National Academies Eric and Wendy Schmidt Awards for Excellence in Science Communications

2026 Award Winner

Aatish Bhatia

Graphics and Multimedia Editor

Award

2026 TOP AWARD WINNER
Best Science Journalist - Early Career

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Aatish Bhatia pushes beyond traditional explanatory journalism by using data visualization, interactivity, and custom-built tools to invite audiences to experience scientific ideas for themselves. Drawing on his background as a physicist, educator, developer, and journalist, he turns topics such as the spread of infectious disease, the social upheavals driven by the COVID-19 pandemic, and the changing night sky into intuitive experiences that encourage audiences to explore, experiment, and discover.

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Aatish Bhatia is a science writer, journalist and educator. He specializes in explaining complex ideas in simple ways through words, interactive graphics and data visualizations. Aatish’s work has appeared in The New York Times, Wired, RadioLab, TED-Ed, Minute Physics and CBS. Previously, he was a journalist at the New York Times, where he created award-winning visual explanations of artificial intelligence, climate change, epidemics and science funding cuts. Before becoming a journalist, Aatish taught at Princeton University. In his courses, students created art with engineering, built musical instruments, and learned about the math and science underlying music. Aatish has a Ph.D. in physics from Rutgers University and a B.A. from Swarthmore College.

What This Award Means to Me
"This award is a huge vote of confidence in my abilities as a writer and journalist. It will help me build my independent career and allow me to become more ambitious in my work. More importantly, it connects me to a community of inspiring science communicators who I can continue to learn from."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Aleida Rueda

Staff Writer

Award

Science Journalist: Local/Regional

2026 TOP AWARD WINNER
Best Science Journalist - Local/Regional

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Aleida Rueda brings rigor, originality, and humanity to health and environmental reporting across Latin America, illuminating risks that disproportionately affect children, women, and underserved communities. By intertwining scientific evidence with the experiences of people navigating toxic exposures, pesticides, and rare disease, she makes intricate public health issues deeply personal while revealing the larger systems and inequities behind them.

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Aleida Rueda is a Mexican journalist, editor, and educator specializing in science, public health, environmental issues, and complex systems reporting. Based in Mexico City, she currently serves as Secretary of the World Federation of Science Journalists (WFSJ) and is a co-founder and former president of the Mexican Network of Science Journalists.

With extensive experience across print, digital, and audio journalism, her work frequently investigates critical public interest issues related to science and health. She is a science communicator at the National Autonomous University of Mexico (UNAM)’s Center for Complexity Sciences. She contributes to SciDev.Net Latin America and co-hosts the podcast Pan Pal Susto. Rueda holds a journalism degree from the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México (UNAM) and a master's degree in journalism from Spain. She regularly conducts training programs and advocates for independent watchdog science journalism, gender equity in STEM, and ethical media practice across Latin America.

What This Award Means to Me
"This recognition honors my 20-year career exposing injustices through science and health reporting. In a region where science communication faces severe challenges, receiving the SciComm Excellence Award proves our work matters—and I hope it inspires young women journalists to bravely build their own paths."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Amy Martin

Host and Executive Producer

Award

Science Journalist: Freelance

2026 TOP AWARD WINNER
Best Science Journalist - Freelancer

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Amy Martin creates immersive environmental journalism that invites audiences not just to learn about the natural world, but to listen to it. Through her podcast, writing, field recordings, and inventive multimedia storytelling, she uses natural soundscapes to evoke awe, wonder, and the thrill of discovery while revealing surprising forms of communication in nature. Her work demonstrates how sensory storytelling can foster a deeper connection between science, people, and place.

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Amy Martin is the founder and executive producer of Threshold, a podcast about the wonders of the more-than-human world and the converging ecological crises that define our time. Science-positive, adventurous, and sonically beautiful, Threshold was described as “an outstanding example of environmental journalism” by the Peabody jurors when honoring the show with an award in 2020. Threshold has also won a national Edward R. Murrow Award, a Sigma Delta Chi award from the Society of Professional Journalists, and was featured as an official selection at the Tribeca Festival.

What This Award Means to Me
"I am not a scientist, but I’ve always loved science — the questions it asks, stories it tells, and adventures it inspires. This award affirms that science needs people like me; journalists who are passionate about witnessing the work scientists do, and communicating its meaning and value to a wider audience."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Anand Varma

Science Photographer, WonderLab

Award

Science Communicator: Organizational

2026 AWARD WINNER
Science Communicator: Organizational

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Anand Varma uses photography not simply to document science, but to reveal its wonder, beauty, and process of discovery. Through inventive experimentation and striking visual storytelling Varma creates moments that invite audiences to stop, look closer, and ask questions, inviting people of all ages to become observers and makers themselves. He creates unforgettable connections between art, science, and the natural world.

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In Anand Varma’s hands, a camera is not just a tool to capture what he sees—it’s a way to illuminate the layers of beauty and complexity that are otherwise hidden from view. He has devoted years of his life to developing innovative techniques—even building some of his own equipment—to create intimate, dramatic and surprising images of nature. His ultimate goal: to spark a sense of wonder about our world.

From the secret life cycle of the honeybee to the lightning-fast behaviors of hummingbirds, his images slow down the fast, speed up the slow and magnify the miniature to reveal life at the edge of our perception. He is a National Geographic Explorer and award-winning photographer based in Berkeley, California where he launched a science photography studio called WonderLab to invent new ways of visualizing the natural world. His book Invisible Wonders was published by National Geographic in 2023.

What This Award Means to Me
"There is no instruction manual for building a career in science communication. It can feel scary and lonely to chart your own course. This award is a reminder that taking risks to create unique work is worth it."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Casey Fiesler

Associate Professor of Information Science

Award

Research Scientist: Later Career

2026 AWARD WINNER
Research Scientist: Later Career

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Casey Fiesler cuts through the noise surrounding artificial intelligence to help audiences understand what emerging technologies can actually do and why their social and ethical implications matter. Through welcoming short-form videos and an innovative public AI ethics syllabus, she pairs clear explanations with thoughtful pedagogy and carefully curated resources. Her work offers audiences something especially valuable in a rapidly changing field: an accessible, trusted guide for separating reality from speculation.

