The John Maddox Prize is a joint initiative of the charity Sense about Science and the leading international scientific journal Nature. Past winners include journalists, scientists, and public health officials from around the world. In 2020, Dr. Anthony Fauci won for his efforts to communicate the science behind COVID-19. Last year, the prize went to Eucharia Oluchi Nwaichi, a Nigerian biochemist and academic, for her work engaging communities to explore solutions for pollution in the oil fields of the Niger Delta.
CCC’s Velocity of Content features interviews with the winners of the 2023 John Maddox Prizes coinciding with the award announcement today, October 24th.
Click below to listen to the latest episode of the Velocity of Content podcast.
Toronto-based hematologist Nancy Olivieri, winner of the 2023 Maddox Prize, describes how a commitment to research integrity has come at a personal a professional price.
“I would say I paid the price most whistleblowers pay,” she tells me. “You end up being alienated from the field that gave your life’s work meaning. That is what happens when you step out of line with the dominant narrative and say I think we need to challenge this. I think we need to stand up and say this is not working. This is not right.
Sense About Science founder Tracey Brown notes that the risks involved in standing up for science vary from country to country.
“We’ve seen situations where we’ve had people who have been nominated for environmental monitoring work in countries like Iran where they’ve been accused of spying. That’s obviously a life-and-death situation. A former winner was an Indonesian fire forensics expert who withstood the pressure to join with palm oil companies to portray science that would make it seem as though fires were naturally starting in the rainforest, when in fact they were being started purposefully,” Brown says.
For Chelsea Polis, the 2023 recipient for early-career researchers, the Maddox Prize is an affirmation of science and scientists.
“This is a prize unlike any other that I’m aware of,” Polis says. “It not only honors evidence-based science, but the people who persist in promoting science in the face of hostility. There’s not a lot of other support for things like that. It’s rare to receive recognition for that kind of work. I’m just incredibly honored to be alongside previous recipients of this award and to have my story received by the judges in the way that it was. I’m deeply grateful.”