The CORE Academy is delighted to announce that Professor Batmanathan Dayanand (Daya) Reddy, a distinguished mathematician and internationally recognized leader in advancing scientific collaboration and exchange, has been elected a Fellow of the International CORE Academy of Sciences and Humanities (Division of Mathematics and Information Sciences).

Professor Reddy earned his BSc degree in Civil Engineering from the University of Cape Town in 1973 and a PhD in Engineering from the University of Cambridge in 1977. Following a postdoctoral fellowship at University College London in 1978, he returned to Cape Town as a Lecturer in both Civil Engineering and Applied Mathematics. He was appointed Professor of Applied Mathematics in 1989, and in 2006 was named South African Research Chair in Computational Mechanics. From 1999 to 2021, he served as Director of the Centre for Research in Computational and Applied Mechanics (CERECAM), guiding its growth into a hub of international excellence.

His research lies broadly in solid and computational mechanics, bridging applied mathematics and engineering sciences. Internationally recognized as a leading scholar in his field, Professor Reddy has made influential contributions in mathematical and computational plasticity, mixed finite element methods, and biological and biomedical mechanics. He has authored, co-authored, or edited more than 200 publications, including two research monographs, two textbooks, and three edited volumes. He has also taught extensively at undergraduate and postgraduate levels and supervised 33 PhD and 38 Master’s graduates, along with 21 postdoctoral researchers, many of whom have come from across 14 African countries.

At the national level, Professor Reddy has held multiple leadership roles at the University of Cape Town, including Head of the Department of Applied Mathematics (1989–1994), Dean of the Faculty of Science (1999–2005), and Vice-Chancellor (President) ad interim (2023–2024). Beyond the university, he served as President of the Academy of Science of South Africa (2012–2016), and as a founding Council Member of the African Institute for Mathematical Sciences (AIMS), where he chaired its Council from 2017 to 2021.

Internationally, Professor Reddy has made outstanding contributions to fostering academic exchange and cooperation, strengthening dialogue among scientists worldwide, and advancing the role of science in addressing shared global challenges. From 2018 to 2021, he served as the inaugural President of the International Science Council (ISC), representing national and regional scientific organizations from nearly 150 countries and 45 international scientific unions and associations. He also served as Co-Chair of the policy arm of the InterAcademy Partnership (IAP), a global network of 140 merit-based academies. Professor Reddy is a member of the International Advisory Board of the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation of Germany, where he currently serves as Chair. He is frequently invited to speak at international forums on science and public policy, the promotion of science, academic freedom, and science diplomacy.

(Image from: ISC)

Professor Reddy's many honors reflect his global impact. He is a Fellow of The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS), the African Academy of Sciences, and the International Association for Computational Mechanics. In 2024, he was elected to both the Pontifical Academy of Sciences of the Vatican and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Earlier distinctions include the National Order of Mapungubwe (Bronze), awarded by the President of South Africa in 2004; the prestigious Georg Forster Research Award from the Alexander von Humboldt Foundation in 2012; and an honorary Doctor of Science degree from Stellenbosch University in 2021. He remains the only South African elected to all four of the country’s academies: the Academy of Science of South Africa (ASSAf), the South African Academy of Engineering, the Royal Society of South Africa, and the Suid-Afrikaanse Akademie vir Wetenskap en Kuns.

Professor Reddy's election to the CORE Academy is both a recognition of his scholarly excellence in applied mathematics and computational mechanics, and a celebration of his lifelong dedication to advancing international scientific cooperation, academic exchange, and the role of science in building a better future for humanity.

Prof. Reddy's Acceptance Letter 

References

1. Daya Reddy's Profile: https://coreacad.org/Member.aspx?ProId=157 

2. ISC: https://council.science/profile/daya-reddy/  

3. University of Cape Town: https://uct.ac.za/contacts/dayanand-reddy 

4. The Pontifical Academy of Sciences: https://www.pas.va/en/academicians/ordinary/reddy.html