The University of Chicago Press awarded the 2026 Gordon J. Laing Award to Assoc. Prof. Sarah Newman for her book Unmaking Waste: New Histories of Old Things. President Paul Alivisatos presented the award at a gala reception on April 8 at the David Rubenstein Forum.
“Unmaking Waste is an insightful work, exposing at once the particulars by which human societies and civilizations have grappled with waste and what their conception of it reveals of their own position in the material world,” said Alivisatos. “It is a wonderful example of a UChicago mind in top form.”
Each year, the Laing Award is presented to the faculty author, editor, or translator whose book has brought the greatest distinction to the Press. Books published in 2023 and 2024 were eligible for the 2026 award.
In Unmaking Waste, Newman draws on archaeological finds, historical documents and ethnographic observations to examine what people have considered to be “waste” and how they interact with it from prehistory to the present day.
Newman shows how conceptions of waste have shaped reuse and renewal in ancient Mesoamerica, early modern ideas of civility and forced religious conversion in New Spain, and even the modern discipline of archaeology. Unmaking Waste reveals that waste is not—and never has been—an obvious or universal concept.
In its review, the journal Isis called Unmaking Waste a “particularly impressive example” of how “honing in on waste allows us to tell new histories.”
Prof. Aziz Huq, chair of the Board of University Publications, said that Newman’s work “embodies the best of what university press publishing can do.”
“Newman’s brilliant challenge to our conventional understanding of what it means to create ‘waste’ is not only an influential contribution to anthropology, it also offers all readers an enlightening new way of thinking about a common part of our lives and experience—what we treat as garbage—and why we think about it the way we do,” said Huq.
Newman said she relied on the advice and insights from both Anthropology department colleagues as well as the support of the Press throughout the process of publishing her first monograph.
“I am thrilled and honored to celebrate not only my book, but the intellectual environment and community at the University that helped to shape it,” said Newman.
'Unmaking Waste' reveals that waste is not—and never has been—an obvious or universal concept.
The Press’s top award is named in honor of Gordon J. Laing, who served as general editor of the Press from 1909 until 1940, firmly establishing it as the premier academic publisher in the United States.
“Every year, we take pride in joining with the University to recognize the lasting impact and significance of the Press and its authors in shaping scholarship and expanding knowledge for all,” said Garrett Kiely, director of the Press. “We are proud to see Professor Newman honored with this award for her outstanding book and to celebrate her remarkable contributions.”
Newman joins a distinguished list of previous recipients that includes, most recently, Jenny Trinitapoli, Margareta Ingrid Christian, Elisabeth C. Clemens, Lisa Wedeen, Michael Rossi, Eve L. Ewing and Deborah Nelson.
—This story was adapted from a press release from the UChicago Press.
