Peter Wildy Prize Lecture
The Peter Wildy Prize recognises individuals or teams who have demonstrated excellence in science communication, pedagogy or outreach and engagement in the field of microbiology.
This may include university teaching or education of the general public, school students or professional groups and is without restriction on the area of microbiology in which the award is made.
Established in 2001 and named in honour of Professor Norman Peter Leete Wildy (1920–1987) who was president of the Microbiology Society (1978 – 1981) and a founding editor of the Journal of General Virology (established in 1967) the Peter Wildy Prize Lecture has recognized the work of 18 microbiologists who have championed outreach activities and enhanced the knowledge of microbiology as a subject.
The recipient of the Peter Wildy Prize Lecture will receive £1,000 and be expected to give a lecture based on their research at the Microbiology Society's Annual Conference. They will also be strongly encouraged to publish the lecture in one of the Society’s journals, whichever is the most suitable. This decision will be at the discretion of the Editors of the journals.
Nominations for the 2026 Prize will open in early 2025. Details of the nomination process, award criteria and administration can be found below.
Peter Wildy Prize Lecture Nomination Form 2024.docx
Key details
Nominations for the Prize are welcome from any member of the Microbiology Society, regardless of membership period or category. Nominees do not have to be a member of the Society.
Successful nominees and awardees will be notified by the end of November. Each Prize winner is also awarded £1,000.
Details of the nomination process, award criteria and administration are available below.
Previous winners of the Peter Wildy Prize Lecture
Visit our Youtube channel playlist to watch previous Prize Lectures.
Nominations process
We welcome nominations of individuals who have made an outstanding contribution to microbiology education and/or communication.
If you require inspiration for your nomination, please see the example nomination forms available on the Prize Lectures page.
After nominations are received, an appointed Prize Award Panel, chaired by the General Secretary of the Society, will be responsible for presenting a shortlist for the Prize Medal and a recommendation for all other Prize winners to Council for acceptance when they meet in September. The successful recipient will be invited to accept, and the recipient will be formally announced in Autumn.
If your nomination was unsuccessful, please remember that we automatically consider all Prize nominations for two further years. If the period expires and the nomination remains unsuccessful, individuals may be nominated again after a one-year period. This is in place to protect the nominee as they may wish to withdraw from the process. The Society office will contact you each year in order to update the nomination.
Award criteria
The Peter Wildy Prize recognises excellent science communicators and teachers working in microbiology.
Nominations should include:
- Evidence of clear impact on their chosen audiences.
- Monitoring and Evaluation measures taken by the individual to demonstrate impact.
- Evidence of any changes in perspective or behaviour as a result of the nominee’s interventions.
- Evidence of mentoring and training others.
Nominators are welcome to submit supporting evidence, for example photographs of events, but should note that the information on the form will be the primary method of considering nominations.
Additional information
All supplementary material required by the rules of the award must be provided at the point of nomination. If you foresee any problems meeting the advertised deadline, please contact [email protected].
We welcome nominations from groups of members. Please contact [email protected] if you would like to be put in touch with someone to help.
The Microbiology Society supports equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI), and asks that members making nominations consider the entire talent pool available. You can find out more about our policy and see our most recent data on the EDI page.
For questions about the Peter Wildy Prize, please contact [email protected]
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Peter Wildy Prize Winners
Learn more about some of our previous Peter Wildy Prize Lecture winners.
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Peter Wildy: a short history
The Peter Wildy Prize Lecture is awarded annually to an individual for an outstanding contribution to microbiology education and/or communication in order to stimulate interest and understanding in the subject. Learn more about Peter Wildy here.