The 2010 Award Winners in Brief

Last night, Uma Thurman hosted and internationally acclaimed film director Mira Nair presented a special award at the 8th annual Women of Discovery Awards: Extraordinary Women, Extreme Discoveries, honoring visionary women in exploration. Among the five 2010 awardees-who were honored at the gala – are pioneers in the elucidation of plant communication and the documentation of ancient traditions, which are rapidly vanishing in the face of the modern world.

The 2010 Award Winners in Brief

WWQ Lifetime Achievement Award: Carol Beckwith & Angela Fisher
For more than three decades, Beckwith and Fisher have documented the people, cultures, and traditional ceremonies of the African continent. Collectively, they have published numerous articles and books, including the acclaimed two-volume African Ceremonies (Harry N. Abrams, 2002), and their stunning images have been exhibited at museums and galleries around the world.

Susan Dudley
An Associate Professor of Biology at McMaster University, Canadian botanist Susan Dudley has discovered that even plants have a social life. Her breakthrough research on a beach weed known as the Great Lakes sea rocket has revealed that plants are capable of making animal-like decisions-distinguishing between related and unrelated plant species.

Alexandra Morton
A pioneer in the study of orca (killer whale) and dolphin migration and communication,Alexandra Morton has risked her own life to document the devastating impact of fish-farming-particularly of salmon-on the wild marine populations of the Pacific Northwest Coast.

Kate Harris
A Canadian glaciologist, Kate Harris has focused her attention on desert environments akin to what scientists are likely to find on Mars and on the fragile ecology of glaciers, which play a critical role in Earth’s climate exchange. An avid cyclist, she has biked most of the Silk Road, exploring the wildest back roads and remotest communities en route from Asia to Europe.