Kate WillettDr. Kate Willett from the Met Office Hadley Centre has been awarded the WCRP/GCOS International Data Prize 2016

We are pleased to announce that Dr. Kate Willett from the Met Office Hadley Centre, UK, has been awarded the WCRP/GCOS International Data Prize 2016.

The Prize Committee, consisting of representatives from WCRP, the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) and their joint panels the Atmospheric Observation Panel for Climate (AOPC), Terrestrial Observation Panel for Climate and Ocean Observations Panel for Climate (OOPC), was greatly impressed by her outstanding contribution in supporting the development of data sets for climate research.

The Committee was very pleased with the number of outstanding nominations received and would like to thank the nominees, proposers and seconders for their time and effort.

WCRP and GCOS established the Prize in 2016 in recognition of the essential role that the availabiliy of good quality data sets plays in weather and climate science. The prize comprises a certificate signed by the Chairs of the WCRP Joint Scientific Committee and the GCOS Steering Committee as well as funding for the recipient to present the results of his/her research at a major relevant conference or meeting of his/her choice.


Call for Nominations:

due date for nominations is 1 October 2016

The development of high-quality, real-world data sets constitutes an on-going need of the climate research, observations, and modelling communities and their joint activities. Key areas in data collection for climate change research still remain under-sampled today, also affecting efforts in climate model calibration, evaluation, and reanalysis.

Recognizing this need for further advancing climate observations and their coordination, the World Climate Research Programme (WCRP) and the Global Climate Observing System (GCOS) are seeking nominations for the first “WCRP/GCOS International Data Prize”. The prize will be awarded annually to an early- to mid-career researcher for his or her outstanding contribution to the Earth system science community. The WCRP/GCOS data prize may honour achievements in data product generation, data management, data preservation, data monitoring, and other data relevant activities. In particularly successful cases, the establishment of standards or infrastructure for global data repositories may be considered for eligibility. The candidate’s activities shall result in concrete achievements that significantly facilitate community access to well-documented data otherwise not available and follow open-access paradigms to the extent possible.

The prize encompasses a certificate signed by the Chairs of the WCRP JSC and GCOS SC, as well as funding for the recipient to present the results of their research at a major conference or meeting of their choice. The WCRP/GCOS data prize will in the future be awarded annually in conjunction with the “WCRP/WWRP International Prize for Model Development”, which was successfully established in 2014. Together, these two prizes for notable achievements in model and data development aim to honour, recognize, and foster research activities in each of their respective fields, as well as stress their mutual interdependence.

Selection Criteria:

Candidates should:

  1. Be within the first ten years of their career as measured by receipt of a PhD or equivalent highest qualification
  2. Have made a significant contribution to the provision of climate or Earth system data, preferably with a visible impact on and by studies based on said data
  3. Have visible achievements within the wider community as demonstrated through publications, editorships, or organizing/convening activities; and/or strong engagement in the community’s efforts for data provision, standardization, and utilization

Selection process:

The candidates should be nominated by filling in the nomination form (PDF version) or (Word version) provided in the Appendix. This includes a statement from the proposer (preferably a person with a good knowledge of the candidate’s work) as well as from a seconder. These statements should specifically address the above selection criteria. The application should also be supported by: up to 3 papers or technical notes documenting the nature and impact of the data collection that was compiled or to which access was significantly facilitated; evidence of the candidate’s individual contribution; and the candidate’s CV.

Nominations should be sent by email to the WCRP ( This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) and GCOS ( This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.) offices at WMO and must be received before 1 October 2016. The winner will be announced within 6 weeks of the nomination closing date.

If no suitable candidate is found, the prize will not be awarded.