Awards
Rebecca James Baker Memorial Prize
Best Environmental Epidemiology Paper Award
John Goldsmith Award for Outstanding Contributions
to Environmental Epidemiology
The ISEE Awards Committee solicits nominations each year for the John Goldsmith Award for "sustained and outstanding contributions to the knowledge and practice of environmental epidemiology." The award for 2009 will be presented at the 2009 ISEE Annual Conference in Dublin, Ireland, August 25-28, 2009. The recipient will present the John Goldsmith lecture at the conference.
This annual award was estabished to honor John Goldsmith, one of the organizers, early leaders, and constant supporters of the ISEE, who passed away in October 1999. This award recognizes environmental epidemiologists who, like John Goldsmith, serve as models of excellence in research, unwavering promotion of environmental health, and integrity.
Any member of the ISEE (except members of the Awards Committee) may submit a letter of nomination. Recipients have typically contributed in substantive and innovative fashion to the methods and practice of environmental epidemiology over many year. A letter of nomination should include a description of the nominee's major contributions to the science of environmental epidemiology, her/his impact on the field and on public health policy. A brief CV or biographical sketch of the nominee should be included. Supporting letters from others familiar with the contributions of the nominee could strengthen the nomination. Nominations and supporting letters should be sent by email or international express mail to the Chair of the Awards Committee and must be postmarked no later than April 17, 2009.
Tony McMichael, PhD
Chair, ISEE Awards Committee
National Centre for Epidemiology & Population Health
Australian National University
Canberra, ACT 0200, AUSTRALIA
Phone: +61 (02) 6125.4578
tony.mcmichael@anu.edu.au
The ISEE Research Integrity Award
The ISEE Council has established a Research Integrity Award to honor environmental epidemiologists and other related professionals for standing up to pressure and to inspire others to maintain this professional integrity. Examples include demonstration of integrity in the face of unusual pressure from special interests to: (1) not conduct an investigation of a sensitive issue; (2) suppress the publication of results unwanted by a vested interest; or (3) alter the results and/or interpretation of a study to better suit a position held by a vested interest.
Researchers and others who have demonstrated this type of exceptional integrity with respect to protecting public health are eligible. This award will be made periodically at the discretion of the ISEE Council and with acceptance of the awardee. A letter of nomination should include contact information for the nominee and a one to two page description of the reasons why the nominee should receive the Research Integrity Award. Supporting letters from others familiar with the contributions of the nominee could strengthen the nomination. Nominations and supporting letters should be sent by email or international express mail to the Chair of the Awards Committee and must be postmarked no later than April 17, 2009.
If an award is granted in 2008, it will be presented at the 2009 ISEE Annual Conference in Dublin, Ireland, August 25-28, 2009.
Tony McMichael, PhD
Chair, ISEE Awards Committee
National Centre for Epidemiology & Population Health
Australian National University
Canberra, ACT 0200, AUSTRALIA
Phone: +61 (02) 6125.4578
tony.mcmichael@anu.edu.au
Rebecca James Baker Memorial Prize
In August, 2004, environmental epidemiologist Dr. Rebecca James Baker died unexpectedly at age 33, of a pregnancy-related heart condition. Her death is a tragic loss to her friends, family, and colleagues and she is and will continue to be greatly missed. Those who knew Rebecca were impressed by her intelligence, modesty, warmth and kindness, dedication, and wisdom in every aspect of life. She was particularly committed to environmental epidemiology as a tool for improving public health and quality of life and to working with people from different cultures and backgrounds. Several ISEE members had the privilege of knowing and working with Rebecca during her regular participation in ISEE annual conferences and her research visits to Russia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Thailand. Her linguistic and cultural skills, and grace in challenging circumstances, were inspiring to many.
To honor Rebecca's memory and to encourage students and new investigators
to follow her example, the Rebecca James Baker Memorial Prize is awarded each year at the ISEE annual conference. Graduate level students
and new investigators who are within three years of having completed
their degree are invited to apply. All applicants must be first author
on an accepted abstract for the ISEE 2009 annual conference in Dublin, Ireland, August 25-28, 2009. (http:www.isee2009.ie)
Applications for the 2009 prize, to be awarded at the ISEE conference in Dublin, are due by July 1, 2009. Review criteria and application requirements are below.