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Dr. Casey Fiesler is a technology ethicist, human-computer interaction researcher, and educational content creator who wants to empower more people to understand and critique the technologies shaping their lives. She is the William R. Payden Endowed Professor and an Associate Professor of Information Science at University of Colorado Boulder, and the recipient of an NSF CAREER award. In addition to writing for outlets like WIRED and Slate, she creates short form video content that helps hundreds of thousands of people across social media platforms learn more about artificial intelligence. She also occasionally pursues that same goal onstage as a standup comedian who includes citations with her punchlines.

What This Award Means to Me
"As a tenured professor, I frequently encourage early-career scholars to pursue public communication, and I also advocate for institutions to recognize it as valuable scholarly work. Recognition like this goes a long way towards validating the value of sharing knowledge beyond the academy."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Daniel Dahis

Clinical Development Scientist

Award

Research Scientist: Early Career

2026 TOP AWARD WINNER
Best Research Scientist - Early Career

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Daniel Dahis pairs scientific expertise with polished, highly accessible digital storytelling to help broad audiences navigate consequential health information. His videos combine strong visuals and evidence-based explanations to address topics ranging from vaccines and cancer prevention to emerging medicine. By meeting misinformation with clarity and credibility, Dahis demonstrates the potential of social media to deliver practical public-health information at remarkable scale.

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Daniel Dahis, PhD, is a Brazilian biomedical engineer, scientist, and science communicator whose work bridges translational research, clinical science, and public engagement. He earned his PhD in Biomedical Engineering and has worked across academic research and the biotechnology and medical technology industries, with experience spanning drug delivery, diagnostics, medical devices, and clinical research. Named an Innovator Under 35 by MIT Technology Review Brasil, Dahis translates complex biomedical research into rigorous, accessible content for broad public audiences. His digital platforms have grown to more than 900,000 followers and reached hundreds of millions of viewers, with content focused on medicine, biotechnology, combating misinformation, and scientific literacy. He is also the creator of Eureka, a science newsletter dedicated to explaining emerging research and its implications for society. He believes deeply that science and broader public understanding of it can make the world a better place.

What This Award Means to Me
"Science communication is not defined by where you come from, your title, or your status. It is simply about how effectively you help people understand both the beauty of science and the warnings that emerge from evidence. This award reinforces that any scientist can make a difference with their own voice, and a camera, too."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Daniel Swain

Associate Researcher

Award

Research Scientist: Early Career

2026 AWARD WINNER
Research Scientist: Early Career

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Daniel Swain has built a trusted public voice by bringing deep expertise in weather, climate, and wildfire science directly to audiences when they need it most. During fast-moving disasters, his real-time communication helps people understand changing conditions, put extreme events in scientific context, and make sense of questions affecting their safety. Across livestreams, social media, and long-form writing, Swain demonstrates how an expert scientist can provide an invaluable public service by communicating clearly in moments of uncertainty.

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Daniel Swain, Ph.D., is a weather and climate scientist focused on the dynamics and impacts of extreme events—including droughts, floods, storms, and wildfires—on a warming planet. His primary appointment is as a climate scientist within University of California division of Agriculture and Natural Resources, and he has also been a longtime research partner at the NSF National Center for Atmospheric Research. He engages extensively with journalists as a recurring expert source—averaging over 200 interviews annually across hundreds of news outlets—helping make extreme weather, climate change, and associated natural hazards accessible and accurate in public discourse. Daniel is an alumnus of the University of California, Davis (B.S., Atmospheric Science) and of Stanford University (Ph.D., Earth System Science), and completed his postdoctoral work at UCLA. He also authors the widely read Weather West blog (weatherwest.com), which provides real-time perspectives on California weather and climate, and can be found on YouTube (@WeatherWest), Bluesky (@WeatherWest), Twitter/X (@Weather_West), and LinkedIn.

"Receiving the Schmidt award is more than just an honor--it also serves as a form of validation to those individuals and institutions who have supported me over the years, and also as a tangible signal to potential future supporters that this kind of public-facing and mass audience-focused work is needed and valued in society."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Eman Mounir

Freelance Data and Investigative Journalist

Award

Science Journalist: Local/Regional

2026 AWARD WINNER
Science Journalist: Local/Regional

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Eman Mounir combines ambitious investigative reporting with geospatial analysis and powerful visual storytelling to uncover environmental challenges across the Middle East and North Africa. Her work makes complex issues such as desalination and land reclamation palpable by connecting rigorous evidence with the experiences of farmers, fishing communities, and others living with the consequences. Mounir’s reporting demonstrates how bravery and technical ambition can make the human costs of massive development projects tangible and moving.

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Eman Mounir is an award-winning Egyptian freelance investigative and data journalist specializing in climate change and environmental justice across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Her work blends rigorous data analysis with human-centered storytelling to expose the social, economic, and political impacts of ecological degradation. A 2023 Pulitzer Center Ocean Reporting Fellow, 2024 National Geographic Explorer, 2025 Bertha Challenge Fellow and 2026 Knight science Jouranlism fellow at fellow at MIT, she has dedicated these fellowships to cross-border investigations into the environmental impacts of desalination plants in the GCC, phosphate extraction, and large-scale land reclamation projects. Her reporting has earned international honors, including being named Emerging Journalist of the Year by Covering Climate Now in 2024, the New Media Award, and the Nile Media Awards. Her work has also been nominated for the True Story Award, One World Media, and the Fetisov Journalism Awards.

What This Award Means to Me
"For me, this award is a reminder of the importance of the work I do as an independent journalist in my region. Data-driven investigative journalism is difficult work that requires time, effort, and years of persistence. This recognition encourages me to continue serving my region and those affected by environmental and climate crises."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Emily Buder

Senior Producer

Award

Science Communicator: Organizational

2026 AWARD WINNER
Science Communicator: Organizational

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Emily Buder transforms some of science’s most challenging ideas into visually rich, intellectually rigorous stories that invite audiences to engage deeply with biology, mathematics, and physics. She combines animation, illustration, narrative structure, and editorial rigor to create explainers that make difficult concepts intuitive without sacrificing their depth, resulting in science communication that is both compelling and informative.

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Emily Buder is a science journalist, filmmaker, and the founding director of video at Quanta Magazine. Her work combines rigorous reporting, cinematic storytelling, and animation and design to help audiences understand complex ideas at the frontiers of science. She built Quanta's video program, growing its YouTube channel to more than 1.2 million subscribers and 85 million views, and created the series "Biggest Breakthroughs." Her short documentary contributed to Quanta's Pulitzer Prize–winning coverage of the James Webb Space Telescope, and she was a journalist in residence at the Santa Fe Institute. Previously, Buder was a staff writer and producer at The Atlantic, where she founded the series The Atlantic Selects. Earlier, she traveled the world covering film festivals and the industry for IndieWire and other outlets, and developed films that won awards at Sundance. She holds a B.F.A. in film production from New York University's Tisch School of the Arts.

