Celebrating Excellence in Science Journalism

Science journalists from around the world today received the 2022 AAAS Kavli Science Journalism Awards. Reporting covered a range of topics from issues with rising groundwater, pollutants from burning sugar cane and the fate of old-growth timber to the lack of popular champions of rare disease, a documentary on 60 species of bees in a single garden and the carton format of three science stories for children about cockatoos, pandas, and goldfish.

The awards, administered by the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), recognize distinguished science reporting for a general audience in several categories – large and small outlets, in-depth, magazine, video, audio, and children’s science news. The program, endowed by The Kavli Foundation and open to journalists worldwide, drew entries from a record 63 countries this year. Winners included journalists in India, China, Australia, South Korea, Germany and the United Kingdom.

Examples of more award-winning science journalism can be found below and on the AAAS Kavli Science Journalism website.

Science Reporting – Large Outlet

Gold Award: Juliet Eilperin and Salwan Georges, The Washington Post
This tree has stood here for 500 years. Will it be sold for $17,500?
December 30, 2021

Science Reporting – Small Outlet

Gold Award: Ankur Paliwal. FiftyTwo (India)
Off Balance
April 15, 2022

Science Reporting – In-Depth (More than 5,000 words)

Gold Award: Lulu Ramadan, Ash Ngu, Maya Miller and Nadia Sussman, The Palm Beach Post and ProPublica, “Black Snow: Big Sugar’s Burning Problem” — thematic series

The Smoke Comes Every Year. Sugar Companies Say the Air Is Safe.
July 8, 2021

“A Complete Failure of the State”: Authorities Didn’t Heed Researchers’ Calls to Study Health Effects of Burning Sugar Cane
August 19, 2021

Burning Sugar Cane Pollutes Communities of Color in Florida. Brazil Shows There’s Another Way.
December 29, 2021

Magazine

Gold Award: Kendra Pierre-Louis, MIT Technology Review
How rising groundwater caused by climate change could devastate coastal communities
December 13, 2021

VIDEO

Spot News/Feature Reporting (20 minutes or less)
Gold Award: Josh Cassidy, Gabriela Quirós, Lesley McClurg, Elyse DeFranco, Teodros Hailye, Kia Simon and Seth Samuel, KQED and PBS Digital Studios
Deep Look: Honeypot Ants Turn Their Biggest Sisters into Jugs of Nectar
April 5, 2022

Deep Look: Barnacles Go To Unbelievable Lengths To Hook Up
April 26, 2022

Deep Look: Don't Go Chasing Water Bugs
June 28, 2022

Video In-Depth Reporting (more than 20 minutes)
Gold Award: David Allen, Martin Dohrn, Gaby Bastyra, David Guy Elisco, Sean B. Carroll and Fred Kaufman, PBS Nature
My Garden of a Thousand Bees
October 20, 2021

Audio

Gold Award: Arielle Duhaime-Ross, Julia Nutter, Pran Bandi, Annie Avilés and Pete Lang-Stanton, VICE News — A Show About Animals
A Talking Gorilla
Nov. 3, 2021

A Gorilla Who Lied
Nov. 10, 2021

Uptown Chimp
Nov. 17, 2021

Children’s Science News

Gold Award: Sarah Zielinski, Maria Temming and JoAnna Wendel, Science News Explores
Cockatoos learn from each other how to open garbage bins
October 26, 2021

A panda stands out at the zoo but blends in the wild
December 15, 2021

Goldfish driving ‘cars’ offer new insight into navigation
February 16, 2022