Mendel Memorial Medal 2026
The Mendelianum Committee of the Moravian Museum
will award the 2026 Mendel Memorial Medal
to Nils Christian Stenseth for his contribution to the study and promotion of Mendel’s legacy and its significance in modern evolutionary biology.
The medal, which is awarded annually, recognizes significant contributions to the advancement of Mendel’s scientific and cultural legacy.
Nils Christian Stenseth (born 1949) has the following two academic roles:
- Professor of Ecology and Evolution and Advisor to the Dean of Mathematics and Natural Sciences at the University of Oslo in Oslo, Norway.
- Honorary Professor of Public Health at the Vanke School of Public Health, Tsinghua University, Beijing, China.
He was also the vice-president/president of the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters (2009 to 2014). He is a visiting scholar for the Chinese Academy of Sciences, a member of the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters, the French Academy of Sciences and the Academia Europaea. He has also been awarded an honorary degree by the University of Antwerp.
Mendel Memorial Medal Ceremony
10th March 2026 at the Mendelianum, the Moravian Museum
Here is a selection of some of his publications on Mendel:
Stenseth, N. C., Andersson, L. & Hoekstra, H. E. (2022). Gregor Johann Mendel and the development of modern evolutionary biology. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America. 119(30): 10.1073/pnas.2201327119
Stenseth, N. C. (2022). Gregor Mendel Ought to be Brought out of the Shadow of Charles Darwin: Together They Are the Lock and Key in Evolutionary Biology. Folia Mendeliana 58/2, Supplementum ad Acta Musei Moraviae, CVII, pp. 7-10. ISSN 0085–0748
Hessen, D. O., Lie, T., Stenseth, N. C. (Eds.). (2015). Mendels arv – Genetikkens æra. Gyldendal Norsk Forlag A/S. 440 p. ISBN:978-82-05-45818-5.
Stenseth, N. C. (2023). May the Mendel Monument in Brno Help Gregor Johann Mendel to Come out of the Shadow of Charles Darwin. Folia Mendeliana 59/1, Supplementum ad Acta Musei Moraviae, CVIII, pp. 65-66. ISSN 0085–0748
The Mendel Memorial Medal is a unique annual award given to an internationally recognized figure for his or her contribution to the scientific and cultural legacy of Gregor Mendel and genetics. Past recipients of this award have included Nobel prize winners, outstanding researchers, pioneers in genetics, molecular biology, and the history of biology and genetics, as well as other eminent scientists. Last year saw the thirtieth anniversary of the start of the award. Its origin, however, goes back much deeper and is firmly linked to the tradition of developing Mendel’s scientific legacy at the Mendelianum of the Moravian Museum in Brno.
Recipients of the Mendel Memorial Medal:
2025 T. H. Noel Ellis, John Innes Centre
2024 Daniel L. Hartl, Harvard University
2023 P. van Dijk, KeyGene, Wageningen
2022 U. Hoßfeld, Friedrich Schiller University, Jena
2021 T. Nagata, University of Tokyo, Hosei University
2020 J. Sölkner, BOKU, Vienna
2019 C. Laukaitis, University of Arizona Cancer Center, Tucson
2018 W. Wackernagel, Carl von Ossietzky University, Oldenburg
2017 D. J. Fairbanks, Utah Valley University, Orem
2016 J. Vollmann, BOKU, Vienna
2015 A. Matalová, Mendelianum, Brno
2014 H. Lesot, University of Strasbourg
2013 F. Di Trocchio, Sapienza University of Rome
2012 R. C. Karn, University of Arizona
2011 S. Zadražil, Charles University, Prague
2010 W. Mann, Theresia Mendel’s descendant, Darmstadt
2008 J. D. Watson, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory, Long Island
2007 D. Lane, Institute of Molecular and Cell Biology, Singapore
2006 M. W. Nirenberg, Lab. of Biochem. Genetics, NIH, Bethesda
2005 J. Lužný, Mendel University, Brno
2004 J. Šmarda, Masaryk University, Brno
2003 P. T. Sharpe, Guy’s Hospital, London
2002 J. Klein, Max-Planck-Institut für Biologie, Tübingen
2001 L. Lojda, Univ. of Veterinary and Pharm. Sciences, Brno
2000 C. Kovář, Mendel’s Beehouse, Brno
1999 F. W. Anders, Institute of Genetics, Giessen
1998 F. Brückner, Crop Research Institute, Kroměříž
1995 V. N. Soyfer, George Mason University, Fairfax
1994 F. J. Ayala, University of California, Irvine
1993 F. Weiling, University of Agriculture, Bonn
1992 B. Jennings, Hastings Centre, Briarcliff Manor, New York
1992 T. Hirano, Japan Mendel Society, Tokyo
1992 H. Galjaard, Erasmus University, Rotterdam