What This Award Means to Me
"This award affirms my belief that complex ideas can be accessible without losing their depth. I'm grateful to the Simons Foundation for supporting our work, the researchers who share their knowledge, the animators and illustrators who add magic to our videos, and our YouTube audience, whose curiosity makes this work rewarding."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Erica Gies

Freelance Journalist and Author

Award

Science Journalist: Freelance

2026 AWARD WINNER
Science Journalist: Freelancer

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Erica Gies brings depth, clarity, and a solutions-oriented lens to some of the most consequential questions in climate and water reporting. Her work reveals how decisions about urban infrastructure and land use reshape natural water systems and how working with those systems can offer new approaches to floods, drought, and climate resilience. By combining scientific explanation with cultural and historical context, Gies helps audiences see water not simply as a resource to control, but as a dynamic force shaping communities and landscapes.

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Erica Gies is the author of Water Always Wins: Thriving in an age of drought and deluge, a National Geographic Explorer awardee, and an independent journalist who covers science and the environment. Her work appears in the New York Times, Scientific American, Nature, bioGraphic, National Geographic, and other outlets.

Water Always Wins is about the “Slow Water movement,” innovations that are helping us adapt to the increasing floods and droughts brought by climate change. The book was published in North America, the United Kingdom, and China and won the Rachel Carson Award for Excellence in Environmental Journalism and other honors.

Gies has given keynote talks about Slow Water at the U.N. Water conference and at many water industry and science conferences. She’s been a guest on NPR’s Science Friday, CNN International, Fox News, KERA Think, KQED Forum, New Mexico PBS, CBC’s What on Earth and many more.

What This Award Means to Me
"I'm so honored to receive this prestigious Award for Excellence in Science Communication. I will use the prize to fund reporting trips and a fact-checker for my upcoming book, "Roots to Sky: How life and water can help cool Earth's climate." This recognition will also raise the profile and readership of my books."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Erika Hamden

Associate Professor and Director

Award

Research Scientist: Later Career

2026 AWARD WINNER
Research Scientist: Later Career

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Erika Hamden brings warmth, humor, and infectious enthusiasm to astronomy across books, television, and social media. Whether comparing the ages of celestial objects to sharks or explaining how weird the universe is, she has a gift for turning challenging concepts into memorable, fun experiences. Her ability to translate complex ideas into concrete, meaningful explanations welcomes audiences into the universe with a sense of fun and spontaneity while demonstrating the breadth and versatility of a scientist deeply committed to public engagement.

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Dr. Erika Hamden is a professor of astrophysics at the University of Arizona, and Director of the University of Arizona Space Institute. She specializes in building telescopes and developing sensor technology to make telescopes better. Dr. Hamden graduated from Harvard in 2006, earned a PhD from Columbia University in 2014, and spent 4 years as a Postdoctoral Fellow at the California Institute of Technology. Dr. Hamden is a TED Fellow, a AAAS IF/Then Ambassador, and has won numerous awards from NASA for her work in ultraviolet astronomy. She hosts a TV show on AZPM, is an author, a private pilot, and a science communicator on social media with over 250 thousand followers.

What This Award Means to Me
"It's so amazing to be recognized for the communications work that I do. I try to do this work because I believe science is joyful and fun and can be understood by anyone, no matter their education level. I'm so thrilled!"

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Gennaro Tomma

Freelance Journalist

Award

Science Journalist: Early Career

2026 AWARD WINNER
Science Journalist: Early Career

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Gennaro Tomma finds surprising, often overlooked stories at the intersection of people, wildlife, and conservation. From bees helping farmers coexist with elephants to mercury moving through changing ecosystems, his beautifully reported work makes environmental science expansive, accessible, and filled with wonder. By preserving the uncertainty and unexpectedness of discovery, Tomma inspires audiences to experience the natural world with fresh curiosity.

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Gennaro Tomma is a freelance journalist from Italy. He writes about science, with a focus on the natural world and its biodiversity, conservation, biology, climate change, policies related to science and the environment – and everything else that catches his eye. His work has been published in National Geographic, The New York Times, Scientific American, BBC, Science, New Scientist and many other outlets.

What This Award Means to Me
"Receiving this award means so much to a freelance journalist like me. Other than being a concrete help that will allow me to keep doing my journalistic work in a complicated time for this industry, it is also a significant, heart whelming validation of what I have done so far."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Harini Bhat

Creator and Founder

Award

Science Communicator: Organizational

2026 TOP AWARD WINNER
Best Science Communicator - Organizational

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Harini Bhat brings creativity, accessibility, and a deeply personal perspective to science communication, using engaging digital storytelling to make topics ranging from women’s health to emerging biotechnology feel relevant and approachable. By pairing rigorous science with her own experiences, she brings authenticity and humanity to the subjects she covers. Her inclusive voice and genuine engagement with audiences break down barriers around who gets to participate in science and inspire curiosity on an extraordinary scale.

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With well over 3 million followers across platforms, Dr. Harini Bhat is a PharmD turned science storyteller who has reimagined science communication through her acclaimed digital series, Today I Learned Science. In her first two years, Dr. Bhat received dual Telly Awards, an Anthem Award, and a Webby Honoree distinction. Her followers credit her with “single handedly bringing back their attention spans.”

Named a leading STEM voice on TikTok and selected as a 2023 World Congress of Science and Factual Producers Emerging Producer, Dr. Bhat continues to expand her reach as a TED speaker, host of the NAACP-nominated PBS Origins series 'In the Margins' and Hidden History, the hit podcast that explores your favorite historical mysteries from a scientific lens. Her work is rooted in a simple truth: storytelling is the oldest form of human communication, the thread that connects all of us, across all places and times.

What This Award Means to Me
"It sounds cliche to say that receiving this award is an absolute honor, but it is because it comes from my peers and colleagues in the scientific community. There are many incredibly talented and deserving science communicators out there, so to receive this award is very humbling, thank you."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Lucy Tu

PhD Candidate

Award

Research Scientist: Graduate Student

2026 TOP AWARD WINNER
Best Research Scientist - Graduate Student

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Lucy Tu brings humanity, compassion, and ethical depth to reporting on emerging medical technologies, placing the people most affected by scientific advances at the center of the story. Her deeply reported work on reproductive medicine combines technical rigor with lived experience, illuminating not only what science can make possible, but the complicated moral and societal questions that accompany it. The nuance and sensitivity of her storytelling distinguish her as an emerging communicator capable of making difficult topics deeply human.

