Closing date nears for 2012 Prime Minister’s Science Prizes

Closing date nears for 2012 Prime Minister’s Science Prizes

New Zealand’s current and future science heroes are nearing the deadline to enter the 2012 Prime Minister’s Science Prizes. The prizes are this country’s most prestigious science awards, with a total of $1 million on offer.

Entries for four of the prizes close on Tuesday 24 July. They are:

• The Prime Minister’s Science Prize, $500,000
To an individual or team which has made a transformative discovery or achievement in science that has had a significant impact on New Zealand or internationally

• The Prime Minister’s MacDiarmid Emerging Scientist Prize, $200,000
To an outstanding emerging scientist undertaking research for a PhD or within five years of the date of the award of a PhD

• The Prime Minister’s Science Teacher Prize, $150,000
To a science teacher for outstanding achievement in teaching science

• The Prime Minister’s Science Media Communication Prize, $100,000
To a practising scientist who is an effective communicator, to provide them with an opportunity to further develop their knowledge and capability in science media communication

The fifth prize, the 2012 Future Scientist Prize, will be awarded to the Supreme Award recipient from the Royal Society of New Zealand’s ‘Realise the Dream’ competition and provides a $50,000 tertiary scholarship to the winner.

This is the fourth year the high-value science prizes have been offered. The prizes recognise the contribution science and innovation makes to economic growth, and the impact and importance of science on New Zealanders’ lives.

The 2011 Prime Minister’s Science Prize was won by a NIWA – Otago University Chemical and Physical Oceanography team led by Professor Philip Boyd for research that is helping to guide international decisions on mitigating climate change.

Professor Boyd says winning the prize has opened doors for the team both in New Zealand and internationally. The 2011 Prime Minister’s MacDiarmid Emerging Scientist, Rob McKay, also experienced international acclaim.

“One of the things that surprised me the most was the international attention and recognition this award has. It has led to invitations to be involved in scientific planning committees and will help fund international collaboration in world-class laboratories,” he says.

To find out more about the Prime Minister’s Science Prizes visit:
www.pmscienceprizes.org.nz

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