Whistler Guidelines

Procedures for the Selection Committee and Committee Chair for the Roy L. Whistler International Award in Carbohydrate Chemistry (updated July 2023)

I. Criteria
II. Committee Composition
III. Procedures before the ICS
IV. Procedures at the Symposium

I. Criteria

(from ICO minutes)

The criteria for the award are as follows: ‘The awardee shall be an active worker in carbohydrate research, distinguished with contributions of excellence and with promise of continued productivity’ (the last phrase means that the award should not be given to a person about to retire).

II. Committee Composition

(from ICO minutes)

The selection committee for the Whistler Award consists of the immediate Past-President, the President, the President-elect, the Secretary and two (2) additional members chosen to ensure that there is at least one person on the committee knowledgeable about the research area of each nominee (it was subsequently agreed that the co-opted members are not to be selected until nominations have been received; see below under “10 months”).

The Past-President acts as Chair of the selection committee and is responsible for appointing the co-opted members, receiving nominations, and conducting the selection process.

III. Procedures before the ICS

12 months before (July)

Following an ICS, nominations are solicited from the glycoscience community, via the National Representatives, for the Whistler Award.  A deadline of 10 months prior to the next ICS (generally June) should be set for receipt of nomination material.

All nominations should be acknowledged.  The selection committee has the right to request nomination from individuals.  Unsuccessful nominees in the current round are to be automatically included in the next round of nominations (after consultation with the National Representative responsible for the original nomination).  A nominee, after two successive unsuccessful rounds, will be automatically deleted but can be re-nominated by a National Representative.

10 months before (September)

Immediately after the nomination deadline, the co-opted members are chosen by the immediate Past-President to ensure that there is at least one person on the committee knowledgeable about the research area of each nominee, and are added to the committee, after receiving an indication of their willingness to serve.  The other committee members are notified as to their identity.

Conduct first ballot, asking committee members to rank all nominees, with a brief statement supporting the ranking.  Deadline for return should be 30 days; Chair participates.

9 months before (October)

Chair compiles a summary statement about each candidate chosen as one of the top three.

Chair sends out the summary statements with a ballot containing the names of the candidates chosen as one of the top three, asking committee members to mark their first and second choices. Deadline for return should be about 30 days; Chair participates.

The person selected as the awardee is notified of his/her selection, that an award lecture at the upcoming ICS is required, and that the ICS organizer will be contacting him/her for a lecture title. Photographs for a news release are requested.

8 months before (November)

The ICS organizer is informed of the name of the award recipient and communication opportunities (postal and electronic addresses, telephone and fax numbers).

ICS organizer includes the Roy L. Whistler Award Lecture information in the Second Circular (if applicable).

The National Representative of the United States is informed of the name of the award recipient. The USA representative arranges for preparation of the Award Plaque and issuance of the prize cheque.

A news release is prepared and sent with a photograph to all National Representatives and to the ICS organizer for inclusion in the program booklet, and to the editors of the following journals: Carbohydrate Research, Journal of Carbohydrate Chemistry, Glycoconjugate Journal, Starch/Stärke, Carbohydrate Polymers, Glycobiology.

7 months before (December)

Nominators are informed of the committee’s decisions with specific information about their nominee, such as ‘clearly a strong and deserving candidate that should (will) be re-nominated’, ‘insufficient information’, ‘falls outside the prescribed criterion of young’, etc.

IV: Procedures at the Symposium

  1. The ICO President presides over the opening session after any opening ceremony. The opening session is the Whistler Award Lecture (NB. This is not a plenary lecture). In the introduction of the award recipient, the President should explain the significance of the award, including the US$15 000 prize, which makes it one of the world’s major awards, and describe the accomplishments of past recipients.
  2. The program book should contain a description of the award and a listing of past award recipients. The actual award (plaque and cheque) is presented before or following the lecture, by the ICO President.
  3. The actual award (plaque and cheque) is presented before or following the lecture, by the ICO President.
  4. A photographer should be present to record the award presentation.