Past winners of the Prize:
John Patrick McCracken, 2005
Molly Kile, 2006
Norma Elena Perez Herrera, 2007
Maggie Clark, 2008
Donations to the Baker Memorial Fund: For those who wish to make a donation to the prize fund, checks in U.S. dollars should be made out to ISEE specifying "Baker Memorial Prize donation " in the "Memo" line. Send donations (tax deductible in the U.S.) to ISEE Secretariat, c/o JSI Research and Training Institute, 44 Farnsworth Street, Boston, MA 02210; Phone: 617-482-9485; Fax: 617-482-0617; E-mail: iseepi@jsi.com. Contact the Secretariat to make donations from outside the U.S.
Review Criteria and Application Requirements
The winner will be selected based on review of
- An abstract submitted for presentation at the annual ISEE conference;
- A statement of 300 words or fewer describing the challenges faced by the applicant in conducting the research and how he/she met them; and
- Two nomination letters written by the applicant’s advisor and/or research collaborators.
A committee of four to seven will evaluate the applications and choose the winner, who will receive a certificate and ribbon at the meeting, as well as some support (amount dependent on funds available) to defray the cost of travel to the meeting.
The criteria for selecting the winner, which embody Rebecca James Baker’s approach to epidemiologic research, will be as follows (in no order of priority):
- The applicant is working in a challenging area of research, requiring skills such as obtaining and processing new or hard to access data, or working with populations and/or collaborators of different cultures or socio-economic circumstances.
- The abstract is of high scientific quality.
- The research is based on an international or cross-cultural collaboration.
- The applicant has demonstrated personal integrity, compassion, patience, and resourcefulness during the design and implementation of the research.
- The applicant has demonstrated an appreciation of and commitment to research as a tool to foster international understanding and public health improvement.
Applications for 2009 are due by July 1, 2009 and will be accepted via email sent to Marie O’Neill (marieo@umich.edu). The applicant should submit the abstract and statement. Letters of recommendation should be sent directly by the letter writers. Application materials will not be made public and will be shared only among the Awards Committee members evaluating the applicants. The initial committee who will evaluate applications is shown below. People who wish to serve on the committee in the future or assist with developing other commemorative activities should contact the co-chairs.
Permanent Members
Jeff Baker
Irva Hertz-Picciotto (Co-chair) ihp@ucdavis.edu
Marie O’Neill (Co-chair) marieo@umich.edu
Rotating Members
Matthew Longnecker
Karin Yeatts
Past Service
Shakoor Hajat (2005-2007)
John Spengler (2005-2006)
Jouni Jaakkola (2005-2006)
Best Environmental Epidemiology Paper Award
This new ISEE annual award for the best environmental epidemiology paper published in a peer-reviewed journal aims to recognize excellence in the field of environmental epidemiology and encourage the publication of outstanding papers. Criteria for the award include but are not limited to:
- Quality (data, analyses, presentation, argument)
- Originality
- Importance/impact
The winning paper will be selected by the ISEE Best Environmental Epidemiology Paper Award Committee and approved by the ISEE Council. The handling editor of the journal in which the paper is published will receive a special certificate.
» Authors, editors, and readers may make nominations. Only outstanding papers should be nominated.
» The nominated paper should be printed in hard copy in a scientific journal between January 1 and December 31, 2008.
» Submit nomination letters by email or international express mail and accompanied by a copy of the paper and a supporting letter (maximum of 2 pages) stating the reasons why the paper should receive the award.
» Send nominations and supporting letters no later than April 17, 2009.
The winning paper will be announced during the ISEE annual conference in Dublin in August 2009.
Send nominations to:
Secretariat, International Society for Environmental Epidemiology
ATTENTION: Chair, Best Environmental Epidemiology Paper Award Committee
c/o JSI Research and Training Institute, 44 Farnsworth Street, Boston, MA 02210 USA
iseepi@jsi.com
Awards