Mathias Medal Nomination

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Nomination Packages Due: 15 February 2016

Background

The restoration and conservation of the Chesapeake Bay has become a national model for efforts to balance expansive economic growth with careful stewardship of the environment. Within the Chesapeake Bay science community are those who commit their careers and personal energies to understanding the dynamics of coastal ecosystems and communicating that understanding. The medal is named for Senator Charles "Mac" Mathias who set the tone and scope of many of the programs designed to study the Chesapeake Bay through his early efforts to raise awareness about the plight of the Bay. His commitment and energy in Congress was fundamental in driving much of what followed for addressing the health of the Bay.

In Recognition of Excellence

To recognize the contribution of those who have led the way in our understanding of the processes affecting the Bay's ecosystem, the Maryland Sea Grant College, the Virginia Sea Grant College, and the Chesapeake Research Consortium instituted in 1989 the Mathias Medal, an award for excellence in marine science and education. Previous recipients have been individual researchers who, through sustained and significant contributions, have added to our understanding of the processes of the Chesapeake Bay and its watershed in some fundamental and transformative way. These recipients have provided insights that have helped guide policy development and advance stewardship of the Bay (see a list of past recipients). The award will be presented at a special event sponsored by the three organizations at a date to be announced in spring/summer of 2016.

Call for Nominations

We are inviting nominations from the community for the next recipient of the Mathias Medal to be awarded in 2016. Nominees must have made a significant contribution to Chesapeake Bay science/policy and have spent some part of their career at a Virginia or Maryland institution.

We are requesting that each nomination include:

  • One nomination letter (not to exceed two pages) that speaks to the qualifications of the candidate for this award. In particular, the letter should highlight the contributions that the scientist has made to fundamental understanding of the Chesapeake Bay and the significance of their research to environmental policy.
  • A full C.V. for the nominee
  • Two letters of endorsement (not to exceed one page each) for the nomination. These additional supporting letters should help to document the depth and breadth of the nominee's research and its importance toward improvement of scientific understanding, policy, and stewardship of the Chesapeake Bay.

Review of Nominations

The nominating steering committee is composed of the directors of the Maryland and Virginia Sea Grant College programs and the Chesapeake Research Consortium. The committee will conduct an initial screening based upon the depth and breadth of the nominee's research, its importance toward improvement of scientific understanding, policy, and stewardship of the Chesapeake Bay, and its transformative impact. Finalists will be presented to a Selection Board consisting of members chosen by representatives from each of the Chesapeake Research Consortium's member institutions and from three additional member or affiliate institutions of Virginia or Maryland Sea Grant College Programs that are not represented on the Chesapeake Research Consortium list.

Submission of Nominations

Please submit all nomination packages to Maryland Sea Grant by 15 February, 2016. Packages can submitted using the form on this page or by sending one pdf file to mathias@mdsg.umd.edu. If you have further questions, please do not hesitate to contact Fredrika Moser, Maryland Sea Grant (moser@mdsg.umd.edu), William Ball, Chesapeake Research Consortium (BallW@si.edu), or Troy Hartley, Virginia Sea Grant (thartley@vims.edu).

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