Association of Polar Early Career Scientists

 

APECS International would like to recognize and honor the efforts of their mentors within the international polar science community. The APECS International Mentorship Awards were established in 2016 as a meaningful way to recognize the efforts of mentors within the international polar science community, and to honour those who have devoted significant time and energy towards building a supportive community for early career professionals.

Recipients of the APECS International Mentorship Award are:


2024 APECS International Mentorship Award Recipient: Prof. Dr. Jody Deming

mentor award 2024Prof. Dr. Jody Deming (University of Washington) was nominated by Georges Kanaan and supported by Dr. Josephine Rapp and Dr. Zac Cooper on behalf of Deming’s mentees. They highlight Deming’s role as a mentor and the profound impact she has had on their careers and that of other emerging polar researchers. Deming’s mentorship goes from undergraduate students to post-doctoral researchers. Mentoring an international community of early career researchers, the nomination and support letters mentioned that Deming provides not only direct scientific advice but places an emphasis on fieldwork and networking opportunities. Furthermore, Georges Kanaan (the nominator) highlights the personal relationships that Deming established with her mentees, through being always available to her students, making them feel welcomed to the group and that Deming, as mentioned in the nomination letter, “Always puts the human first and in doing so fosters a welcoming community where one is invited to be themselves [...] Is always available to listen and offer advice both as a friend and a colleague […] Jody believes that being content allows one to more enjoy their work and thus be a better scientist”. 

Deming’s impact is not limited to the period that mentees work in her team, continuing to provide support to them throughout their careers, even when already working outside Deming's laboratory as highlighted in the nomination “I still consider my time in her group as the most intellectually stimulating period of my scientific career and think of Prof. Deming and the team she created as my scientific family, which I can always rely on for advice and support. Those that have been lucky enough to work with Prof. Deming can only aspire to become equally skilled, perceptive, and empathetic mentors for their own students. I truly cannot think of anyone more deserving of this recognition than Prof. Deming.

Deming is a Karl M. Banse Endowed Professor at the University of Washington. She is an oceanographer that explores microbial life in the Arctic Ocean. At the time of receiving the award, Deming said “I am overwhelmed and deeply honored to be the recipient of the APECS International Mentorship Award for 2024. [...] I am ever grateful to those I have mentored over the years, and especially to Georges, Josephine, and Zac, not only for their time and efforts in expressing themselves on my behalf, but for all the ways in which they have mentored me in return, helping me to be the mentor they could recognize in such a kind way.

image: Prof. Dr. Jody Deming with the APECS International Mentorship Award 2024 (right) and nominator Georges Kanaan (left).

2023 APECS International Mentorship Award Recipient: Dr. David K. A. Barnes

Dr. David Barnes was nominated by Nadescha Zwerschke (Greenland Institute of Natural Resources) supported by Dr Terri Souster (The Arctic University of Norway) and Saz Reed (SSEN Transmission, Scotland) on behalf of Dr Barnes’ wider mentees. They highlighted his role as a mentor and the profound impact he has had on their careers and that of others  of emerging Polar researchers. He has not only been a great mentor to early career undergraduates, Masters and PhD students across many countries but also a strong colleague and friend. In his nomination, both Nadescha and Dr Terri highlighted that “David is one of the rare academics who are leading in their field yet are not afraid to share the limelight with the future generation” and “I have never seen David treat an early career researcher as anybody else but his equal and I truly believe he is more excited by the success of his PhD students and people he supervised or line managed than by his own.”

Dr. Barnes works at British Antarctic Survey and is a visiting lecturer of Cambridge University. He was just heading off to Rothera Research Station on the west Antarctic Peninsula (to work with early career researchers Ryan Mathews and Alice Clement among others) at the time of receiving the award said “What fantastic and humbling award, thank you so much to the very generous thoughts of APECS colleagues that nominated and supported this award. I hope I can live up to it in the coming years. Thank you again and I am honoured to work with you all’.

