What good is groundbreaking Earth and space science if it never breaks through the laboratory walls and digital libraries?
Without skilled journalists, our peer-reviewed papers risk gathering digital dust, and remain isolated from the public policy and societal awareness they are meant to inform. This is why we need science journalists, as they have the skills to take complex scientific results and turn them into accessible stories that captivate global audiences and help (re)shape climate policies around the world.
The European Geosciences Union (EGU) believes this bridge deserves recognition. That is why the 15 June 2026 deadline for the EGU Angela Croome Award is an date you cannot afford to miss! If you know a journalist who has spent their career working on democratising the geosciences, it’s time to give them the spotlight.
The legacy of Angela Croome
Established in 2019, this union-level award complements the EGU Science Journalism Fellowship. It honours the role that media professionals play in raising awareness of the global challenges facing our planet. The award is named in memory of Angela Croome, a pioneering UK science journalist. Croome was a trailblazer who carved out a space for reporting during the infancy of space exploration and underwater archaeology in the mid-20th century. She set a gold standard for reporting on complex, frontiers-pushing discoveries with clarity, balance, and objectivity. Today, the Angela Croome Award keeps that spirit alive by awarding media professionals who excel at making Earth, space, and planetary sciences accessible to the general public.
Who is eligible for this award?
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The medium: Nominees must be journalists working in any medium, including print, digital media, television, radio, podcasts, or independent web publishing.
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The style: The award targets professionals who have been demonstrating continued, excellent, and successful reporting on Earth, space, or planetary science topics.
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The audience: A particular emphasis is placed on reporting that brings new scientific concepts to the public’s attention, especially discoveries relevant to Europe and European citizens.
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The status: Freelance journalists are fully eligible. Please note that only one author of a published journalistic piece may be nominated (joint team nominations are not eligible for this specific award).
Did you know? Unlike most elite academic accolades, self-nominations are accepted for the Angela Croome Award! Furthermore, nominees are not required to be EGU members.
Who can nominate and how?
While the nominee doesn’t need to be an EGU member, the person submitting the final package via the EGU Awards & Medals Nomination Portal must be a registered EGU member.
If you are an active EGU member and want to highlight an outstanding journalist, or if you are a journalist looking to self-nominate with the backing of an EGU colleague, the nomination package is pretty straightforward. You can visit the official EGU Proposal and Selection of Candidates page for more details. Your single PDF upload must include:
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A nomination letter: This must not exceed 5,000 characters (including spaces). It should outline why the candidate deserves this recognition, focusing specifically on their contributions to geosciences journalism and public accessibility.
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A summary CV: A concise, one-page summary of the journalist’s career history, outreach experience, previous honours, and public service.
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Selected work portfolio: Up to three samples of reporting that establish the nominee’s excellent contributions to geoscience journalism. Each submitted sample must be accompanied by a summary (maximum one page) providing a synthesis of the content and information to evaluate the value of the contribution. The samples and accompanying summaries may be in any language.
The clock is ticking: Act before June 15!
Nominations for the 2027 EGU Awards cycle close on 15 June 2026.
Putting together a nomination package takes less time than you think, but its impact can last a career. Take a look through your favorite media outlets, remember the articles that successfully explained your own field to your friends and family, and help us celebrate the people who keep our science alive in the public consciousness.
