Six Distinguished Americans Share 12th Annual Heinz Awards

9/25/2006 Printable Page

Six Distinguished Americans Selected
as 12th Annual Heinz Award Honorees

Pioneers in five categories recognized with $250,000 awards; Nursing home reformer to receive special Chairmanâ??s Medal.

PITTSBURGH, September 25, 2006 â?¦quot; In recognition of groundbreaking achievements within a broad span of human endeavor â?¦quot; lifeâ??s work that has had a transforming impact on how we regard, steward and propel the world around us â?¦quot; the Heinz Family Foundation today announced the recipients of the 12th Annual Heinz Awards, among the largest individual achievement prizes in the world.

Five honorees â?¦quot; photographer, chemist, physician, attorney and biologist â?¦quot; each will receive $250,000 prizes, awarded in five distinct categories â?¦quot; all areas of particular interest to John Heinz, the late U.S. Senator for whom the awards are named. A legendary, though largely unheralded, nursing home reformer is also being honored with the foundationâ??s Chairmanâ??s Medal, which is awarded periodically to acknowledge a lifetime of especially notable achievement.

The recipients in their respective categories are:
â?¢ Arts and Humanities: James Nachtwey, global photographer and photojournalist from New York City
â?¢ Environment: Paul Anastas, Ph.D., chemist and founder and director of the Green Chemistry Institute from Alexandria, Virginia
â?¢ Human Condition: William Thomas, M.D., physician and founder and director of the Eden Alternative from Sherburne, New York
â?¢ Public Policy: Bruce Katz, attorney, urban policy expert and founder of the Metropolitan Policy Program at the Brookings Institution from Washington, D.C.
â?¢ Technology, the Economy and Employment: Leroy Hood, Ph.D., M.D., genomic biologist, inventor and president of the Institute for Systems Biology from Seattle
â?¢ Chairmanâ??s Medal: Elma Holder, founder, National Citizensâ?? Coalition for Nursing Home Reform

â??These remarkable awardees demonstrate the tremendous power for positive change that happens when one individual believes he or she can make a difference,â?? said Teresa Heinz, chairman of the Heinz Family Foundation. â??They have the creativity and imagination to dream big â?¦quot; but they have followed that with enough hard work and determination to turn those dreams into reality.â?? In doing so, she said, â??they have made a better world, and we are pleased to honor them with the 12th Annual Heinz Awards.â??

Mrs. Heinz established the Heinz Awards through the Heinz Family Foundation of Pittsburgh in 1993 to honor and sustain the legacy of her husband, U.S. Senator John Heinz, who died two years earlier. The awards recognize exceptional leadership and accomplishments in areas of special interest to Senator Heinz. â??The most important investments â?¦quot; and the most profitable,â?? he once said, â??are investments in people.â??