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Lucy Tu is a research scientist and writer exploring how we intervene in and define human life. A PhD candidate in Socio-Legal Studies at the University of Oxford, she studies the dissemination and uptake of reproductive technologies, including cell-free DNA screening, in vitro fertilization, and human genome editing. Drawing on sociological and epidemiologic methods, her doctoral research examines patients’ and clinicians’ experiences with prenatal genetic testing in abortion-restrictive regions of the United States. Her graduate studies are supported by a Rhodes Scholarship.

Lucy is also a freelance journalist covering healthcare and emerging medical technologies. She was a 2023 AAAS Mass Media Fellow at Scientific American and has reported for outlets including The Atlantic, The Guardian, and Smithsonian Magazine. Her writing has been recognized by the National Association of Science Writers and the Association of Health Care Journalists.

Outside of her work, Lucy is an avid baker and rock climber.

What This Award Means to Me
"I have always been drawn to the spaces where science and lived experience collide, especially those dismissed as too messy or subjective to investigate. For me, this award affirms the importance of nurturing that curiosity and of helping others see science in all of its sometimes messy, forever fascinating complexity!"

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Martin Farina

Award

Research Scientist: Graduate Student

2026 AWARD WINNER
Research Scientist: Graduate Student

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Martin Farina tells science stories through the people who make discovery possible, bringing a distinctly human perspective to research in South America and beyond. His reporting makes science personal and accessible while highlighting the challenges behind scientific work. He shares science as an international endeavor shaped by collaboration and ingenuity, and connects audiences with science by sharing the experiences and realities of the people doing it.

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Martín Ezequiel Farina is a paleobiologist, science communicator, and science stand-up performer based at IDEAN (CONICET–University of Buenos Aires), Argentina. He holds a PhD in Biological Sciences from the University of Buenos Aires, specializing in avian ichnology, paleoecology, and evolutionary biology. Alongside his research, he writes popular science articles for general-interest media, including Viva, Clarín's Sunday magazine, bringing scientific topics to audiences beyond traditional science media. Through live talks, television, digital media, and his alter ego “Profe Hallucigenia,” he builds creative bridges between science and popular culture, exploring connections such as those between music, football and evolution.

What This Award Means to Me
"This award recognizes work in a time of crisis. Science faces a dark moment: climate denial, anti-vaccine movements, deep funding cuts. It tells me the fight is worth it: even when some scientists dismiss communication as minor, it's worth taking the front line and telling the world why science matters."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Mikhail Varshavski

Attending Physician

Award

Science Communicator: Independent

2026 AWARD WINNER
Science Communicator: Independent

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Mikhail Varshavski (Dr. Mike) brings evidence-based medical information to a remarkably broad audience through clear, engaging, and empathetic long-form storytelling. He meets difficult questions and misinformation directly, creating space for thoughtful discussion of pressing health issues. His work demonstrates how social media serves not only as a platform for reaching people, but as a tool for effective public health communication and meaningful dialogue.

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Doctor Mike Varshavski is a board-certified family medicine physician and the most followed doctor online with an audience of over 30 million across platforms. In his videos, Doctor Mike debunks medical misinformation and teaches viewers about their health and bodies. Despite amassing billions of views across websites like YouTube and Facebook, Doctor Mike continues to practice out of a community health center in New Jersey. When he's not making videos or practicing medicine, Doctor Mike competes as a driver for Ferrari Challenge and enjoys playing with his two newfoundland dogs, Bear and Rib.

What This Award Means to Me
"Science communication is about more than sharing facts. It’s about building trust, inspiring curiosity, and empowering people to make informed decisions about their health. This award helps us continue the mission of making the sciences accessible to millions!"

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Molly Edwards

Science Communicator

Award

Science Communicator: Independent

2026 AWARD WINNER
Science Communicator: Independent

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Molly Edwards approaches science communication with infectious enthusiasm, curiosity, and a commitment to showing audiences what science looks like in real life. Diving into plant research and the hidden treasures of herbaria, she pairs substantive scientific information with an energetic, playful style that makes learning fun. Her work fosters trust while making overlooked corners of research feel exciting, relevant, and worth exploring.

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Dr. Molly Edwards is a science communicator and educational media producer who tells stories that showcase the humanity and joy of being a scientist, in real life. In 2022 she received her Ph.D. in biology from Harvard University, where she studied the weird and wonderful 3-D petals of columbine flowers. While in graduate school, she developed her YouTube channel and social media presence as ‘Science IRL.’ On Science IRL you can catch her climbing giant robots, sniffing stinky corpse flowers, and having an all-around blast with fellow scientists, reaching millions of viewers along the way. She also works with organizations including PBS Digital Studios, Crash Course, and Class CrunchLabs to share her favorite science stories with the world.

What This Award Means to Me
"My time as a science communicator has been a rollercoaster; the work itself is a joy, but doing that work in an unstable political ecosystem is not. This award gives me so much hope, and I’m incredibly thankful and honored to join this amazing community."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Rupsa Chakraborty

Freelance Health Journalist

Award

Science Journalist: Freelance

2026 AWARD WINNER
Science Journalist - Freelancer

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Rupsa Chakraborty uses deeply researched, accountability-driven health journalism to expose inequities that can remain hidden within medical systems. Her reporting on organ transplantation and rare genetic disease care in India brings rigorous investigation together with the experiences of patients and families making disparities in access, funding, and health outcomes visible and urgent. By bringing disparities into public view Chakraborty demonstrates the potential of science and health journalism to inform public conversation and accountability.

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Rupsa Chakraborty is a research assistant at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) and an award-winning Indian investigative health journalist with over a decade of experience reporting on health inequities, public health systems and climate-related health risks in India. She has bylines in The British Medical Journal, The Indian Express and Global Health NOW.

A Commonwealth Shared Scholar, she completed her MSc in Global Health Policy at LSE. Her research examines heat-related health equity and climate adaptation. Her study of occupational heat exposure among community healthcare workers contributed to the Delhi government’s first-ever plans to make Anganwadi Centres heat-resilient.

