Founder and Director of Curlew Action Mary Colwell has been awarded the ZSL Silver Medal, for outstanding contributions to the understanding and appreciation of zoology.
Professor Jim Smith FRS, President of the Zoological Society of London (ZSL), says:
Members of the Committee were unanimous in their decision that you are a richly deserving winner for your outstanding contribution to curlew conservation, and for your longstanding commitment to improving access and education for young people with respect to the natural world.
The ZSL Silver Medal was created in 1937, and first awarded in 1947. Previous recipients include broadcaster and conservationist David Attenborough (1965), chimpanzee conservationist Jane Goodall (1991), natural history producer Alistair Fothergill (2005), environment journalist Michael McCarthy (2010), and Knepp Estate owners Isabella Tree and Charlie Burrell (2022)
Mary says:
I’m stunned, humbled and incredibly honoured to be awarded this very special award. Inspiring a love for, and and understanding of, nature is at the heart of everything I do. This award is such a boost and I am truly delighted.
The medal and certificate will be presented at an awards presentation evening on Tuesday 10th December at ZSL.
The latest medal adds to the collection of awards that Mary has received in the last decade for her work on Curlews and the Natural History GCSE. In October 2017, Mary was awarded the BTO Dilys Breese Medal for outstanding science communication, in 2018, the David Bellamy Award from the Gamekeepers Association for her conservation work on Curlews, in 2019, the WWT Marsh Award for Conservation and in 2020, the RSPB Medal.