Winners of the Association of British Science Writers (ABSW) Awards 2025 were announced at an Awards Ceremony tonight (Wednesday July 9, 2025). The UK’s leading science journalists and broadcasters joined host Suze Kundu Science Communicator and Journalist, at the Royal Institution to learn who had won in the eleven categories open to entry in the 2025 awards.

Clive Cookson of the Financial Times received the ABSW’s most prestigious award – the Lifetime Achievement Award for his lifelong career in journalism.
Clive became Financial Times senior science writer in October 2023, after more than 30 years as science editor. In his nominating statement Andy Extance, Chair of the ABSW said: Through his lifelong career in science journalism Clive has made an immeasurable contribution to excellence in the field and demonstrates the exact qualities and achievements that the ABSW wishes to acknowledge through its lifetime achievement award.

Extance went on to say: The lifetime achievement award is not just for journalism however, and Clive has made key contributions to good relationships and understanding between scientists and the media through support for the ABSW Media Fellowships scheme for more than 10 years. The ABSW and science journalism community worldwide are also indebted to his expert guidance on the steering group of the World Conference of Science Journalists, London 2009, that led to the great success of this key international event.

Martin Ince, Chair of the Judging Panel, and a freelance science & education writer, media adviser & media trainer spoke during the ceremony about the judging process: Not for the first time, we are in awe of the number and quality of the entries that we were called upon to assess. They are proof that the UK and Ireland produce terrific science writing for every imaginable medium, in every possible format, and for every community of interest here and around the world. I commend all entrants, finalists and winners for your contribution to science and technology journalism in 2024 and I hope you continue to produce such varied, vital and insightful work in 2025 and beyond.

Of note this year was the newcomer category, where the judges said: We were impressed with the quality of all entries and note how many of the entrants had been supported by ABSW activities, from summer school to 'meet the editor' sessions, and the Monthly showcase. The ABSW is to be commended for being a place for early-career journalists to flourish.

The ABSW Awards are open to entry throughout January each year and are supported by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry, the Royal Society, Dr Katharine Giles Fund, and AlphaGalileo.

Winners receive a certificate, £500 and the much coveted ‘award winning science journalist’ mug.

Full list of categories and winners (links to work are provided where available):

Lifetime Achievement Award
Clive Cookson, Senior Science Writer, The Financial Times
Through his lifelong career in science journalism Clive has made an immeasurable contribution to excellence in the field and demonstrates the exact qualities and achievements that the ABSW wishes to acknowledge through its lifetime achievement award.

Dr Katharine Giles Award for best popular article written by a scientist, technologist or engineer - supported by the Dr Katharine Giles Fund
Jack Goulder, Medical Doctor, NHS
‘A diagnosis can sweep away guilt’: the delicate art of treating ADHD, The Guardian Long Read
Compassionate, careful, informed, thoughtful and graceful. Goulder tackled this contentious topic with originality, heart and humility.

Feature of the Year – general audience
Tess McClure, The great abandonment: what happens to the natural world when people disappear?, The Guardian
With beautiful writing, this feature upends conventional thinking about the effects of humans on ecosystems. Clear yet lyrical language, without dumbing down, on what the abandonment of Eastern European villages has meant for nature.

Feature of the Year - specialist audience
Nisha Gaind, After the genocide: what scientists are learning from Rwanda, Nature
Can we create a theory of why and how genocides happen? Written from the field, this is a thoughtful, sensitive investigation into what we have gleaned from the terrible events that took place in Rwanda 30 years ago.

Newcomer of the Year - supported by the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI)
The judges wanted to say how impressed they were with the quality of all entries and to note how many of the entrants had been supported by ABSW activities, from summer school to 'meet the editor' sessions, and the Monthly showcase. The ABSW is to be commended for being a place for early-career journalists to flourish.
Maeve Cullinan, Global Health Security reporter, The Daily Telegraph
Grow your own genetically modified mosquito colony – just add water, The Telegraph
Africa’s ‘Q’ cooks up arsenal of gadgets to fight malaria, The Telegraph
Can robots unravel the mystery of why bacteria are beating our best antibiotics?, The Telegraph
Strong impartial and engaging journalism including thorough reporting from the field.

News Analysis
Slavea Chankova, Coming into focus: Researchers are starting to question if ADHD should be seen as a disorder, The Economist
Well-balanced, elegantly written and pulled the research together clearly. Packed a lot of reporting into a small space, with that human element that can often get missed with analyses.

News Item of the Year
Robin Andrews, The Search for What Shook the Earth for Nine Days Straight, Quanta Magazine
Strong journalistic instincts, they took a gamble that really paid off, an original and unique voice.

Opinion Piece or Editorial of the Year
Oliver Morton, A place to talk about cooling the Earth, The Economist (The World Ahead supplement)
A genuinely novel point of view on a broad topic that goes beyond research and recommends urgent policy action. The article is well grounded in the legal and regulatory facts — an Op-Ed that could make a difference.

Research Policy or Funding Story of the Year
Elizabeth Gibney, CERN prepares to expel Russian scientists — but won’t completely cut ties, Nature
Big science, the career prospects of top scientists, and front-page world news at its most intense. Elizabeth spoke to a huge number of the right people and has created a compelling and important story that we have no hesitation in commending.

The Royal Society Audio Award - supported by The Royal Society
Natasha Loder, Sandra Kanthal, Mila’s Legacy, BBC Radio 4
The judges loved the melding of the deeply personal and human story with the pressing scientific questions at the heart of this reporting. Skilfully and sensitively told, the episode unveils the complex ethical and funding considerations at a key frontier of modern medicine.

Steve Connor Award for investigative journalism - in memory of science journalist Steve Connor
Sophie Borland, UK government’s nutrition advisers are paid by world’s largest food companies, BMJ analysis reveals, The BMJ
The sheer scale of data analysed, combined with comprehensive reportage including data and multimedia, makes this piece stand out.

Video of the Year
Victoria Gill, Kevin Church, Kate Stephens, Where the Polar Bears Wait, BBC News channel, BBC Iplayer and BBC 2
A great insight into life in Churchill, Manitoba, where people and polar bears co-exist. The fear that Gill and her team experienced while filming when they spotted polar bears was palpable. About the Awards
The ABSW’s awards were established in 1966 and over the years have become the "Oscars" of science writing. The ABSW’s awards aim to reward excellence in science, technology, engineering and mathematics journalism and writing and are judged by a panel of credible and respected judges.
The 2025 Awards - rules and regulations: https://www.absw.org.uk/pages/absw-awards-2025
The 2025 Awards – judges: https://www.absw.org.uk/pages/meet-the-judges-2025
The 2025 Awards – finalists: https://www.absw.org.uk/pages/meet-the-finalists-2025