SCAR Medal Nominations
Nominations for the 2022 medals are now closed.
The nomination process for the 2022 medals has been revised. Initial nominations for each Medal will simply require a short online form to be filled out, and the resulting shortlist for each Medal will be considered by a reviewing committee and reduced to 3 top candidates. The nominators of each of the top 3 will be asked to provide further material in support of their candidate, before final selection of the Medal recipients.
If the initial nomination is successful, the nominator will be asked to provide the following additional material in support of their candidate:
+ The SCAR Medal for Excellence in Antarctic Research
The following information regarding the nominee's career should also be provided (the maximum length for each section is 200 words):
- Breadth of research:
An explanation of the depth and range of research undertaken by the nominee in the course of their career, including interdisciplinary collaborations that demonstrate their creativity, novel approaches that demonstrate originality and significant leadership contributions. - Importance of work:
Evidence that indicates the importance of the nominee’s research in terms of progress within their field, impact on the success and development of colleagues and co-workers, and the wider societal impact in terms of policy and public awareness. The emphasis should be on their own personal contribution, especially if they have been involved in large research groups. - Recognition of research impact:
Awards, prizes and citations that the nominee has received in recognition of the impact of their research, and appreciation amongst their peers and the wider community. - Publications:
The five most impactful publications that demonstrate the major advances represented by the nominee’s research and a measure of their productivity through publication history. - Contribution to advancing SCAR activities:
How the nominee has contributed to the SCAR mission and objectives through their involvement internally within SCAR groups, initiatives and committees, or externally by their influence in the wider community.
+ The SCAR Medal for International Coordination
The following information regarding the nominee's career should also be provided (the maximum length for each section is 200 words):
- Coordination activities:
A description of the nominee's high-responsibility roles, including leadership and service within international programmes and partnerships, institutions and representative bodies. - Importance of coordination activities:
Evidence of the impact of the coordination activities in terms of research effectiveness and relevance to research and/or policy as a whole. Include resourcing, inclusiveness, societal benefit and public understanding. - Impact of coordination activities:
An explanation of the impact of the nominee’s coordination activities on the wider community, its relevance to capacity building, products, data and information, etc. - Recognition of coordination activities:
Awards, prizes and citations that the nominee has received in recognition of the impact of their coordination roles, and appreciation amongst their peers and the wider community. - Contribution to advancing SCAR activities:
How the nominee has contributed to the SCAR mission and objectives through their involvement internally within SCAR groups, initiatives and committees, or externally by their influence in the wider community.
+ The SCAR Medal for Education and Communication
The following information regarding the nominee's career should also be provided via the online nomination form (the maximum length for each section is 200 words):
- Education and communication activities:
An explanation of the range and significance of activities undertaken by the nominee in the course of their career. It is important to highlight activities that demonstrate creativity, originality, quality and effectiveness. - Impact of education and communication activities:
Evidence of the impact of the nominee’s education and communication activities on the wider community including, where possible, evaluation of the impact through metrics or other measures. Include consideration of the resourcing, societal benefit and public understanding of the education and communication activities of the nominee. - Recognition of education and communication activities:
Awards, prizes and citations that the nominee has received in recognition of their education and communication activities, and in appreciation by their peers and the wider community. - Contribution to advancing SCAR activities:
How the nominee has contributed to the SCAR mission and objectives through their involvement internally within SCAR groups, initiatives and committees, or externally by their influence in the wider community.
As an international organization, SCAR promotes diversity, equality and inclusion at all levels, and therefore we encourage nomination by individuals from all backgrounds.
There are no age restrictions or limits on nominees and no higher education degree requirements - everyone is eligible to be nominated. However, self-nominations are not accepted.
The SCAR Medal for Excellence in Antarctic Research:
This medal is awarded in recognition of significant Antarctic research contributions. Selection is based on a person's outstanding contributions to knowledge and the impact of their work on understanding the Antarctic region, the linkages between Antarctica and the Earth system, and/or observations of and from Antarctica. Nominees are welcomed in all areas of Antarctic and Southern Ocean research. A distinguished career in providing scientific advice to policy- and/or decision-makers is also considered a demonstration of excellence in Antarctic research. Awardees should have made significant research contributions to the SCAR community, or have considerably shaped or reshaped research in a particular field, and have demonstrated involvement in SCAR activities. An extensive and highly-cited body of publications and presentations documenting the nominee's contributions is essential. A record of prior recognition demonstrates the person's impact on their community including prizes, honorary degrees, and other awards. A succinct justification for the recognition, outlining the significance of the candidate's accomplishments, should be provided by the nominator (maximum length 2000 characters).
The SCAR Medal for International Coordination:
This medal is awarded for outstanding and sustained contributions to international cooperation and partnerships. Nomination of individuals who have advanced SCAR's mission to initiate, facilitate, co-ordinate and encourage international research activity in the Antarctic region are encouraged. Nominees should have a record of the recognition of their international activities by their peers, including prizes, honorary degrees, and other awards, that demonstrate the person's impact. The relevance of such coordination work should be demonstrated, for example with regard to capacity building, products of use to the wider community, data and information, etc. A succinct justification for the recognition, outlining the candidate's contributions to international coordination, should be provided by the nominator (maximum length 2000 characters).
The SCAR Medal for Education and Communication:
This medal is awarded for excellence or innovation in, and sustained commitment to:
(a) communicating Antarctic research,
(b) making a significant contribution to educating the next generation of Antarctic researchers, or
(c) contributing to building new capacity in SCAR member countries.
Nominees should have a significant record of achievement in terms of the quality, effectiveness and creativity of their engagement in one or more of these three key areas of education and communication. Nominations should illustrate the impact of achievements, both by type and extent, as well as explaining their importance and relevance for SCAR. A succinct justification for the recognition, outlining the significance of the candidate’s accomplishments, should be provided by the nominator (maximum length 2000 characters).
The Selection Committees
The Selection Committee for each Medal is comprised of senior members of the SCAR community, providing a range of experience and covering the diversity of SCAR activities. Decisions of the Selection Committee are communicated to the SCAR Executive Committee for final approval. Final decisions will usually be made well in advance of the Open Science Conference Dinner, at which the awards will be presented, to enable recipients to be present. For 2022 the Medal will be announced online and the recipients invited to deliver acceptance messages during the online Open Science Conference in August 2022.
Evaluation and Selection Criteria
The reviewing committee will create an initial shortlist of 3 top candidates. The nominators of each of the top 3 will be asked to provide further material in support of their candidate. Based on the information provided by the nominator, each candidate is scored on a numerical scale by each member of the Selection Committee. Each candidate is scored on their own merits on a scale 0 [Negligible Impact] to 5 [Outstanding Impact] for each of the categories on the nomination form. A final score is calculated for each candidate by summing the individual category scores from all committee members' score sheets. The awardee is the highest scoring candidate. In the case of tied scores, committee members will re-score the highest scored candidates on a comparative basis. This process will be repeated until a single, highest score awardee emerges.
As an international organization, SCAR promotes diversity, equality and inclusion at all levels, and therefore we encourage nomination by individuals from all backgrounds.
Queries
If you have any queries or concerns about the Medals nomination process, please contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..