Richard Catlow and Martyn Poliakoff receive AAAS David and Betty Hamburg Award for Science Diplomacy

Former Foreign Secretaries of the Royal Society, Sir Richard Catlow FRS and Sir Martyn Poliakoff CBE FREng FRS, will be awarded the 2026 David and Betty Hamburg Award for Science Diplomacy on Friday 13 February 2026.

Sir Martyn and Sir Richard served back-to-back tenures as Royal Society Foreign Secretaries that led to new collaborations between North Korean, British and US scientists on the Mount Paektu project, promoted local and regional research capacity in sub-Saharan Africa and strengthened European science ties in the wake of Brexit.

The AAAS David and Betty Hamburg Award for Science Diplomacy is awarded for their unprecedented work in building durable global networks promoting scientific collaboration. The award recognizes an individual or a small group working together in the scientific, engineering or foreign affairs communities making an outstanding contribution to furthering science diplomacy and was first established in 1992 as the International Scientific Cooperation Award.