Past awardees

2006 Yasumoto Lifetime Achievement Award:

Don Anderson was awarded with the Yasumoto Lifetime Achievement Award during the XII International Conference on Harmful Algae (Copenhagen, 4-8 September 2006). Despite the fact that he still has many years ahead to continue his prolific career, the ISSHA Council recognized that he had already devoted much of his life to HABs, and there was no need to wait any longer to recognise him as one of those key figures who have shaped this field of research and our HAB society—even before it actually took off. His contribution has been not only on the scientific side, but also through communication across fields and with the public, organisation of meetings and workshops, editorial activity and political activity that have promoted this field of research at all levels.

2002 Yasumoto Lifetime Achievement Award:

A joint XHAB2000 - ISSHA Committee congratulated the following scientists, who were awarded the XHAB2002/ISSHA Yasumoto Lifetime Achievement Award at the Xth International Conference on Harmful Algae:

Grethe Rytter Hasle (University of Oslo, Norway)

Grethe Hasle was unable to attend the awards ceremony at the Xth International Conference on Harmful Algae, St. Pete Beach, Florida, 25 October 2002. Nevertheless, Gustaaf Hallegraeff presented a talk, celebrating her achievements, during the awards ceremony.

Then, on 9 September 2003, a special celebration took place for her at the University of Oslo, Norway. Nina Lundholm wrote a description of the ceremony, and Øjvind Moestrup gave a speech, during which he presented Grethe Rytter Hasle with a unique gift.

Updated: 07 July, 2004


Theodore J. Smayda (University of Rhode Island, USA)

Theodore John Smayda is this year's co-recipient of the XHAB2002-ISSHA Yasumoto Lifetime Achievement Award at the Xth International Conference on Harmful Algae. Ted, as he prefers to be called, continues to be a major contributor to the field of ecology of marine phytoplankton. Throughout his tenure as a professor at the University of Rhode Island's Graduate School of Oceanography, his stimulation to students, researchers and fellow faculty has been a constant. His emphasis on the harmful algal bloom paradigm has given him a focus for delving into basic ecological principles governing these as well as non-toxic blooms in the sea.

As an undergraduate at Tufts University, Ted developed a strong interest in marine invertebrates that led him to seek graduate studies at the University of Rhode Island's fledgling program at the Narragansett Marine Laboratory. It was there that he first saw marine phytoplankton, making a lasting impression that still remains his passion today. After completing a Masters thesis on the phytoplankton of lower Narragansett Bay, for which he received the Phi Sigma Award, Ted applied and was admitted into a graduate program at Yale University to work under Gordon Riley. Prior to beginning his studies at Yale, Ted received a Fulbright Fellowship for a year-long stay at the University of Oslo, Norway, where as a visiting young scientist in Professor Trygve Braarud's laboratory, he absorbed all he could from the world's leading authority on the ecology of marine phytoplankton. His one year stay extended into a four year journey of excitement that culminated in his being invited to become a candidate for the degree of Dr. philos. at the University. He received a Woods Hole Oceanographic Associates Fellowship and a Crown Princess Martha Fellowship from the Scandinavian - American Foundation to continue work in Oslo on his doctoral dissertation on the Phytoplankton of the Gulf of Panama Upwelling System, a study which quickly became a benchmark for tropical phytoplankton ecology. Professor Braarud, along with his colleagues and students, made a dynamic team that molded Ted into the unique scientist that he is today.

From Oslo, Ted returned to the University of Rhode Island to take a position at the newly formed Graduate School of Oceanography, where he remains today as an active research faculty member. His major research themes include seminal works on phytoplankton suspension, species succession in marine environments and population dynamics related to diatom and harmful algal blooms. Armed with the skills of knowing the major marine species, an enviable knowledge of the international literature and a constantly inquisitive mind, Ted continues to delve into insights related to the dynamics driving phytoplankton blooms. His recent collaborations with the freshwater phytoplankton ecologist Colin Reynolds in generating his present concepts on species strategies, community assembly and development of blooms offer another cornerstone from which to examine the HAB paradigm. His first comments on the importance of life cycles, nutrients and eutrophication in driving the spreading of the bloom phenomena on a global basis were quickly adopted by others and presented or reiterated in their publications. In this regard, he has been a trend setter of ideas that have stimulated others to explore further.

