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The John Maddox Prize recognises those who face extraordinary challenges and advocating for an open and honest environment in which society can discuss scientific evidence. There is a category for early career researchers.

The John Maddox prize is a joint initiative of the charity Sense about Science and the leading international scientific journal Nature. The prize has been awarded annually since 2012 to individuals who have shown courage and integrity in standing up for sound science and evidence. In addition to the main award, there is an additional prize for an individual considered to be at an early career stage. 

The prize brings into the spotlight the underappreciated efforts of people the world over who try to bring research and evidence to public debate even when it is challenging, and inspires and encourages others to do the same.

The prize has a global focus and received hundreds of nominations from dozens of countries.  

Nominations should be from individuals in a personal capacity.

Nominations are assessed against the following criteria: 

  • How clearly the individual advanced the discussion of sound science and evidence 
  • How well they placed the evidence in the wider debate and engaged with others, beyond the reasonable expectations of their job 
  • Their level of influence on the public debate and what was at stake. 
  • The nature of the challenge(s) faced by the individual and the benefit of providing them with a safe platform. 

You'll find examples of previous winners on the prize webpages (below).

Click here for full details and to nominate