 

2021 APECS International Mentorship Award Recipient: Dr. Shridhar D. Jawak

352 Shridhar Jawak International Mentoship Award 2021APECS is very pleased to announce our 2021 APECS International Mentorship Award recipientDr. Shridhar D. Jawak!

Dr. Shridhar D. Jawak was nominated by Prashant Pandit (University of Twente, Netherlands) on behalf of Dr. Jawak’s numerous mentees. They all highlighted Dr. Jawak’s proficiency at being both a professional and a personal mentor, as perfectly described by one PhD student: “As a PhD guide, his relentless positivity in even my most unmotivated moments kept me pursuing each milestone. […] Regardless of his busy schedule at SIOS, he is always available for a conversation. […] I believe under him, any student will learn to be an efficient researcher, a better communicator, and will always retain a yearning for knowledge”.

On behalf of all APECS members, we would like to sincerely thank Prashant Pandit for his nomination as well as Dr. Jawak for setting an example of a professional and caring supervisor.

We would also like to thank all of those who nominated mentors, and to the APECS International Mentorship Award committee members who handled the nomination and award process. We received several nominations for this years’ call, and it was difficult to select the winner.

If there is someone who has made a difference in your career who you think deserves recognition, please nominate them for next year’s awards. Nominations for the 2022 APECS International Mentorship Award will be announced on our website and via social media. More information about the nomination process and criteria is available on the website.

Award Committee (2020-2021):

  • Cinthya Bello, National Agrarian University La Molina, Perú
  • Tomás Bolaño-Ortiz, National Technological University, Argentina
  • Marlen Kolbe, University of Algarve, Portugal
  • Maciej Mańko, University of Gdańsk, Poland
  • Kirsten Reid, Memorial University of Newfoundland, Canada
  • Paul Rosenbaum, Uppsala University, Sweden

Photo by Shabnam Choudhary

2020 APECS International Mentorship Award Recipients: Maria Olivier and Dr. Amaelle Landais

APECS is very pleased to announce our 2020 APECS International Mentorship Award recipientsRia Olivier and Amaelle Landais! The mentorship awards were established in 2016 as a meaningful way to recognize the efforts of those mentors within the international polar science community, and to honour those who have devoted significant time and energy towards building a supportive community for early career professionals. We received several nominations for both categories and it was difficult to select the winners.

180 Maria Olivier APECS International Mentorship Award Recipient 2020Maria Olivier (Antarctic Legacy of South Africa, South Africa), also known as tannie Ria, has been awarded within the “APECS category”. She was nominated by the National Committee of APECS South Africa and in particular Christel Hansen, Alta Saunders, Lize-Marie van der Watt and Johan Viljoen for the outstanding contribution to the success of APECS. “There is nothing that can keep her down and she always sees the upside of everything. Since she has been active in the South African Polar community (for 9 years now) she has taken many ECRs under her wing. Ria is always present and willing to answer questions, give advice, put you in contact with someone and encourage you to try new things and adventures. She will nudge you in the right direction so you will realise your full potential – even if you don’t see it.” Ria has been instrumental in growing support for APECS SA among the polar community in South Africa by increasing the digital footprint and giving hints and guidance on how to best organise events. By sharing her experience and knowledge she plays a major role in the success of APECS SA.

 

181 Amaelle Landais APECS International Mentorship Award Recipient 2020Dr. Amaelle Landais (Climate and Environmental Sciences (LSCE) at the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS)) has been awarded within the “member category” and was nominated by no less than 10 APECS members! Émilie Capron, Alexandre Cauquoin, Anais Orsi, Alexandra Touzeau, Benedicte Lemieux-Dudon, Lucie Bazin, Mathieu Casado, Myriam Guillevic, Renato Winkler and Thomas Extier all elaborated on the extraordinary role that Amaelle had, and continues to have, on them and other early career scientists. She made sure that all ECRs were familiar with APECS and encouraged them to become actively involved. “Amaelle is truly impressive both as a scientist and as a human being! She provides opportunities and collaborations throughout the PhD and/or postdoctoral experience, and never stops to do so afterwards, not restricting her excellent mentoring skills to the ECRs she officially supervises. She is a true inspiration to each and every one of us and do not know any other scientists in our field that deserves more than Amaelle Landais the APECS International Mentorship Award 2020”


What else needs to be said? On behalf of all APECS members, we would like to sincerely thank Ria and Amaelle for all that they have done as mentors for both our organization and so many early career researchers as individuals. The 2020 APECS International Mentorship Award is a small token of our gratitude for all of the time, wisdom, and passion they have shared. We are certain they will continue their great mentorship and look forward working with both awardees further in future.