Her honours include the Ramnath Goenka Excellence in Journalism Award and The Statesman Award for Rural Reporting. She has held fellowships with the Chevening SAJP, the National Press Foundation, the Dart Center for Journalism and Médecins Sans Frontières. The UK Chevening Secretariat also featured her as an Impact Fellow for her impactful journalism

What This Award Means to Me
"Science journalism demands patience, especially in making complex research understandable to readers and policymakers. Too often, important evidence remains buried in journals rather than informing decisions. This award reinforces my belief that communicating science clearly can bridge that gap and contribute to meaningful, evidence-based policy change."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Shane Campbell-Staton

Associate Professor

Award

Research Scientist: Later Career

2026 TOP AWARD WINNER
Best Research Scientist - Later Career

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Shane Campbell-Staton brings together scientific expertise, culture, humor, and a compelling on-screen presence to explore how human activity is transforming the natural world. Through Human Footprint, he pairs beautiful visual storytelling and rigorous research with a charismatic, welcoming approach that helps audiences see themselves within larger stories of evolution and environmental change. His work exemplifies the powerful role an established scientist can play in inviting broad audiences into complex questions about humanity’s relationship with the planet.

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Dr. Shane Campbell-Staton is an evolutionary biologist, Associate Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at Princeton University, and an award-winning science communicator. His research explores how human activities are reshaping the biology and evolution of species around the world, revealing the extraordinary ways life responds to a rapidly changing planet. Beyond the laboratory, Campbell-Staton is dedicated to making science accessible, engaging, and relevant to broad audiences. He is the co-creator and host of PBS’s Human Footprint, a documentary series that explores the complex relationship between humanity and the natural world through science, history, and storytelling. Through television, public speaking, and innovative approaches to science communication, he connects cutting-edge research with compelling narratives that challenge audiences to reconsider humanity’s place in nature. His work bridges scientific discovery and public understanding, inspiring curiosity about evolution and a deeper appreciation of our profound influence on life on Earth.

What This Award Means to Me
"As a child, I first discovered science through television and storytelling. Today, I have the privilege of sharing that same wonder with others. Science is a beautiful journey into the unknown, and science communication invites everyone along for the ride. This award celebrates the critical importance of that shared journey."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Wealth Okete

Podcast Host

Award

Research Scientist: Graduate Student

2026 AWARD WINNER
Research Scientist: Graduate Student

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Wealth Okete is building an important platform for African science, elevating researchers and scientific questions that are too often absent from global conversations. Through thoughtful interviews on immunology, infectious disease, research funding, and community engagement, he connects scientific discovery to the people and institutions it serves. His work expands both who is visible as an expert and whose science stories reach global audiences.

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Wealth Okete trained as a biochemist at the University of Benin, Nigeria, where his interest in immunology, infectious diseases, and vaccines developed. He embraced science communication shortly afterwards, inspired by its potential to bridge science and society. His work since then has centred on understanding the immune system and expanding access to science, with writings appearing in VaccinesWork (Gavi), The Biologist, and The Nigerian Observer.

Currently completing a master’s degree in Clinical Science and Immunology at the University of Cape Town, South Africa, he investigates immune responses in HIV-uninfected infants born to women living with HIV. Insight from this project could inform the development of tailored therapies and vaccines to strengthen immune protection in these infants.

Wealth hosts The Immunology in Africa Podcast and leads Biospherea, platforms that promote science communication, education, and community-building across Africa. Through his work, he aims to foster greater engagement with and representation of African science in global discourse.

What This Award Means to Me
"This award validates my growth as a science communicator and affirms my efforts to spotlight African science and scientists. I am incredibly honoured to be part of this cohort and encouraged to keep simplifying science and amplifying the perspectives and journeys of the people who define it across Africa."

Submitted work

2026 Award Winner

Yvette Cendes

Assistant Professor

Award

Research Scientist: Early Career

2026 AWARD WINNER
Research Scientist: Graduate Student

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Yvette Cendes combines the technical knowledge of a practicing astronomer with a strong instinct for meeting audiences where they are. Her polished science writing and lively engagement on Reddit have made her a trusted resource for audiences, with whom she answers questions and participates directly in conversations about astronomy. Her genuine two-way exchanges expand the practice of science communication from simply sharing information into building a community around curiosity and discovery.

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Yvette Cendes is an astronomer and an assistant professor at the University of Oregon,. She received her Physics BSc and MSc from Case Western Reserve University, and her PhD in astronomy from Leiden University in the Netherlands, followed by a postdoctoral fellow at Harvard University. Her research focuses on transient radio signals, ranging from Tidal Disruption Events (black holes that shred stars that get too close) to natural radio emission from exoplanets, using a variety of radio telescopes around the world. Yvette's science communication includes writing for publications such as Scientific American, Astronomy, and Discover, and she is the current astronomy editor for the Guinness Book of World Records. Additionally, Yvette is known for her Reddit account /u/Andromeda321, where her "astronomer here!" comments are read by millions around the globe, and she provides mentorship to students interested in STEM careers.

What This Award Means to Me
"It is an honor to receive this award, and to know my work has an impact on others. To me, science is an act of human expression no less than language or art, and sharing that love and excitement with others has always been greatly rewarding!"

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Megan L. Ranney

Dr. Megan L. Ranney is an emergency physician, researcher, and national advocate for innovative approaches to public health. In July 2023, she joined Yale University as Dean of the Yale School of Public Health, where she is also the C.-E. A. Winslow Professor of Public Health. Her research focuses on developing, testing, and disseminating digital health interventions to prevent violence and related behavioral health problems, and on COVID-related risk reduction. She has held multiple national leadership roles, including as co-founder of GetUsPPE during the COVID-19 pandemic and Senior Strategic Advisor to AFFIRM at the Aspen Institute, focused on ending gun violence through a non-partisan public health approach. She was previously the Warren Alpert Endowed Professor of Emergency Medicine, Deputy Dean of the School of Public Health, and Founding Director of the Brown-Lifespan Center for Digital Health at Brown University. She is an elected member of the National Academy of Medicine, a Fellow of the Aspen Health Innovators’ Fellowship, and a member of the Aspen Global Leadership Network. She earned her bachelor's degree in history of science, graduating summa cum laude, from Harvard University; her medical doctorate, graduating Alpha Omega Alpha, from Columbia University; and her master’s degree in public health from Brown University. She completed her residency in Emergency Medicine and a fellowship in Injury Prevention Research at Brown University.

