Heather Lynch Selected to be 2019 Blavatnik National Finalist

Dr. Heather Lynch, IACS Core Faculty and Associate Professor of Ecology and Evolution, has been selected as one of the finalists for the 2019 Blavatnik National Awards for Young Scientists. There are three categories for the awards including Chemistry, Physical Sciences and Engineering, and Life Sciences. Lynch is one of 11 finalists for the Life Sciences award. The 2019 National Laureates will win $250,000, the world's largest unrestricted prize for early-career scientists. 

The Blavatnik National Awards recognize the accomplishments and potential of the most talented faculty-rank scientests aged 42 years and younger at America's top institutions. The three 2019 National Laureates will be announced June 26. The winning scholars will be selected based on their advancement of the human condition through scientific progress.

 Heather Lynch is a quantitative ecologist who monitors Antarctic penguin populations using field surveys in concert with satellite imagery that can track the size of penguin colonies on the ground. Using advanced mathematical modeling and data on the spatiotemporal patterns of penguin populations, Dr. Lynch can detect population declines predictive of penguin colony collapse. Her work with Adélie penguins is of particular importance as this species provides key data on the health of the Southern Ocean ecosystem.


Learn more about the Blavatnik Family Foundation and Awards here.