The SCANZ Awards


AWARD FINALISTS ANNOUNCED -

winners will be PRESENTED IN EARLY NOVEMBER.

Thank you to everyone who applied for the 2025 edition of our SCANZ Awards. This year's entries set an incredibly high standard, making it a challenging task for our judges to select the finalists. All submissions showcased the passion, creativity, and impact of science communication happening across the motu. 

Congratulations to our 2025 finalists for our two award categories:


Excellence in Science Communications Award


2025 Finalists

  • The team at the Museum of Transport and Technology (MOTAT) for the He Wero ā Ringa Hands on Design Challenge hosted at Te Puawānanga, its creative learning space for communicating scientific and technological practice.

  • The team at The Seed Pod for their work with educators, whānau, artists, and scientists to create Learning Pods as educational resources that combine science communication with engaging, playful design.  

  • Izzy Te Aho White & Kate White for their artistic contributions to a Health Research Council (HRC) funded study that used digital storytelling with Māori living with chronic pain and tapering opioids
     


Emerging Science Communicator Award


2025 Finalists

  • Rebekah Crosswell for her contributions to the project,Te Pou Whirinaki o te Mate Huka (The Pillars of support for Type 2 Diabetes).

  • Helena Ruffell for raising awareness and understanding of the inputs and impacts of microplastics to productive soil systems in Aotearoa.  

  • Anna Yeoman for her efforts to increase New Zealanders’ engagement with their native lizards. 

The SCANZ Excellence in Science Communication Award

This award is celebrated biennially by the Science Communicators Association of New Zealand to recognise outstanding communication of science to a non-scientific audience. It includes a $1500 cash prize.

About the Award

The SCANZ Excellence in Science Communication Award will be presented to any individual or team that have undertaken a science communication project and can demonstrate its success. The project can be from any area of science communication, for example, sharing information about a research project or results, building awareness of a scientific topic or concept, engaging a community to undertake a scientific project, or encouraging students to continue study in a scientific field.

The award will be judged on the quality of explanation of scientific concepts, how interest is captured, the relevance to and style of communication for the intended audience, and the delivery against identified objectives. In general, the project must have demonstrated that the chosen audience was engaged and gained a better understanding of an aspect of science and/or the role and importance of science in Aotearoa New Zealand or globally.

Entries must include a description of the project and results attained and may also include a portfolio of communications materials (written or audio visual) to demonstrate delivery of the project.

  • Any Aotearoa New Zealand-based individual SCANZ member, or team where one or more individuals are SCANZ members, is eligible to enter the awards. There are no restrictions on length of membership.

  • The chosen project must have been completed in the 2 years prior to the closing date.

  • A selection committee will assess all entries and determine award recipients based on submitted information only.

The SCANZ Emerging Science Communicator Award

This award aims to recognise those science communicators near the beginning of their sci-com journey. The prize includes $500 cash and a complimentary registration to the 2026 SCANZ conference in Christchurch (including the conference dinner).

ABOUT THE AWARD

The SCANZ Emerging Science Communicator Award will be presented to an individual that has undertaken a science communication project and can demonstrate its success. The project can be from any area of science communication, for example, sharing information about a research project or results, building awareness of a scientific topic or concept, engaging a community to undertake a scientific project, or encouraging students to continue study in a scientific field.

Past WINNERs (Excellence In Science Communication Award)

2023

The Lakes380 Team won due to the way they adapted methods of information sharing to suit their identified audiences, and with inclusion of innovative techniques such as virtual reality. SCANZ were especially impressed with the relationship developed with relevant locals such as mana whenua, and their strong efforts to assess engagement produced by this project.

2021

The Environmental Reporting Team at Stats NZ and the Ministry for the Enviromment, entered by Drew Bingham, was the 2021 winner. The team won due to the wide variety and large numbers of audiences they reached, through going above and beyond what is normally required of environmental reporting and setting a precedent for improving future reports’ relevance and engagement.

The team have decided to donate their prize money to The Sir Peter Blake Trust, because, in Drew’s words, “their focus on empowering the next generation aligns strongly with the goals of our reporting”.

2019

Julian Thomson was the 2019 winner for GeoTrips. Geotrips, an initiative led by Julian and supported by GNS Science, aims to enable people of all backgrounds and abilities to visit interesting rock outcrops, geological displays or landforms in Aotearoa, as well as make their own geological explorations and discoveries.

“I'm just so chuffed to win this. It really means a lot to me. I've been part of many great science communication projects but GeoTrips has always been my 'baby'. It's really great to see it validated in this way, and it's given me the motivation to keep growing it and helping to develop it into a fully fledged digital platform.

“I also couldn't have got it this far without all the local knowledge from other geologists - they have done fantastic work on this, so a lot of credit goes to them as well for their enthusiastic support and contributions.”

2017

Damian Christie — Damian won the 2017 Award for his hugely popular YouTube series, “Jamie's World on Ice”.

“It was an honour to win the SCANZ award. As a relative newcomer to science communication it felt like a welcoming into the community, as well as validating the hard work I’d done on “Jamie’s World On Ice” from a scicomm perspective.

“Applying for the award gave me the opportunity to think more theoretically about the work I’d done, and gave me the boost I needed to apply for the Prime Minister’s Science Communication Prize later that year. Sure the PM’s trophy is bigger, but the SCANZ award came first and I’ll always appreciate that!”

2015

Land Air Water Aotearoa (LAWA) — LAWA was the winner of the inaugural SCANZ Excellence in Science Communication Award in 2015. LAWA shares scientific data to connect New Zealanders to our environment. Find out more: www.lawa.org.nz.

Past WINNERs (EMERGING Science Communication Award)

2023

Cawthron Institute’s Kati Doehring won with her very impressive application, detailing a grand and ambitious project well carried out. Kati targeted rural land managers and catchment groups to record their on-land farming practices to improve freshwater health, showcasing a variety of impactful outputs.