Tim Appenzeller

Tim Appenzeller leads Science's award-winning news section and supervises its global team of staff and freelance writers and editors. He has spent 40 years as an editor and writer specializing in science and the environment for magazines including Scientific American, U.S. News & World Report, and National Geographic. His National Geographic article "The Case of the Missing Carbon" won the Walter Sullivan award for excellence in science journalism in 2005, and his June 2007 National Geographic cover story on global warming, "The Big Thaw," shared an award for best explanatory reporting from the Society of Environmental Journalists. Appenzeller was Science's Features Editor during the 1990s, and most recently was Chief Magazine Editor at Nature, responsible for its journalism and opinion.

David Biello

David Biello is the curator for TED Countdown, helping amplify solutions to global warming, accelerate action against climate change, and change the narrative around this crisis from doom and despair to realistic hope. Prior to that, he served as science curator at TED, working on talks featuring ideas from astronomy to zoology, including using gene drives to combat malaria, the mRNA revolution in vaccines, and the real impacts of sexual health restrictions. As part of his duties, he has helped judge and prepare finalists for TED’s Audacious Project, a philanthropic effort to pair compelling ideas with the funds to make an impact, including harnessing AI to develop new antibiotics and how to reduce vaccine spoilage. Prior to joining TED, he has been an award-winning journalist, reporting on the environment and energy since 1999—long enough to be cynical but not long enough to be depressed. He wrote for outlets ranging from Scientific American to The New York Times. He also hosted the duPont-Columbia award-wining documentary Beyond the Light Switch as well as The Ethanol Effect for PBS. And he is the author of the book The Unnatural World: The Race to Remake Civilization in Earth’s Newest Age, an Editor’s Pick of The New York Times Book Review. He received a BA in English from Wesleyan University and a MS in Journalism from Columbia University. He currently lives with his daughter and son between a Olmsted-designed park and a world-famous graveyard in Brooklyn.

Erika Check Hayden

Erika Check Hayden is a San Francisco-based journalist and director of the Science Communication Program at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Erika was a reporter at the science journal Nature for 15 years, where she covered biomedical research, specializing in genetics, infectious disease, and science in Silicon Valley, and won multiple awards, including for her work on the 2014 Ebola epidemic. She now writes for a variety of publications. She began her career at Newsweek magazine in New York.

Chris Crawford

Dr. Chris S. Crawford is an Associate Professor at the University of Alabama’s Department of Computer Science. He directs the Human-Technology Interaction Lab (HTIL). His research focuses on human-robot interaction and Brain-Computer Interfaces (BCIs). He has investigated systems that provide computer applications and robots with information about a user’s cognitive state. He previously developed a brain-drone racing system that was featured on over 800 news outlets including Discovery, USA Today, and the New York Times, and Forbes. Along with investigating brain-robot interaction applications, Dr. Crawford also developed Neuroblock, a tool designed to engage K-12 student in neurofeedback applications development. He recently won a NSF CAREER award for his research.

Beth Daley

Beth runs The Conversation, a national media outlet that unlocks research expertise for the public through journalism. A longtime Boston Globe climate reporter, Beth also worked at the New England Center for Investigative Reporting as a reporter and director of partnerships. As Director of Strategic Development at InsideClimate, she worked to diversify the Pulitzer Prize-winning news outlet's revenue stream. She attended Stanford University as a John S. Knight Journalism Fellow in 2011/2012 and was a Pulitzer finalist for her climate coverage in 2008.

Nadia Drake

Nadia Drake is a science journalist who specializes in covering space exploration and the search for life beyond Earth. For many years, she was a contributing writer with National Geographic; most recently, she was the interim physics editor at Quanta Magazine, and she has written for numerous publications including Nature, The New York Times, Science News, and Scientific American. She holds a PhD in genetics from Cornell University and a graduate certificate in science communication from UCSC.

Laura Helmuth

Laura Helmuth is a freelance science editor, writer, and consultant with experience across a range of publications. She is the former editor in chief of Scientific American and a past president of the National Association of Science Writers. She has been an editor for The Washington Post, National Geographic, Slate, Smithsonian, and Science magazines. She served on the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine's standing committee on the science of science communication. She currently serves on the advisory boards of SciLine, The Transmitter, and 500 Women Scientists. She is a past board member of High Country News, Society for Science, and The Open Notebook. She was named a Friend of Darwin by the National Center for Science Education. She has a Ph.D. in cognitive neuroscience from the University of California, Berkeley. She is a birder and is active on the social media platform Bluesky at @laurahelmuth.bsky.social.

Ronald M. Latanision

Ronald M. Latanision is an American materials scientist, corrosion engineer, academic and businessman. He is an emeritus professor of materials science and engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), the Neil Armstrong Distinguished Visiting professor at Purdue University, and serves as a senior fellow at Exponent, where he also served as a corporate vice president. Latanision served as co-editor-in-chief of Corrosion Reviews and is the editor-in-chief of the NAE Quarterly, The Bridge. He acted as a member of the International Corrosion Council, is a member of the NAE, and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences and holds the title of Fellow at NACE International, and ASM International.

Moira Shourie

Moira is the executive director of Los Angeles based Zócalo Public Square, a unit of ASU Media Enterprise. Previously, she was an executive at MTV Networks International and Outlook magazine, among India’s most widely read news magazines. She is a graduate of St. Stephen’s College, Delhi, Emerson College, Boston, and a Sulzberger Fellow at Columbia Graduate School of Journalism. Moira is a board member at New America and on the board of governors at the Japanese American National Museum

Janelle Wellons

When Janelle Wellons graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology with a B.S. in Aerospace Engineering, she had no idea that it would spark the beginning of a career operating science instruments and spacecraft at the Moon, Saturn, and our own planet Earth. She is currently a Senior Mission Operations Engineer at ispace, inc., leading routine and critical space operations from the HAKUTO-R Mission Control Center as a Flight Director for the companies’ lunar lander missions. Previously, Janelle worked at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory on the Earth observing MAIA, Sentinel-6, and SWOT missions as well as the Cassini mission to Saturn and Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter. Speaking to students about pursuing careers in space has been a constant throughout her career and she has been grateful to share her message through features by PBS SciGirls, Nike, Lego, and more. At JPL she was awarded the Bruce Murray Award for “inspiring students to engage in STEM, quenching their thirst for knowledge, and sparking a curiosity greater than the stars in the sky.” When she isn't on-call to operate robots in space, you can find her exploring her new home in Japan and doing outreach for communities traditionally underrepresented in STEM.

