelão
2005 (14th ICS, Greece)
Best Publication: Richard Maire, Jean-Pierre Barbay, Zhang Shouyue, Nathalie Vanara, Jean Bottazzi (France/China) – Speleo–karstologie et environnement en Chine
Best Publication – Honorable Mention: Philipp Häuselmann (Switzerland), ed. – Die St. Beatus- Höhlen
Best Publication – Honorable Mention: Howard M. Beck (USA), ed. – Beneath the Cloud Forests
Best Special Book (tie):
* David C. Culver, William B. White (USA), eds. – Encyclopedia of Caves
* John Gunn (UK), ed. – Encyclopedia of Caves and Karst Science
Best Poster: Kwang Choon Lee, Don Won Choi, Kyung Sik Woo (Republic of Korea) – Origin and diagenesis of cave corals in Lava Tubes of Jeju Island
Best Poster – Honorable Mention: Helena David (Brazil) – Conservation of Ballet Cave, Brazil
Best Poster – Honorable Mention: Stein-Erik Lauritzen, Lene Baastad (Norway), Julie Björlien (Sweden) – The Svarthammar Project, Norway
Most Significant Discovery: Call of the Abyss (Ukrainian Speleological Society) – Exploration of Krubera Cave
Most Significant Discovery – Honorable Mention: Philippe Brunet (France) – L’Ardèche souterraine
Best Film: international team – Journey to the Centre of the Earth
Best Film (2nd prize): K. Adomopoulos, N. Chaiklopoulos (Greece) – Anogeia 2002: Caving Expedition in Crete
Best Film (3rd prize): Jan Ellis Chandler (Spain) – In Sight of Light
Best Slide or Print: Robbie Shone (Great Britain)
Best Slide or Print (2nd and 3rd prize): George Avalanos (Greece)
Best Portfolio: George Avalanos (Greece) – Caves of Greece
Best Portfolio (2nd prize): Karst Features (USA) – Guadalupian Images
2001 (13th ICS, Brazil)
Best Publication: Alexander Klimchouk (Ukraine), Derek Ford (Canada), Arthur N. Palmer (USA), Wolfgang Dreybrodt (Germany) – Speleogenesis: Evolution of Karst Aquifers
Best Publication (2nd prize): Spanish Federation of Speleology – Grandes cuevas y simas de España
Best Publication (3rd prize): George Veni, Harvey R. Duchene, Nicholas C. Crawford, Christopher G. Groves, George N. Huppert, Ernst H. Kastning, Rick Olson, Betty J. Wheeler (USA) – Living with Karst
Best Poster: Helena Hercman (Poland) – Reconstruction of palaeoclimatic changes in Europe for the last 200 years
Best Poster – Honorable Mention: Annalisa Contos, Julia James (Australia) – New rafts and old rafts
Best Poster – Honorable Mention: Michal Gradzinski (Poland) – Dark laminae in speleothems as indicator of prehistoric man
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration: Ukrainian Speleological Association – Veronja Cave
1997 (12th ICS, Switzerland)
Best Publication: Carol Hill (USA), Paolo Forti (Italy) – Cave Minerals of the World
Best Publication – Honorable Mention: Chris Howes (USA) – Images Below
Best Publication – Honorable Mention: David Gillieson (Australia) – Caves: Processes, Development, Management
Best Poster: Spencer Coca (Germany/Romania) – Avenul de sub Colții Grindului
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration – Honorable Mention: French Exploration Team – Muruk
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration – Honorable Mention: Ukrainian Exploration Team – Optimistic Cave
Most Significant Discovery/Exploration – Honorable Mention: British Exploration Team – Ogof Draenen
1993 (11th ICS, China)
Best Publication: Chinese–French Speleological Team – Gebihhe’89 – Karst in China
Best Slide: José A. Labegalini (Brazil) – Brazilian Caves/Peruaçu Valley
Best Slide (2nd prize): Julia M. James (Australia) – Speleothems in Cave of the Nullarbor
Best Slide (3rd prize): Clayton F. Lino (Brazil) – Brazilian Caves
Best Photo: Xingwen County (China) – Skylight
Best Photo (2nd prize): Zhu Shenglian (China) – Fiery Trees and Silvery Flowers
Best Photo (3rd prize): Wang Tianrui (China) – Indulge in pleasure and forget home duty
Album Series: Urs Widmer (Switzerland) – Jewel of the Underground: Lechuguilla
Album Series (2nd prize): Clayton F. Lino (Brazil) – Caves: The Fascination of Underground Brazil
Album Series (3rd prize): René Delan, Michel Siffre (France) – La Grotte de Clamouse
Best Video: G. Favre (Switzerland) – The River Beneath the Jungle
Best Video (2nd prize): John Gau (Great Britain) – Deep in the Labyrinth
Best Video (3rd prize): Wu Xiaoping (China) – The Soaring Dragon Cave