Two Copernicus Institute Master’s students nominated for Rachel Carson Prize

Anthea van Scherpenzeel (MSc Sustainable Business & Innovation) was joint winner of the 2019 Rachel Carson Prize in the university category for best thesis in the field of environmental research. Rhiannon Lee (MSc Sustainable Development) was runner up for the prize.

This year there were 21 entries from universities. According to the jury, they were many strong theses and all were very topical. The jury found Anthea van Scherpenzeel’s thesis From Data to Circular Decision: Exploring how data-driven decision-making fosters circular business strategies in the manufacturing sector extremely valuable. The study indicates what it takes to make circularity work and how to make the right decisions about the use of materials. The jury called it an original study: “It can help companies to make the transition to circularity. The study makes clear what is not going well, where there are bottlenecks and what can be done about it.” KPMG will use the results of the study. Rhiannon Lee’s thesis Assessment of policy instruments for Integrated Pest Management (IPM) was runner up.

About the Rachel Carson Prize

The prize is named after Rachel Carson, the author of the book 'Silent Spring'. About fifty years ago this book marked the start of a broad public awareness of environmental issues in large parts of the world. The title is a reference to the spring of the apocalyptic year that the birds no longer sing because of the eradication of pesticides. The prize aims to raise awareness of the results of environmental research carried out by students.

Here you will find the jury report.