Awards, Jul 23, 2009

The following awards have been presented for work in advocacy, fund raising, nonprofit leadership, philanthropy, and other areas:

Disabled. The HSC Foundation (Washington) has given its Advocates in Disability Award to Ryan J. Lamke (Arlington, Va.), a 24-year-old veteran who suffered brain injuries in Iraq. The award, which carries a $5,000 prize, honors individuals ages 14 to 25 who have dedicated themselves to positively influencing the lives of people with disabilities in the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area. Mr. Ryan was recognized for his efforts to help other veterans with disabilities.

Nonprofit management. The New York Times Company has presented its Nonprofit Excellence Awards to four New York City organizations. New York Cares, which mobilizes New Yorkers in volunteer service, received the award for overall management excellence, along with $25,000. Groundwork, which educates and supports children in public housing, and the Vera Institute of Justice, which uses research to improve justice and safety around the world, received awards for excellent management, while the Neighborhood Economic Development Advocacy Project, which works to eliminate discriminatory economic practices, received an award for excellent communications. All three of those awards carry a $5,000 prize.

Public service. Independent Sector (Washington) has given its 2009 John W. Gardner Leadership Award to Geoffrey Canada, chief executive of Harlem Children’s Zone (New York). Mr. Canada was honored for instituting educational, social-service, and community-building programs that have helped children and families in central Harlem move out of poverty. The award, which will be presented at Independent Sector’s conference in November, is accompanied by a $10,000 cash prize.

Science. The Shaw Prize Foundation (Hong Kong) has announced the winners of its 2009 Shaw Prizes in astronomy, life science and medicine, and mathematical sciences. The prizes, which carry an award of $1-million each, honor individuals who have achieved distinguished and significant advances in their fields. The astronomy prize was awarded to Frank H. Shu, a professor at the University of California at San Diego, for his outstanding lifetime contributions in theoretical astronomy. The life-science and medicine prize was awarded jointly to Douglas L. Coleman, an emeritus scientist at the Jackson Laboratory (Bar Harbor, Me.), and Jeffrey M. Friedman, a professor at Rockefeller University (New York) and an investigator at the Howard Hughes Medical Institute (Chevy Chase, Md.), for their work leading to the discovery of leptin, a hormone that regulates food intake and body weight. The mathematical-sciences prize was awarded jointly to Simon K. Donaldson, a professor at Imperial College London, and Clifford H. Taubes, a professor at Harvard University (Cambridge, Mass.), for their many contributions to geometry in three and four dimensions.