NCSE is pleased to announce the winners of the Friend of Darwin award for 2025: Constance Bertka of Science and Society Resources, who formerly directed the American Association for the Advancement of Science's program of Dialogue on Science, Ethics, and Religion; Stephen Brusatte, a vertebrate paleontologist at Edinburgh University and the author of several popular books about paleontology, including The Story of Birds (2026); and Lauri Lebo, who covered the Kitzmiller v. Dover trial of 2005 and wrote a book about it, The Devil in Dover (2008).
"The new Friends of Darwin have substantially contributed to the public understanding of evolution," commented NCSE Executive Director Amanda L. Townley. "Constance Bertka has been at the forefront of efforts to reconcile people of faith to evolution and to equip educators to present evolution sensitively, while Stephen Brusatte is among the leading public expositors of paleontology working today. And Lauri Lebo was of course a reliable and engaging source of information about the trial in which 'intelligent design' experienced its downfall."
NCSE is also pleased to announce the winners of the Friend of the Planet award for 2025: Climate.us, a non-profit organization headed by Rebecca Lindsey that preserves and extends climate content censored from the federal government's websites; Miranda Massie, the director of the Climate Museum, which seeks to mobilize the power of the arts to promote awareness about climate change; and Benjamin Santer, a distinguished climate scientist and a former member of NCSE's board of directors.
"The contributions of the new Friends of the Planet are spectacular," Townley explained. "By preserving the federal government's climate content, Climate.us, as Marshall Shepherd commented, is providing 'a great service to our nation, the world, and humanity.' Miranda Massie's Climate Museum is not only helping to raise awareness about climate change but also encouraging museums worldwide to do so. And Benjamin Santer's commitment to effective climate change communication is exceeded only by his contribution to NCSE's welfare."
Additionally, in 2026, NCSE inaugurated two new Friend of Darwin and Friend of the Planet awards for K-12 public school teachers. The inaugural recipient of the Friend of Darwin Excellence in Evolution Education award is Blake Touchet of the Vermilion Parish School District in Louisiana, formerly of NCSE, while the inaugural recipient of the Friend of the Planet Excellence in Climate Education is Jeff Grant of Downers Grove North High School in Downers Grove, Illinois.
The Friend of Darwin and Friend of the Planet awards are presented annually to a select few whose efforts to support NCSE and advance its goal of defending the teaching of evolution and climate science have been truly outstanding. Previous recipients of the Friend of Darwin award include Brian Alters, Riley Black, Joe Felsenstein, Victor Hutchison, and Briana Pobiner. Previous recipients of the Friend of the Planet Award include Heidi Cullen, Cathryn A. Manduca, and John Toohey-Morales.
