Meeting prizes
The Norman Heaps Prize
For the best verbal presentation by a non-established researcher at the Challenger biennial meeting.
The Norman Heaps prize was first awarded in 1988, and is awarded for the best oral presentation by an early-career stage non-established scientist. Norman Heaps was a shelf-sea modeller who died in 1986. He was a particularly clear speaker, with an enthusiastic, lively and entertaining way of delivering a talk.
The Cath Allen Prize
For the best poster presentation at the Challenger biennial meeting.
The Best Poster Prize was first awarded in 1988 and was renamed in the honour Cath Allen in 1991. Cath Allen was a researcher in fluid dynamics at the University of Lancaster, who died in 1991. The Challenger Society introduced the prize to combat the idea that contributing to a conference poster session is a second best alternative to delivering a paper, even though a poster needs to be at least as well thought-out as a talk.
The President's Photographic Competition
For the best Photograph on a designated theme.
The President's Prize for the best Photograph on a designated theme was introduced in 1994 (President Dr Brian McCartney)
Latest News
Challenger Society History of Oceanography SIG Webinars
The Challenger Society Special Interest Group on the History of Oceanography will be having a series of zoom webinars in 2025. The talks will be at 5pm UK time on Wednesday evenings (3rd Wed of the month):
Job vacancy
The Ocean Census is actively seeking a Workshop Coordinator to join our dynamic team to manage the workshop and related processes with an international alliance of partners. The deadline for applications is 15th December 2024. Link to further details: https://oceancensus.org/job-opportunity-workshop-coordinator/
Socio-oceanography Workshop sets sights on key climate and ocean challenges
The National Oceanography Centre (NOC) is calling on scientists and researchers to participate in its fourth annual Socio-Oceanography Workshop, hosted in collaboration with the Marine Social Science Network.
This international event, set to take place at NOC’s Southampton site 26-28 February 2025, will gather experts across natural and social sciences to tackle the pressing issues linking people and the changing ocean.
This year’s workshop will focus on four key themes, including the impact of climate change-driven shifts in marine species distribution and how these changes will affect the way the UK marine environment is perceived, valued, and managed.
Other topics include integrating digital humans into environmental digital twins, addressing biases in research related to marine carbon dioxide removal, and exploring how local communities can engage in participatory environmental monitoring.