R. David LeButt Award

Dave LeButt of Gerorgia-Pacific, a friend and mentor to many in the packaging industry and a long-time ISTA member and officer, passed away suddenly in 1999. As a tribute to Dave's never-tiring efforts, his high level of professionalism, and his eagerness to openly share his knowledge and experiences with so many in our industry, ISTA created the R. David LeButt Award and it was first awarded in 2000.

R. David LeButt Award recognizes outstanding contributions to educating others on minimizing transit damage of products and optimizing resources through effective package design. Winners of the award are individuals who have had a profound impact on the transit packaging community. The award resides at Georgia-Pacific‘s Innovation Institute in Norcross, Georgia where Dave worked.

2026 Award Recipient | Matt Daum. Ph.D.

The ISTA Educational Foundation (ISTAEF) is thrilled to announce Matt Daum as the recipient of this year’s R. David LeButt Award, which recognizes packaging professionals for their outstanding contributions to education in transport packaging. Matt was honored at the 2026 ISTA Forum USA, which included the TempPack and TransPack events, held in Phoenix, Arizona in April.

Matt Daum, Ph.D., is a nationally recognized leader in packaging, business, and academic innovation whose career spans Fortune 50 global executive leadership and Big Ten university academic administration. He currently serves as Associate Provost and Dean of the College of Agriculture and Natural Resources at Michigan State University. Previously he led the MSU School of Packaging and advanced major initiatives in facility renovation, faculty investment, and curriculum enhancements.

Before returning to MSU, Dr. Daum spent 26 years with HP Inc., rising through packaging, engineering, supply chain, data analytics, and executive leadership roles. His work shaped the company’s global packaging strategy, product development, and anti counterfeit systems for HP’s LaserJet and InkJet supplies businesses, and was widely regarded for building high performing teams and driving innovation.

Dr. Daum served as Chair of the ISTA Global Board of Directors from 2011 to 2015, a transformative period that included a capital campaign to expand industry research, strengthened financials and the implementation of a major organizational transition.

In addition to his industry and administrative leadership, Dr. Daum spent more than 15 years as an adjunct associate professor at Clemson University, advising graduate students with their research projects.

Matt earned his Ph.D. from Michigan State University, where his research focused on shock response spectrum and fatigue damage in product fragility testing.

Previous Award Recipients

Make a Nomination

Award candidates are nominated by industry peers and reviewed by the Foundation Board Members for final selection. The selected recipient will be honored at ISTA's Annual Forum. Review the full nomination criteria prior to making a nomination. Nominations may be submitted for consideration at any time through the online form. The deadline for nominations to be considered in a given year is January 31st.

Criteria:

Impact: The nominee's educational efforts should have influenced the industry in its understanding of effective package design. This education could be delivered in many ways:
- Classroom teaching
- Industry presentations
- Field interactions and consultations
- Contributions to the development of educational resources like industry best practices, industry guidance, standards, and more
Reach and Engagement: The nominee's educational initiatives should have reached a broad audience and actively engaged participants, fostering a deeper understanding of effective package design
Collaboration and Leadership: The nominee should exhibit strong leadership and collaboration skills, working effectively with industry peers, organizations, and stakeholders to advance the ISTA mission
The winner receives:
- An award recognizing their achievement and their name on the permanent plaque at Georgia Pacific
- ISTA Forum USA Registration

Make A Nomination