The medal, recognizing Rodiek's achievement as an international leader in landscape planning, was presented April 17, 2004 at the Fábos Landscape Planning and Greenway Symposium held at the University of Massachusetts - Amherst. In addition to being honored at the event, Rodiek presented the symposium's keynote address examining the contribution of landscape planning to the evolution of the landscape architecture profession.

The Fábos Medal was yet another in a long list of accolades that Rodiek has received throughout his distinguished career. A fellow in the American Society of Landscape Architects, Rodiek is a leading voice in the field of landscape planning research. He is known for advocating the application of relevant scientific information in design decisions. He has conducted precedent-setting work in developing design and planning techniques for mined land reclamation, wildlife habitat protection, wetland identification and arid land planning. He is also a sought after authority on wetland classification and interpretation and the assessment and evaluation of landscape and wildlife habitat. His writings on these topics have been presented at national conferences around the world.

Rodiek has authored over 29 major manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals and has served for several years as editor of Landscape and Urban Planning, an international journal of landscape ecology, landscape planning, and landscape design. The journal is based on the premise that research linked to practice will ultimately improve the human-made landscape.

In 2001, Rodiek was named a Distinguished Alumnus of the University of Massachusetts where, between 1967 and 1974, he earned four degrees: Ph.D., M.S., M.LA. and B.L.A. In June 2000, he earned the Award of Distinction from the Council of Educators in Landscape Architecture. He received a Distinguished Achievement Award in teaching from Texas A&M in 1996, a National Team Leadership Award from the Professional Division of the American Association of University Administrators in 1990, and a U.S. Forest Service Certificate of Merit in 1976.