The AAAS Mani L. Bhaumik Award for Public Engagement with Science, formerly the AAAS Award for Public Understanding of Science and Technology, was established in 1987 to recognize scientists and engineers who demonstrate excellence in their contribution to public engagement with science. The recipient receives a monetary prize of $5,000, a commemorative plaque, and recognition at the AAAS Annual Meeting.
Visit the awards nomination site from April 15 through June 30, 2022 11:59 ET, to nominate a scientist or engineer for the 2023 award, to be honored at the 2023 AAAS Annual Meeting. Inquiries may be directed to the public_engagement@aaas.org.
2022 Award Recipient: Dr. Rashawn Ray
Rashawn Ray is honored for his engagement on key social scientific concerns and social issues, applying a scientific lens to discussions of race and inequality.
Past Recipients
2021
Esther Ngumbi is honored for her engagement on sustainable agriculture and ending hunger, her commitment to diversifying the global community of scientists, and her work to change the culture of science.
2020
J. Marshall Shepherd is honored for his high-profile public engagement and ability to connect with audiences about the ways in which weather and climate are linked to societal issues.
2019
Joanna Verran, is recognized for translating her own research on microorganisms and surfaces into innovative public engagement activities and building capacity for science communication across her institution.
2018
Michael E. Mann is honored for the breadth and depth of his tireless and effective efforts to communicate the science of climate change to the media, public, and policymakers.
2017
Due to a change in naming convention, there is not a 2017 award recipient
2016
Richard Tapia is honored for his remarkable career blending world-class scholarship, admirable mentoring and profound contributions to science, technology, engineering and mathematics education and public engagement.
2015
Mark Miodownik is recognized for his enthusiastic and successful commitment to public engagement, igniting a sense of wonder about the world by unveiling the interplay between science, engineering, and society.
2014
James Kakalios is recognized for the unique ways that he communicates the ideas and excitment of physics and stimulates the general public to learn more about the science and technology that shape their lives.
2013
Steven Strogatz is honored for his exceptional commitment to, and passion for, conveying the beauty and importance of mathematics to the general public.
2012
Richard B. Alley is recognized for his decades-long, broadbased and exceptionally effective efforts communicating the best of climate science to excite the interest of the general public and policymakers.
2011
Nalini Nadkarni is honored for her efforts to bridge gaps between society and science, humans and nature. Her work has taken her to prisons and churches, boardrooms and bookstores, legislatures and rap music studios.
2010
J. John Cohen is recognized for his innovative and interactive education models that have served to demystify and effectively communicate the medical sciences throughout the Denver, Colorado area and the world.
2009
May R. Berenbaum is honored for for her extraordinary ability to integrate her original research on the world of insects with her inspirational efforts to communicate the wonders and complexity of nature.
2008
Kenneth R. Miller is recognized for his sustained efforts and excellence in communicating evolutionary science.
2007
Neil deGrasse Tyson is honored for his passionate commitment, sustained excellence, and dynamic leadership in engaging the public in the frontiers of science.
2006
S. James Gates, Jr. is recognized for sustained and career-long contributions to the public understanding of physics.
2005
Jane Lubchenco is honored for her exemplary commitment to, and leadership of, public understanding of science initiatives in public policy and professional arenas as a core aspect of her scientific practice.
2004
Eric S. Lander, is recognized for his excellence in communicating complex scientific ideas, and their implications for society, to the general public and policy-makers while actively engaged in a demanding research program.
2003
John Allen Paulos, is honored for his substantial contributions in promoting the pleasures of mathematics to large audiences.
2002
Bassam Shakhashiri, is recognized for his tireless commitment to educating the public, especially children, about the nature and wonder of science.
2001
Ian N. Stewart, Professor of Mathematics at Warwick University and Director of the Mathematics Awareness Centre (MAC@W), for communicating the excitement of science and mathematics to millions of people around the world.
2000
Vaclav Smil, University of Manitoba, Winnepeg, Canada, for providing the public with important resources to understand complex and pressing global issues.
1999
Lawrence Krauss, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio, for his global impact as a scientific communicator.
1998
Christopher Wills, University of California, San Diego, for his work in explaining the marvels of evolutionary biology to the lay public.
1997
Barry T. Peterson, University of Texas Health Center, for the scope and diversity of his efforts to communicate science to the public while maintaining a productive, full-time research center.
1996
Alan J. Friedman, for the outstanding job he has done revitalizing the New York Hall of Science, a science center that communicates the wonder, excitement and joy of science to the general public.
1995
Carl Sagan
1994
Edward O. Wilson
1993
Science Theatre
1992
Farouk El-Baz
1991
Stephen H. Schneider
1990
William L. Rathje
1989
Robert D. Ballard
1988
Anthony M. Fauci
1987
Philip Morrison
For more information about the history of the award, please see the Archives.