We would also like to thank all of those who nominated mentors, and to the Mentorship Award committee members who handled the nomination and award process.

If there is someone who has made a difference in your career who you think deserves recognition, please do put them forward for next year’s awards. Nominations for the 2021 APECS International Mentorship Award will be announced on our website and via social media. More information about the nomination process and criteria is available on the website.

Mentorship Award 2020

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 "ExCom member Mathieu Casado sends congratulations to Amaelle while
visiting in Laboratoire des Sciences du Climat et de l'Environnement, France" 

© Frédéric Prié and Mathieu Casado.


Award Committee (2019-2020):

Maciej Mańko – University of Gdańsk, Poland
Maud van Soest ¬– University of Loughborough, United Kingdom
Kabir Rasouli – University of Calgary, Canada
Arindam Chowdhury – India North-Eastern Hill University (Shillong), India
Paul Rosenbaum – Uppsala University, Sweden
Juan Höfer - Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso, Chile

Gerlis Fugmann, APECS / Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research, Germany (ex-officio)

2018 APECS International Mentorship Award Recipients: Dr. Aleks Terauds and Dr. José Xavier

APECS is very pleased to announce our 2018 APECS International Mentorship Award recipients - Dr. Aleks Terauds and Dr. José Xavier! The mentorship awards were established in 2016 as a meaningful way to recognize the efforts of those mentors within the international polar science community, and to honor those who have devoted significant time and energy towards building a supportive community for early career professionals.

This year, we received several deserving nominations for both categories and it was genuinely difficult for our award committee to select the winners. Thank you to all of those who nominated mentors, and to the Mentorship Award committee members who handled the nomination and award process. Both Aleks and José have devoted significant time to training, advising, and assisting those at the start of their careers, as seen by the following highlights from both of their nominations:

Alex Terauds.jpgDr. Aleks Terauds (Australian Antarctic Division, Australia) is the 2018 recipient in the “member category”. APECS members were invited to nominate someone who has been an outstanding personal mentor to them in their career. Aleks was nominated by Jasmine Lee, Meagan Dewar, Hannah Wauchope and Jarod Hodgson, who emphasise that Aleks is an exemplary role model to early career Antarctic scientists across the world. They wrote that “Aleks is an approachable and engaged mentor… this approachability is a welcome relief, fostering a collegiate and collaborative dynamic,” and described him as “the perfect mix of academic support and career guide who has ensured that I already have a flourishing career.” Aleks makes time to support and provide opportunities to those in early career stages, and has helped to shape the career paths of many young researchers. He genuinely cares about integrating early career voices into the Antarctic community, and is invested in setting them up to successfully work with and contribute to policy-making. In addition, Aleks regularly contributes his expertise and time to APECS events, such as the 2017 APECS Oceania Symposium. APECS is therefore honoured to recognise Aleks with an APECS Mentor Award for the significant contribution he has made to fostering early career researchers.


Jose Xavier.jpgDr. José Xavier (University of Coimbra, Portugal) is the 2018 recipient in the “APECS category”. APECS committees were encouraged to nominate a mentor who has made an outstanding contribution to the success of APECS, and José was nominated by several National Committee, including APECS Portugal, as well as several individual APECS members. They remarked upon the way he brings people together and “is constantly identifying and introducing ECRs to leaders in their scientific field and marking introductions,” and described APECS as “José’s second love, scoring close to science!” José is an excellent example of how APECS is now growing its own mentors. He has been actively engaged with APECS since our establishment in 2007, held a vital role in helping to develop our organisation, and over the years he has participated in numerous panels and workshops as a mentor. José is also dedicated to building capacity around the world, and has supported the creation of several APECS National Committees. In addition, he has mentored numerous students in his career - regardless of whether he was their supervisor or not - leading them to professional success. This support has ranged from guidance during Antarctic fieldwork to helping students learn how to best take advantage of time at international conferences, or to become better educators themselves. José is an enthusiastic communicator who inspires not only the people of Portugal, but also the entire APECS community with his infectious enthusiasm. We therefore congratulate José on a well-deserved award.