Yet another aspect of Ted's contribution to this discipline is his unique ability to synthesize disparate observations, ideas and concepts into newly formed insights. Having had a classical education with a strong background in Latin, native fluency in Russian, studies in German, a fluency in Norwegian, and Latin languages forming no barrier to him, the greater part of the world's scientific literature is available for his assimilation. For Japanese, Ted studied with tutors and spent three months in Japan, combing the plethora of literature on phytoplankton and gleaning insights normally not available to others not having made the effort. He repeatedly visits Japan and Europe in pursuing research on observations to support hypotheses. These efforts have resulted in major contributions towards defining the dynamics of HAB species. Among the honors that Ted has received for his scientific contributions are his election into the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, the Phycological Society Award of Excellence, and the University of Rhode Island Scholarly Achievement Award voted by the faculty.

As an international scientist and educator, Ted has participated in numerous lectures and courses abroad. In Finland, he gave an Advanced Phytoplankton Ecology course. He was an invited lecturer in the IOC International HAB Course in Copenhagen, and has given an invited course on the Ecology of Harmful Algal Blooms at the Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences. In 1991, Ted was the co-organizer with Y. Shimizu, of the 5th International Conference on Toxic Marine Phytoplankton and co-edited the symposium volume on Toxic Phytoplankton Blooms in the Sea. All of this activity occurred while he maintained an active faculty status at GSO. To date, in that aspect of his career, he has taught phytoplankton ecology, graduate seminars, served on numerous student and faculty committees, mentored 32 graduate MS and PhD students, published more than 130 publications in refereed journals and wrote several book chapters. Ted was nominated for the URI Teaching Excellence Award for his graduate teaching. He remains very active - with graduate students, laboratory and field research, and he continues to be a prolific publisher of scientific papers. He also continues to be invited abroad as a guest speaker and works on grant-funded research synthesizing the long-term (38-years) weekly ecological observations that he and his students have carried out on the phytoplankton and habitat conditions in Narragansett Bay. This unique data set was part of the many "other things" Ted has managed to accomplish while at Rhode Island. He continuously publishes in the scientific literature, with a backlog of manuscripts in varying states of completion that will take several years to process. We can expect to hear his words for many years to come.

As a multifaceted individual, Ted Smayda not only has a love for science and language but also has a keen interest in literature, with a passion for poetry and art, and is an avid collector of Japanese woodblock prints. He has spent numerous hours designing his ideal house, landscaping (including a pond for koi) and even oriental cooking. He is a social person who enjoys the company of colleagues and new acquaintances alike and has made every effort to have new visitors feel welcome.

Given all of this, Ted Smayda is truly deserving of the Lifetime Achievement Award and we can look forward to his continual contributions to come. It is truly fitting that Ted and the other co-recipient, Grethe Hasle, are scions of the world famous Oslo phytoplankton school and their master Trygve Braarud. Both actively contribute to the endeavors of understanding Harmful Algal Blooms, giving us new insights with every work.

Carmelo R. Tomas
Updated: 07 July, 2004

2000 Young Scientist Awards

The Young Scientist Award was presented to Dr. Chris Scholin, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute, USA, in 2000, for the development of molecular probes for harmful algal species, major advancements in biogeographical studies on the dispersion of key taxa (e.g., Alexandrium spp.), the “global spreading” hypothesis, and the recent characterization of the events leading to sea lion mortalities caused by domoic acid in California. The award was announced at the 9th International Conference on Harmful Algae (see HAN # 20).

