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Eligibility

Individuals named in any of the following roles during the nomination and judging period are not eligible to nominate or be nominated:

• Organic Chemistry Prize Selection Panel members
• RSC Subject Community Presidents
• RSC Prize Committee members
• Trustees of the ÐÂÔÂÖ±²¥appÏÂÔØ
• ÐÂÔÂÖ±²¥appÏÂÔØ staff 

Nominators:

• Only RSC members can nominate for this prize.
• Nominees may NOT nominate themselves.

Nominees:

• This prize is open to nominees based in the UK or Ireland only.
• There are no career stage restrictions associated with this prize.
• Nominees must not have previously received an individual RSC Prize. 
• Nominees can only be considered for one of our Research & Innovation Prizes in any given year. In a case where a nominee is nominated for more than one prize independently, RSC staff will ask the nominee which prize they would like to be considered for.
• We will not consider nominations of deceased individuals.
• We particularly encourage nominations of disabled people, those who work part-time, or whose career has spanned a break for any reason – for example, a period of parental or adoption leave, caring responsibilities, long-term illness, family commitments, or other circumstances. We understand that these can impact a nominee’s career in different ways, and encourage nominators to use the space provided on the nomination form to explain the nature and impact of the nominees’ individual circumstances (see 'Guidelines for Nominators' for further details).

General information

• When nominating previous RSC prize winners, please remember that a person cannot be awarded twice for substantially the same body of work.
• Nominees should only be nominated once for this prize in any given prize cycle. In cases where we receive more than one nomination for the same nominee, only one nomination will go forward to judging.
• All unsuccessful nominations from the previous cycle will be retained on our nomination system ahead of the next cycle. To be considered again, nominators must log in, update details, and resubmit the nomination for the following cycle. Please note that reconsideration is no longer automatic. 
  • RSC staff will write to nominators and nominees to confirm when the nomination window has re-opened. Nominators will receive instructions on how to log in and update the nomination.

To make a nomination, please use our online nominations system to submit the following information:

• Your name, contact details, and membership number (please contact the RSC Membership team if you do not know your membership details). Your RSC membership must be confirmed at the point of nomination – it is not sufficient to have a membership application in process. The identity of nominators is not made known to our judging panels. The RSC reserves the right to amend nominations if necessary to ensure the anonymity of the nominator.
• Your nominee's name and contact details. 
• An up to date CV for the nominee (no longer than one A4 side, 11pt text) which should include a summary of their education and career, and a maximum of 5 relevant publications or patents.
• Any information related to career breaks taken by your nominee - for example, a period of parental or adoption leave, caring responsibilities, long-term illness, family commitments, as well as any other circumstances including long-term conditions or disabilities. We understand that these can impact a nominee's career in different ways, and encourage nominators to use the space provided on the nomination form to explain the nature and impact of the nominee's individual circumstances. This information will be shared with the selection panel, but before doing so RSC staff will always seek consent from the nominee in cases where special category data is mentioned. 
• A short citation describing what the nominee should be awarded for. This must be no longer than 250 characters (including spaces) and no longer than one sentence.
• A supporting statement (up to 750 words) addressing the selection criteria. Our guidance for nominators page has more information on writing this supporting statement.
• A statement (up to 100 words) describing how your nominee has contributed more broadly to the scientific community. A list of possible examples is outlined in the ‘selection criteria’ tab.
• References are not required for this award and will not be accepted. 

The RSC reserves the right to rescind any prize if there are reasonable grounds to do so. All nominators will be asked to confirm that to the best of their knowledge there is no impediment, relating to professional conduct, to their nominee receiving this prize. All prize winners will be asked to sign the RSC’s Code of Conduct Declaration for Recognition.

Our selection panels base their evaluations on the overall quality of relevant contributions and achievements by nominees, in relation to the selection criteria listed below.

The scientific content of any supporting publications, as described in the supporting statement, is much more important than publication metrics or the identity of the journal in which it is published.

The selection panel will consider the following aspects of nominations for this prize:

• Originality of research
• Impact of research
• Quality of publications and/or patents and/or software
• Innovation
• Professional standing
• Collaborations and teamwork
• Other indicators of esteem indicated by the nominator

In an instance where multiple nominees are judged equally meritorious in relation to the above criteria, judging panels have the flexibility to use information provided by the nominator on the nominee’s broader contribution to the chemistry community as an additional criterion.

Examples of relevant contributions could include, but are not limited to:

• Involvement with ÐÂÔÂÖ±²¥appÏÂÔØ member groups/networks
• Teaching/demonstrating
• Effective mentorship
• Service on boards, committees or panels
• Leadership in the scientific community
• Peer-reviewer
• Promotion of diversity and inclusion
• Advocacy for chemistry
• Public engagement and outreach

A generous gift from Dr Alfred Bader resulted in the establishment of the Bader Prize in 1989.

Dr Bader founded the Aldrich Chemical Company, in Wisconsin, with Jack Eisendrath in 1951. As Aldrich rapidly expanded internationally in the 1950s and '60s, Bader merged with Sigma International, to form Sigma-Aldrich in 1975. During his time as Chairman of the company, from its inception in 1951 until 1991, Bader amassed an impressive library of rare chemicals, and the Sigma catalogue became the standard reference text for many chemists looking for physical and structural data. 

Born into a Jewish family in Vienna in 1924, Bader was evacuated to Britain in the Kindertransport in 1938. Following this period he spent time at an internment camp in Canada before completing his education at Queen's University in Kingston, Ontario. Later, Bader studied for his PhD under Louis Fieser at Harvard. 

Throughout his life, he harboured a great interest in art, and had a large collection of 'Old Master' paintings. After retiring from Sigma-Aldrich he devoted his life to philanthropy, as well as his art collection, and published his memoirs - "Adventures of a Chemist Collector" and "Chemistry and Art". He was awarded eleven honorary degrees for his service to chemical research and philanthropy. Bader died in 2018, aged 94.