On behalf of all APECS members, we would like to sincerely thank José and Aleks for all that they have done as mentors for both our organization and so many early career researchers as individuals. The 2018 APECS International Mentorship Award is a small token of our gratitude for all of the time, wisdom, and passion they have shared. We look forward to working with both of them further in future. Both awards were handed out during the POLAR2018 Conference in Davos.

IMG_3557.JPGIMG_3555.JPG


Mentors come in many guises – if there is someone who has made a difference in your career who you think deserves recognition, please do put them forward for next year’s awards. Nominations for the 2019 APECS International Mentorship Award will be announced early in 2019 on our website, and you can learn more about this year’s nomination process through our archived page.

Award Committee (2017-2018):

José Queirós, University of Coimbra, Portugal (Chair)
Julie Bull, Centre for Addiction and Mental Health / University of New Brunswick / University of Toronto, Canada
Natalie Freeman, Scripps Institution of Oceanography, University of California San Diego, United States
Laura Hobbs, University of Strathclyde / Scottish Association for Marine Science, United Kingdom
Nadya Yanakieva, Bulgarian Antarctic Institute, Bulgaria
Gabriela Roldan, Gateway Antarctica, University of Canterbury, New Zealand
Alex Thornton, ARCUS, United States
Gerlis Fugmann, APECS / Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research, Germany (ex-officio)

2017 APECS International Mentorship Award Recipients: Dr. Hugues Lantuit and Dr. Renuka Badhe

APECS is thrilled to announce our 2017 APECS International Mentorship Award recipients - Dr. Hugues Lantuit and Dr. Renuka Badhe! These awards were established as a meaningful way to recognize and honor the efforts of mentors within the international polar science community who have devoted significant time and energy towards building a supportive community for early career researchers (ECRs).

This year, we received several deserving nominations for both categories and it was difficult for our award committee to select the winners in both award categories:

HuguesDr. Hugues Lantuit (Alfred Wegener Institute, Germany) is the 2017 recipient in the APECS category, where APECS committees were encouraged to nominate a mentor who has made an outstanding contribution to the success of APECS. Ten years ago, Hugues was the co-founder of APECS, a network that supported since its formation over 7600 members during the early stages of their careers. With this, as well as with the foundation of the Permafrost Young Researchers Network (PYRN), he “provided ECRs with platforms to get connected with each other and to get deeply involved into the international polar research landscape”. Hugues has been an inspiration and bright example of passion for the polar sciences for many early career researchers and he provided solid foundations for future polar scientists to get actively engaged. Among others, through this position as the Executive Director of the International Permafrost Association (IPA) he helped to develop and maintain frameworks for the inclusion of ECRs at professional events, meetings, committees and working groups of which many APECS members have benefitted from over the years.

Hugues has been a great motivator and supporter for early career scientists. Since the foundation of APECS, he has been involved in many of our workshops and webinars, serving as a mentor for the participants and sharing his experience and advice; for example, how to navigate the world of polar acronyms or networking at conferences. Aided by his understanding that people will achieve more as a group than as individuals, he has supervised more than 20 PhD, Master’s, and Bachelor students. Nominators reiterated that “it was [Hugues] who infected [them] with the desire to learn more about the Polar regions” and provided the opportunity to succeed through fieldwork, speaking opportunities, and trusting them to take control of their academic careers.

