The Fellowship is the highest honour that can be conferred on an individual by the ISC and recognises outstanding contributions to the promotion of science for the global public good.
Fellows provide a cohort of individuals who can supplement the insight, expertise and perspectives of ISC member organizations. Moreover, they will support the Council in its mission as we enter the UN’s International Decade of Sciences for Sustainable Development (IDSSD) in 2024.
Professor Cannon OBE, FREng, FURSI, FIET, FISC, MAGU, is a physicist and an electronic engineer who works at the interface of the two disciplines and has spent the majority of his working life in government research laboratories and industry.
He has been a regular advisor to government departments and science advisors. His leadership of studies and authorship of reports on extreme space weather have guided the development of government policy in both Australia and the UK and have had global influence.
I am very pleased to accept this honour. My science and policy work on the global impact of extreme space weather events illustrates how science can support policy and policy can support science. I very much look forward to bringing this experience to bear in support of the ISC mission.
Professor Paul Cannon, University of Birmingham
As well as being an ISC Fellow, Professor Cannon was also elected a Fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2003, appointed to the Order of the British Empire (OBE) in 2014 and served as the President of the International Union of Radio Science (URSI) from 2014 to 2017. In 2023 he was awarded the Rawer Gold Medal by URSI.
Professor Cannon said: “I am very pleased to accept this honour. My science and policy work on the global impact of extreme space weather events illustrates how science can support policy and policy can support science. I very much look forward to bringing this experience to bear in support of the ISC mission.”
The ISC works at the global level to catalyse and convene scientific expertise, advice, and influence on issues of major concern to both the scientific community and society at large. ISC brings together 45 international scientific Unions and Associations, together with over 140 national and regional scientific organizations, including Academies and Research Councils and 60 international Federations and Societies.
Professor Terrence Forrester, Chair of the Fellowship Council, said: "The ISC Fellowship recognizes individuals who are ambassadors and advocates working tirelessly for science internationally and for the vital importance of evidence-informed policymaking. ISC Fellows hail from wide-ranging geographies, sectors, disciplines and career stages, and we look forward to working with them all in multiple capacities in the coming months and years."
Download the list of Fellows appointed in 2023 here and find out more about the Fellowship here.
