WASHINGTON — Submissions are now being accepted for the 2025 Eric and Wendy Schmidt Awards for Excellence in Science Communications, given by the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine in partnership with Schmidt Sciences.  

This application cycle marks the fourth year of the Eric and Wendy Schmidt Awards for Excellence in Science Communications, which honor exceptional science communicators, journalists, and research scientists who have developed creative, original work to communicate issues and advances in science, engineering, or medicine for the general public.  

This awards program strives to recognize and build a robust community of outstanding science communicators, science journalists, and research scientists. Submissions are encouraged from individuals who have developed high-quality communications and demonstrated the ability to communicate the spectrum of science, engineering, or medicine. This fourth cohort of winners will receive support as they continue to break down complex scientific, engineering, and health topics, inspiring wonder and curiosity about issues that impact daily life and planetary well-being.  

The program will confer 24 awards totaling $640,000. These awards will go to individuals for science communication or journalism in 2024, with nine awards for research scientists, nine awards for science journalists, and six awards for science communicators. The Eric and Wendy Schmidt Awards for Excellence in Science Communications are more than a one-time monetary award. In addition to the prize, Schmidt Sciences will help foster a vibrant and expanding community of science communications awardees by partnering with renowned journalistic institutions to provide ongoing training and professional development opportunities.  

“Great science communicators inspire fascination with the world around us and help us make informed decisions about our lives,” said National Academy of Sciences President Marcia McNutt. “We are excited about supporting and encouraging excellence in science communications and look forward to receiving many outstanding submissions in the weeks ahead.”  

“Our world is inundated with information, but it’s a challenge to find effective communication,” said Wendy Schmidt, who co-founded Schmidt Sciences with her husband Eric. “Communication transforms facts and data into conversation, story, feeling, and action. These awards recognize science communicators who bring facts to life and help us see our complicated planet, and our deep relationship to it and to each other, all the more clearly.”

“Science communication is an essential part of the research process,” said selection committee chair Megan Ranney, dean of Yale School of Public Health, C.E.A. Winslow Professor of Public Health, and professor of emergency medicine. “When researchers, journalists, and communicators effectively translate complex scientific work, they invite the public to explore their own curiosity and empower them to use science in their own lives. I’m deeply grateful to the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine and Eric and Wendy Schmidt for recognizing and supporting these voices. I look forward to celebrating another cohort of exceptional communicators who make science accessible, relevant, and actionable for all.”  

Recognizing and Developing a Wide Pool of Science Communicators  

The awards in the following categories will be given to individuals who have developed creative, original work published or released in 2024 that explores issues or advances in science, engineering, or medicine for the general public:

Nine Awards for Research Scientists will be split into three subcategories.

• Graduate student researchers — master’s or Ph.D. candidate and practicing research in science, engineering, or medical fields

• Early-career researchers — practicing researcher in science, engineering, or medical fields and was less than six years post-master’s or Ph.D.

• Later-career researchers — practicing researcher in science, engineering, or medical fields and was six or more years post-master’s or Ph.D.

Nine Awards for Science Journalists will focus on three subcategories in science journalism.

• Local/regional journalists — developed content for media organizations that focused on local/regional issues, reported the effects of wider issues on a locality or region, or regionally focused subsections of outlets that were broader in reach

• Early-career journalists — under 30 years of age or had less than five years of professional experience

• Freelance journalists — self-employed and developed content for media organizations

Six Awards for Science Communicators will focus on two subcategories in science communication for individuals who addressed issues or advances in science, engineering, or medical fields and did not identify as a science journalist or practicing research scientist.

• Independent communicators — not employed full time by a third-party organization or institution to do this work

• Organizational communicators — employed by an organization or institution

Nine Awards for Research Scientists will be split into three subcategories.

• Graduate student researchers — master’s or Ph.D. candidate and practicing research in science, engineering, or medical fields

• Early-career researchers — practicing researcher in science, engineering, or medical fields and was less than six years post-master’s or Ph.D.

• Later-career researchers — practicing researcher in science, engineering, or medical fields and was six or more years post-master’s or Ph.D.

Nine Awards for Science Journalists will focus on three subcategories in science journalism.

• Local/regional journalists — developed content for media organizations that focused on local/regional issues, reported the effects of wider issues on a locality or region, or regionally focused subsections of outlets that were broader in reach

• Early-career journalists — under 30 years of age or had less than five years of professional experience

• Freelance journalists — self-employed and developed content for media organizations

Six Awards for Science Communicators will focus on two subcategories in science communication for individuals who addressed issues or advances in science, engineering, or medical fields and did not identify as a science journalist or practicing research scientist.

• Independent communicators — not employed full time by a third-party organization or institution to do this work

• Organizational communicators — employed by an organization or institution

In each subcategory, there will be one top award of $40,000 and two awards of recognition of $20,000 each. A total of $640,000 will be awarded.   Submissions will be accepted until March 31, 2025. Leading scientists and experts in all aspects of science communication and journalism — from the academic, nonprofit, corporate, and other sectors — will review the submissions and select the winners. The winners will be announced this fall. For more information, see nationalacademies.org/awards/excellence-in-communication.  

The Eric and Wendy Schmidt Awards for Excellence in Science Communications are supported by Schmidt Sciences. Additional support is provided by the National Academy of Sciences’ W.K. Kellogg Foundation Fund and the Ralph J. and Carol M. Cicerone Endowment for NAS Missions.  

About Schmidt Sciences

Schmidt Sciences is a nonprofit organization founded in 2024 by Eric and Wendy Schmidt that works to accelerate scientific knowledge and breakthroughs with the most promising, advanced tools to support a thriving planet. The organization prioritizes research in areas poised for impact including AI and advanced computing, astrophysics, biosciences, climate, and space — as well as supporting researchers in a variety of disciplines through its science systems program.  

About the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine

The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine are private, nonprofit institutions that provide independent, objective analysis and advice to the nation to solve complex problems and inform public policy decisions related to science, engineering, and medicine. They operate under an 1863 congressional charter to the National Academy of Sciences, signed by President Lincoln.

Media Contacts:

Olivia Hamilton Communications Specialist Office of News and Public Information National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine ohamilton@nas.edu   Carlie Wiener Director of Communications Schmidt Sciences cwiener@schmidtsciences.org