Renuka BadheDr. Renuka Badhe (European Polar Board, Netherlands) is the 2017 recipient in the member category, where we encouraged APECS members to nominate someone who has been an outstanding personal mentor to them in their career. Dr. Badhe was nominated by several individuals who said that, “as far as mentors go, Renuka belongs in the ‘rockstar’ category.” Renuka has been been a strong supporter of several APECS national committees, and early career researchers and professionals from around the world have benefitted from her generous donation of time and sharing of her expertise. She is also a masterful creator of networks, not only amongst APECS members but the entire global polar community. Furthermore, not only is she a high-profile woman in polar science, but Renuka has also been open about the challenges she has faced throughout her career while remaining an outspoken advocate for members of underrepresented communities.

The nomination letters emphasized that she “never hesitates to provide support whether it is through her professional position or personal engagement”. Her “mentorship has been anything but passive. She has consistently gone out of her way to ensure that my voice is heard in professional settings as well as become a true friend - one of the few people I know that I can call upon at any hour, with any professional or academic concern, and she'll be there with a compassionate ear and thoughtful advice". The nominators also highlighted Renuka`s “talent for identifying someone’s research interests and priorities, and introducing them to leaders in the field, with a suggestion of how they may be able to mutually assist one another”. She is “a strong advocate for early career researchers, [who] helps to push our work to the forefront even when we might lack the confidence to do so”.

On behalf of all APECS members, we would like to sincerely thank Hugues and Renuka for everything that they have done as mentors for both our organization and so many of us as individuals. We are honored to present the 2017 APECS International Mentorship Award to them both as a small token of our enormous gratitude for their time, wisdom, and passion.

David Carlson wins inaugural APECS International Mentorship Award 2016

APECS Mentor Award DAVE

APECS is proud to announce that the recipient of the inaugural APECS International Mentorship Award 2016 is David Carlson. The award was presented to him during the Arctic Observing Summit 2016 in Fairbanks, Alaska. The award was established to recognize and honor the efforts of our mentors within the international polar science community and acknowledge their time and energy in building a supportive community. There could not be a more deserving recipient of this award.

It was Dave’s support during the International Polar Year that was instrumental in the establishment of APECS and his mentorship over the years has helped APECS grow into the organization it is today.

We received an astounding number of letters nominating Dave for this award, describing Dave as a “mentor of historical proportions.” These letters also featured personal stories – how someone, after a chance meeting with Dave at a conference – gained a valuable and insightful mentor in research, outreach, and life.

Dave has again and again championed outreach and education as a critical part of scientific research. His dedication to making sure our work is shared with diverse audiences has certainly been a boon to the field as a whole. He inspired many polar researchers and generations to come to do education and outreach and to communicate their research about the Polar regions.

Dave also has a remarkable skill for bringing people together, and he has channeled that to creating opportunities around the world for early career scientists. His incredible dedication to mentoring both the APECS and individual early career researchers has opened an untold number of doors and shaped dozens of careers.

APECS would like to thank Dave for everything that he has done as a mentor for both our organization and for so many of us as individuals. The APECS International Mentorship Award is a small token of our enormous gratitude for Dave’s time, wisdom, and passion over the years.

David Carlson is currently the Director of the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP), where he facilitates analysis and prediction of Earth system variability and change with relevance, benefit and value to society. He is co-founder and co-Chief Editor, with H. Pfeiffenberger (Alfred Wegener Institute), of Earth System Science Data, an international data publication journal. Dave supported the establishment of APECS during his tenure as Director of the International Polar Year (IPY) International Programme Office, where he organised, managed, coordinated, represented and supported the international interdisciplinary science program. Previously he was the Director of the Atmospheric Technology Division at NCAR, Director of the Tropical Ocean Global Atmosphere (TOGA) Coupled Ocean Atmosphere Response Experiment (COARE) International Project Office, and Associate Professor in the College of Oceanography at Oregon State University.

To watch the presentation of the APECS International Mentorship Award to Dave Carlson at AOS 2016 click here and scroll down to AOS Plenary Session (E) - 18 March - 8:45 am to 10:45 am. The award is presented 56 minutes into the video.

 

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