The Darwin Medal, the most prestigious award given by International Coral Reef Society (ICRS), is presented every four years at the International Coral Reef Symposium.
It is awarded to a senior ICRS member who is recognized worldwide for major scientific contributions throughout their career.
Nomination package must contain:
- Nominations must be submitted by a proposer and supported by a seconder, both of whom must also be current paid-up members of the Society.
- Nominator and seconder must submit signed statements confirming their support for the nomination; the proposer and seconder do not have to sign the same document.
- The intended candidate must be informed of the nomination, and be willing to be submitted. To indicate their willingness to stand, any nominee must also submit (directly or via their proposer) a signed statement to the effect that they are willing to be considered for the award; this may be submitted by email as a separate document from those signed by the proposer and seconder.
- A candidate may not support or approve more than one nomination in support of their candidacy. Any additional nomination or other material received in support of a candidate after a first nomination has been received will be rejected.
- A nomination should consist of a Case in Support of the candidate of not more than 3 (three) A4 pages in length, compiled by the proposer and seconder, and arguing the case for their nominee. This document should be composed with a font size of 11 or 12, using single spacing and with a margin to the sides and top and bottom of at least 2 cm.
- Curriculum Vitae of the candidate of not more than 6 (six) A4 size pages in length. The curriculum vitae should include details of the posts held by the candidate and a list of their publications, but not include any text arguing the case for the candidate.
- It is recommended that before preparing their nomination document a proposer and seconder should liaise closely with their preferred candidate in order to determine what their candidate believes to have been their principal scientific and related achievements and to ensure the accuracy of their statements.
Special Notes
- Any candidate for the Darwin Medal must be a current paid-up member of the Society. Enquiries regarding membership can be made to membership services who hold an up-to-date list of current members.
- Where a Case in Support or Curriculum Vitae exceeds the above length limit of 3 or 6 pages respectively, the balance of the document will be deleted and only the first 3 or 6 pages passed on to Council members for them to consider. Where a nomination document or curriculum vitae exceeds the above length limit of 3 or 6 pages by more than one page, the whole nomination will be rejected.
Deadline: 15 January 2026