2004 Maureen Keller Student Awards

Karen Arthur was awarded Best Presentation for her talk on “The Potential Exposure of Green Turtles to Tumour Promoting Compounds from the Cyanobacterium Lyngbya majuscule”. Collaborators for this project were G. Shaw, C. Limpus, G. Balaza and J. Udy. Karen is a PhD candidate at the Centre for Marine Studies at the University of Queensland, Australia. Karen’s current work focuses on marine turtles and their interaction with harmful algae; such as, Lyngbya majuscule, an alga causing extensive blooms responsible for overtaking seagrass beds that provide shelter and forage for large populations of green turtle and dugong. Karen has been fortunate in working with a number of marine turtle experts such as Dr. Colin Limpus (Queensland Parks and Wildlife Service, Australia) and George Balazs (Marine Turtle Research Group, National Marine Fisheries Service, Pacific Islands Fisheries Science Center), and environmental toxicologist Dr. Glen Shaw (Centre for Environmental Toxicology, University of Queensland, Australia). Karen enjoys her research with marine turtles and believes “Turtles enchant all who come across them; they represent a link between peoples of the world as they migrate across international borders and yet are so susceptible to human impacts, living the large majority of their lives in a relatively localized inshore habitat”.

Nicholas Touzet received Honorable Mention for his talk on “Inter and Intra-specific Variability in Morphogenetics and Toxin Composition of Alexandrium spp. in Irish Coastal Waters”. Collaborators for his project include J.M. Franco and R. Raine. Nicholas obtained his degree in Marine Science from Universite de Bretagne Occidentale in Brest and his Masters in Toxic Interactions in Ecosystems and Toxin Biotechnologies from the Museum National d’Histoire Naturelle in Paris. He is currently focused on the morphogenetics and toxin composition of Alexandrium species in Irish coastal waters. He conducts his research in Ireland at the Martin Ryan Institute located at the National University of Ireland, Galway and is part of the research team led by Dr. Robin Raine. Nicholas’ plans for the future include participating in the EU 6th framework project SEED and eventually lecturing his research topic within third level institutions. Along with his academic achievements, Nicholas is also a sports fan and plays wing for the University rugby team. Congratulations Nicholas.

Pauliina Uronen received Best Student Poster for her work on “Transfer of Nodularin to the Copepod Eurytemora affinis Through the Microbial Loop”. Collaborators for her project include P. Kuuppo, S. Sopanen, C. Svensen, C. Legrand, A. Ruhl, T. Tamminen, and E. Graneli. Paulina is earning her PhD in Finland at the Tvärminne Zoological Station at the University of Helsinki and the Finnish Environment Institute. She has studied species such as Nodularia spumigena, Prymnesium parvum and Dinophysis spp. Her current focus is on harmful algae and the transfer of algal toxins in the aquatic food web, specifically, the harmful species occurring in the Baltic Sea. It is an honour for her to be awarded the Maureen Keller Student Poster Award and it encourages her to continue studies with harmful algae. In addition to Pauliina’s academic agenda, she can also be found sailing in the Baltic Sea, hiking in nearby forests and spending time with close friends and family.

Patricia Blair was awarded Honorable Mention Student Poster for her work on “Algicidal Bacteria Targeting the Toxic Dinoflagellate Karenia brevis: The Importance of Interactions within the Microbial Community”. Collaborators for this project include M. Twiner, C. Mikulski, K. Jones and G.J. Doucette. She graduated Magna cum Laude from West Virginia University, USA with a BA in Biology and a BS in Environmental Protection. She then taught coastal ecology at The Marine Science Consortium for three years. She is pursuing her Masters of Marine Biology at the Grice Marine Laboratory at the University of Charleston, SC. Her current research focuses on characterizing the interactions between algicidal bacteria and the Florida red tide species Karenia brevis. She conducts her work in the lab of Dr. Gregory Doucette of the NOAA Marine Biotoxins Program at the nearby Center for Coastal Environmental Health and Biomolecular Research. When out of the lab, Patricia enjoys rowing for her college crew team and playing volleyball. Patricia recently informed us, just one month before traveling to Capetown for the ISSHA Conference, she was happily married. When she completes her degree program, Patricia hopes to continue working in the harmful algal bloom field.