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Science journalists win travel grants

Vesa Niinikangas, President of the World Federation of Science Journalists (WFSJ) announced the winners of eight travel awards to discover science in Norway and attend the 2012 Kavli Prize Ceremony in Oslo, Norway, at the AAAS annual meeting in Vancouver. The eight winners come from as many different countries in Africa, Asia, Europe, North and South America. They were selected by a committee of WFSJ Board members.

Vesa Niinikangas, President of the World Federation of Science Journalists Vesa Niinikangas, President of the World Federation of Science Journalists

Winners of the 2012 Kavli Prize/World Federation of Science Journalists Competition:

  • Ms. Baraka Bashir (Freedom Radio) from Kano (Nigeria),
  • Mr. Bernardo Esteves (Nature Medicine) from Rio de Janeiro (Brazil),
  • Ms. Brooke Borel (Popular Science Magazine), New York (United States),
  • Ms. Chao Xu, chief editor, Discovery Channel, Beijing (China)
  • Ms. Marie-Pier Elie (Télé-Québec and Québec Science magazine), Montréal (Canada),
  • Ms. Radha Chitale, Medical Tribune Magazine (Singapore),
  • Mr. Roël van der Heijden (website www.kennislink.nl) from Nijmegen (The Netherlands),
  • Mr. Toni Pou, author and freelancer from Barcelona (Spain).

The journalists will have the opportunity to visit and meet scientists in Norway and attend, in Oslo, the Kavli Prize Award Ceremony and lectures given by some of the best popularizes of science.

The scholarships for the journalists are funded by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and the Norwegian Ministry of Research and Education.

Nils Christian Stenseth thanked Vesa Niinikangas, (right) President of the World Federation of Science Journalists and Executive Director Jean-Marc Fleury for organizing the competition. (Photo: Eirik Lislerud)


Nils Christian Stenseth, President of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, emphasized in his speech the importance of communicating the result of - and the importance of - excellence in science to a broader audience. Because if people understand the importance of science, they will more easily support science. That is why science journalists are doing such a very important job.

Nils Christian Stenseth thanked the World Federation of Science Journalists for organizing this competition and looked forward to welcoming the winners to Norway in September for the Kavli Prize events including the award ceremony, popular science lectures and symposia in the fields of astrophysics, nanoscience and neuroscience. The topic of this year's Kavli Prize Science Forum will be "Science and Global Health".

Ragnhild Skålid from the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research extended congratulations to the winners from Tora Aasland, Minister of Research and Higher Education, who will meet the science journalists when they come to Oslo.

Christophe Mvondo, science journalist of La Nouvelle Expression, Cameroon, and Pallava Bagla, Science Editor of New Delhi Television, both WFSJ board members, where among the about 200 guests at the reception in Vancouver. (Photo: Eirik Lislerud)Christophe Mvondo, science journalist of La Nouvelle Expression, Cameroon, and Pallava Bagla, Science Editor of New Delhi Television, both WFSJ board members, where among the about 200 guests at the reception in Vancouver. (Photo: Eirik Lislerud)
The Kavli Prize in Astrophysics The Kavli Prize in Nanoscience The Kavli Prize in Neuroscience