Andrea Bandelli

Andrea Bandelli is an international consultant and advisor in the field of science communication and public engagement with science. In his career spanning 25 years he has worked for several public and private organisations, including science museums, government organisations and universities across Europe, USA, South Africa and Brazil, leading some of the most innovative projects on science, art, democracy and public participation. He is a member of the board of the Deutsches Museum in Munich, of the scientific board of Universcience in Paris, and of the Expert Network of the World Economic Forum. He has published 2 books and several academic and popular articles on public engagement with science and technology.

Heather Berlin

Heather Berlin is a neuroscientist, clinical psychologist, and Associate Clinical Professor of Psychiatry and Neuroscience at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in NY. She explores the neural basis of impulsive and compulsive psychiatric and neurological disorders with the goal of developing novel treatments. She’s also interested in the neural basis of consciousness, dynamic unconscious processes, and creativity. A passionate science communicator, she hosts the Nova series Your Brain, and hosted shows on Discovery Channel and PBS. She makes regular appearances on StarTalk with Neil DeGrasse Tyson, and has appeared on the BBC, History Channel, Netflix, National Geographic, and TEDx, and was featured in the documentary Bill Nye: Science Guy. Dr. Berlin co-wrote and starred in the critically acclaimed off-Broadway show, Off the Top, about the neuroscience of improvisation, and the Edinburgh Fringe Festival show, Impulse Control. Berlin received her doctorate from the University of Oxford, and Master of Public Health from Harvard University, and trained in clinical neuropsychology at Weill Cornell Medicine’s Department of Neurological Surgery. She’s a visiting scholar at the New York Psychoanalytic Society and Institute, and was a Visiting Professor at Vassar College, the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology/University of Zurich, and The Hebrew University of Jerusalem.

Cynthia-Lou Coleman

Cynthia-Lou Coleman specializes in science communicaiton and studies how mass media frame environmental clashes on Native American lands. Author and activist Bill McKibben wrote that Coleman's 2020 book on environmental disputes puts "Indigenous ways of knowing front and center."

Jordan Ellenberg

John D. MacArthur Professor of Mathematics at UW-Maidson, author of HOW NOT TO BE WRONG and SHAPE.

Mary Flanagan

Mary Flanagan is an award-winning writer, designer, and artist involved in transdisciplinary research. She's the author of 7 books with MIT Press on design, feminism, digital culture and games. She is a distinguished professor at Dartmouth College and an affiliate of Film, Media, and environmental studies programs.

Adam K Fontecchio

Dr. Adam Fontecchio is a Professor in the Electrical and Computer Engineering Department at Drexel University, and is the inaugural Director of the Center for the Advancement of STEM Teaching and Learning Excellence (CASTLE), and currently serves as National Director for the national Center for Integration of Research, Teaching, and Learning (CIRTL). He has held leadership positions including Vice-Dean of the Graduate College at Drexel University, Vice-Chair of the IEEE Philadelphia Section, and Associate Dean for Academic Affairs in the College of Engineering at Drexel University. His research focuses on the area of nanophotonics. He has served as PI or Co-PI on >60 funded grants with >$33M in sponsored research or foundation funding, publication of >130 peer-reviewed articles, and 27 patents. These metrics include both technical research and educational research/programs. Dr. Fontecchio was selected for the 2015 Delaware Valley Engineer of the Year, the 2022 Christian R. and Mary F. Lindback Award for Distinguished Teaching, and the 2021 American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Benjamin Garver Lamme Award. He is also the recipient of a NASA New Investigator Award, the Drexel Graduate Student Association Outstanding Mentor Award, the Drexel University ECE Outstanding Research Achievement Award and the International Liquid Crystal Society Multimedia Prize.

Corey Gray

Corey Gray joined Caltech in 1998 to work with LIGO in the field gravitational wave astronomy. Initially reluctant to be a science communicator, he has learned of its importance especially with underrepresented groups. Corey
searches for creative ways to connect with audiences from recruiting Sharon Yellowfly (his mom to translate LIGO's historic discoveries into Blackfoot to bringing gravitational wave astronomy to the 2017 Siksika Pow Wow. Corey has given invited talks in the US & Canada.

Katelyn K Jetelina

Dr. Katelyn Jetelina is an epidemiologist and scientific communicator. She is the co-founder of Health Trust Initiative, an adjunct professor at Yale School of Public Health, and a Senior Scientific Advisor to several government and non-profit agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. In addition, Dr. Jetelina is the publisher of Your Local Epidemiologist- a public health newsletter that “translates” ever-evolving science to the public, reaching over 400 million views in over 133 countries. Dr. Jetelina has received numerous national awards, including recently being named a TIME100 Most Influential Person in Health. Katelyn resides with her husband and two toddlers in San Diego, California.

Maggie Koerth

Maggie is an award-winning journalist with 20 years of experience writing and editing articles about science and society. Her work has covered a wide variety of scientific fields, ranging from high-energy physics to sociology. Maggie also has extensive experience as a speaker and media trainer. She is currently the editor for climate and weather for CNN.

Kara L Law

Dr. Kara Lavender Law is Research Professor of Oceanography at Sea Education Association (SEA; Woods Hole, MA), studying the sources, distribution, transformation and fate of plastic debris in the ocean. Trained as a physical oceanographer, her research interests include the sources of plastic debris to the marine environment, understanding how ocean physics determines the distribution of plastic and other marine debris, and the degradation and ultimate fate of different plastic materials in the ocean.

Melissa C Márquez

Melissa Cristina Márquez is a marine biologist, science communicator, and author. With a focus on shark and ray research, Melissa has worked to raise awareness about marine ecosystems, particularly through her numerous social media platforms. Through her books, Marquez combines her scientific knowledge with her passion for inspiring future generations to care about the ocean and its creatures. She is also a dedicated advocate for diversity in STEM fields and has appeared in various media outlets to educate and inspire future generations about ocean science and conservation efforts.

Deborah Nelson

Deb is a Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist based at the University of Maryland, home of the Howard Center for Investigative Journalism. She co-authored a series at The Seattle Times that won a Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting and was project editor on Pulitzer-winning series at the Los Angeles Times and Washington Post. Since joining academe, she has co-authored series on climate change, superbugs, housing, medicine and environment for Reuters that received numerous awards, including from the National Academies of Sciences, American Association for the Advancement of Science, Overseas Press Club, Scripps Howard Foundation, Sidney Hillman Foundation, John B. Oakes, Society of Professional Journalists, White House Correspondents' Association, National Press Club and others.

