Individuals deemed to have been significant benefactors and/or supporters of the Association can be recognised with Honorary Life Membership. Members considering making nominations should first read the Palaeontological Association Statement of Diversity.
Honorary Life Membership recognizes individuals whom Council deems to have been significant benefactors and/or supporters of the Association. Recipients will receive free membership for life.
The candidate must be nominated by two members of the Association (proposer and seconder; names and contacts details required). The nomination must consist of a one-page statement (font-size 12) outlining the nature of their support for the Palaeontological Association. In addition, a Professional Standards and Behaviour declaration by the nominators in relation to the nominee are required to be completed. The outline should be uploaded as a PDF via this webpage by the deadline. The completed Professional Standards and Behaviour form should be either combined with the aforementioned PDF or emailed separately to the Secretary and/or Executive Officer.
The award will be considered by Council at its May meeting and announced at the AGM. The award will also be announced in the Newsletter, on the Association website and through social media.
Nominations are invited by 31st March (23:59 GMT) each year.
A full list of previous recipients can be viewed here: Medal and Award Winners.
The Palaeontological Association Council discusses Honorary Life Memberships at the May Council meeting and votes to select awardees. The benefit of using Council to select awardees, rather than a dedicated awards committee, is that it draws on the wider experience of the entire Council. Voting is preceded by an introduction from the President that: (i) includes a diversity statement to remind Council of their responsibility in terms of fairness and diversity issues (including impact of non-standard careers etc.); (ii) outlines the remit and selection criteria for each award; (iii) considers the impact of awardees in terms of increasing the diversity of recipients. Each award is considered in turn with every application considered except those that clearly fall outside of the remit. Multiple Honorary Life Memberships may be awarded each year.