MOBOT's Dr. Peter Raven Wins Lifetime Achievement Award

By Julie Bierach

St. Louis, MO - Dr. Peter Raven, president of the Missouri Botanical Garden has received the National Council for Science and the Environment (NCSE) Lifetime Achievement Award. The award, “For a Distinguished Career as an Innovative Leader Advancing Scientific and Public Understanding and Conservation of Biological Diversity,” was presented at a special ceremony in Washington D.C. on Dec. 8, during the 9th National Conference on Science, Policy and the Environment: Biodiversity in a Rapidly Changing World.

Peter Raven is one of the world’s leading botanists and advocates of conservation, biodiversity, and a sustainable environment. For three decades, he has headed the Missouri Botanical Garden, an institution he nurtured into a world-class center for botanical research and education, and horticultural display. Described by Time magazine as a “Hero for the Planet,” Raven champions research around the world to preserve endangered plants. 

Raven is the recipient of numerous prizes and awards, including the prestigious International Prize for Biology from the government of Japan and the U.S. National Medal of Science. He has held Guggenheim and John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation fellowships. Raven was a member of President Bill Clinton’s Committee of Advisors on Science and Technology. He also served for 12 years as the home secretary of the National Academy of Science and is a member of the academies of science in Argentina, Brazil, China, Denmark, India, Italy, Mexico, Russia, Sweden, the U.K., and several other countries.

“Peter Raven has demonstrated how to be both a world-class scientist and a world-class conservationist,” noted NCSE Senior Scientist David Blockstein. “His career has combined scientific research on plant evolution and diversity, leadership on multi-national collaborative scientific and conservation endeavors, education and outreach at the beautiful Missouri Botanical Garden, and passionate advocacy for humanity to care for our planet and all its inhabitants.”

Raven received the distinguished award alongside fellow biodiversity pioneers George Rabb and Edward O. Wilson.

The Missouri Botanical Garden is the oldest continually operating botanical garden in the nation, celebrating its 150th anniversary in 2009. Missouri Botanical Garden: Green for 150 Years..

The Missouri Botanical Garden’s mission is “to discover and share knowledge about plants and their environment, in order to preserve and enrich life.” Today, 150 years after opening, the Missouri Botanical Garden is a National Historic Landmark and a center for science, conservation, education and horticultural display. Missouri Botanical Garden: Green for 150 Years.