Joe Palca

Joe Palca has been a science communicator for nearly four decades. From 1992-2022 he was a science correspondent for NPR, National Public Radio. Prior to that he worked for the news sections of Science and Nature. He also worked as a television producer. He came to journalism from a science background, having received a Ph.D. in psychology from the University of California at Santa Cruz where he worked on human sleep physiology. Palca has covered a range of science topics — everything from biomedical research to astronomy. He is founder of the NPR Scicommers program, a collective of science communicators. Palca has won numerous awards, several of which came with attractive certificates. In 2019, he was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. With Flora Lichtman, Palca is the co-author of Annoying: The Science of What Bugs Us (Wiley, 2011).

Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz

Enrico Ramirez-Ruiz is a Professor and the Vera Rubin Presidential Chair at the University of California, Santa Cruz (UCSC). After studying at the University of Cambridge, he was the John Bahcall Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Study in Princeton. Since joining the UCSC faculty in 2007, Ramirez-Ruiz has won a number of awards for his research, including a Packard Fellowship, the NSF CAREER Award, the Radcliffe Fellowship at Harvard, the Niels Bohr Professorship from the Danish National Research Foundation, the HEAD Mid-Career Prize from the AAS and the Bouchet Award and the Dwight Nicholson Medal from the American Physical Society. He is a fellow of the American Physical Society and member of the Mexican Academy of Sciences and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Czerne Reid

Czerne M. Reid, PhD, FAAAS, is an instructional associate professor in the University of Florida (UF) College of Medicine, and an affiliate associate professor in the UF College of Journalism and Communications. She is an elected fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of science (AAAS), cited for distinguished contributions to the communication of science. Dr. Reid is the founder of the Science Writers Mentor Academy, which provides training on effective mentoring for both mentors and mentees. She has worked as a journalist, editor and science communicator. She serves on the boards of the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing (CASW) and the Alachua Conservation Trust, and on the steering committee of the AAAS Section on General Interest in Science and Engineering. She is past co-chair of the Education Committee of the National Association of Science Writers (NASW). She earned a PhD in environmental chemistry at Emory University and a graduate certificate in science communication at the University of California, Santa Cruz. Her bachelor's degree in chemistry is from the University of the West Indies, Mona, in her native Jamaica.

Gustavo Rincon

Dr. Gustavo Alfonso Rincon is an educator, design practitioner, entrepreneur, research scholar, and thought leader in the fields of art, architecture, and media arts and sciences. His work explores new forms of spatial intelligence, digital creativity, and interdisciplinary innovation, while advancing education and research as a human right. He actively facilitates the creation of online/physical curatorial exhibitions and develops para-educational online programming.
Born in Queens, New York, Rincon is educated as an architect, artist, and media arts researcher, and is fluent in both English and Spanish. His academic and creative research has been exhibited nationally and internationally, alongside collaborations with global clients. He earned his Ph.D. in Media Arts & Technology (MAT) from UCSB, where his dissertation, “Shaping Space as Information: A Conceptual Framework for New Media Architectures,” introduced a new field of inquiry integrating the arts, architecture, and sciences. He also holds an M.A. in Architecture and Urban Design from UCLA, an M.F.A. from CalArts, and dual bachelor’s degrees, a B.S. in Architecture from the School of Architecture, Planning & Preservation and a B.A. in Art from the University of Maryland.
As a member of the AlloSphere Research Group, Rincon has collaborated on immersive projects, including the Quantum Composition series with Dr. JoAnn Kuchera-Morin, featured at the Computer History Museum, ISEA, SIGGRAPH, and TED Vancouver. The AlloTeam’s latest project “Sketches of Sensorium,” a satellite immersive exhibition for Getty's Pacific Standard Time initiative, was developed in collaboration with the Beall Center for Art + Technology at UCI and inspired by the late eco-arts pioneer Newton Harrison.
Currently, Rincon serves as an administrative Co-Director and Curator for Digital Futures International, facilitating annual worldwide online programming. His academic appointments have included roles as Teaching Assistant, Research Staff, Postdoctoral Fellow, Graduate Student Researcher, and Adj. Professor. He presently serves as Design Research Director for New Media Architecture(s) & Engineering, as well as Curator for Media Arts/Design & Sciences - Senior Adv. at the AlloSphere. Rincon is an Editorial Board Member for the Design International Series at Franco Angeli, Milan and a reviewer for Leonardo | MIT Press Journal. Finally, he serves as a juror for the Excellence in Science Communication Awards, administered by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in partnership with Schmidt Sciences.

Thomas C Skalak

Tom Skalak is Senior Advisor at the Joe and Clara Tsai Foundation, which makes philanthropic investments in science, social justice, and the arts with a vision to produce transformative impact on societal well-being. Biomedical science and human performance are major directions. Tom is also Vice President for Research Emeritus at the University of Virginia, was a resident artist at the Djerassi Resident Artists program and is a Fellow of the National Academy of Inventors.

Alison M Snyder

Alison Snyder writes about AI for Google DeepMind. Previously she was a managing editor at Axios for eight years where she reported on the intersection of science, AI/emerging tech and geopolitics, and led teams of award-winning journalists covering health, space, U.S. foreign policy and national security. Snyder's journalism career spans more than 15 years of reporting and editing for print, digital, audio, TV and live audiences. She graduated from MIT and received master's degrees from the University of Canterbury in New Zealand and New York University. Synder a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serve on the board of the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum.

Monique Verdin

Monique Verdin is an artist, citizen of the Houma Nation and primary steward of the Land Memory Bank & Seed Exchange, facilitating community-built record-making, experiential education, research, and site activations celebrating the diversity of coastal communities and native ecologies present in south Louisiana. She supports the Okla Hina Ikhish Holo network of Indigenous gardeners as the WECAN Gulf South food sovereignty coordinator. Monique co-stewards Nanih Bvlbancha, an earthen mound in New Orleans, co-founded Bvlbancha Liberation Radio and is a Gulf South Open School collaborator.

Dan C Vergano

Dan Vergano is director of science policy news at the American Institute of Physics (AIP). He was previously senior opinion editor at Scientific American, and a science reporter and editor at Grid News, BuzzFeed News, National Geographic and USA Today. He is chair of the New Horizons committee for the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing.

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