The OPCW–The Hague Award is an annual award founded by the

OPCW The Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) is an intergovernmental organisation and the implementing body for the Chemical Weapons Convention (CWC), which entered into force on 29 April 1997. The OPCW, with its 193 member s ...

as a result of their being presented with the

2013 Nobel Peace Prize The 2013 Nobel Peace Prize was awarded to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (founded in 1997) for their "extensive work to eliminate chemical weapons". The award citation indicated the organization was awarded the prize, bec ...

. The purpose of the Award is to honour and recognize individuals and institutions that have significantly contributed towards the goal of a world free of chemical weapons.

Foundation

In 2014, the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW) established the OPCW–The Hague Award to honour select individuals and institutions by highlighting their exceptional contributions towards the goal of a world permanently free of

chemical weapon A chemical weapon (CW) is a specialized munition that uses chemicals formulated to inflict death or harm on humans. According to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), this can be any chemical compound intended as a ...

s. The award was created as a legacy of the

winning the

for their "extensive work to eliminate chemical weapons". The OPCW—The Hague Award Fund was created using the approximately €900,000 monetary prize which accompanied the

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Chemistry, Physics, Physiolog ...

, and is also supported financially by the City of The Hague, where the

is based. The winner of the Award is presented with a medal, certificate and a monetary prize of up to €90,000. As an essential partner in both establishing and maintaining the Award, the commemorative medal features an engraving of the

headquarters building with the official coat of arms of the City of The Hague au verso. This reflects The Hague's stature as the international city of peace and justice, and its historic support of the

mission statement; a ban on chemical weapons has been in effect in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

since the Hague Convention of 1899.

Past winners

The roster of past winners includes experts in analytical chemistry techniques, medical toxicology, the ethical use of chemistry, and the legal frameworks governing the elimination of all chemical weapons.

2014 winners

In its first edition, the Award was presented to Dr Robert Mathews of the Commonwealth of Australia, and also to the organisation VERIFIN of the

Republic of Finland Finland ( fi, Suomi ; sv, Finland ), officially the Republic of Finland (; ), is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It shares land borders with Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of B ...

. * Dr Robert Mathews Dr Robert Mathews previously lead the Nuclear, Biological and Chemical Arms Control Unit in the Australian Defence Science and Technology Organisation (DSTO), which he founded in 1974. Through his work Dr Mathews has contributed greatly to the

since its formation in 1997, and has provided invaluable expertise in both the disarmament of chemical weapons, and the advancement of innovative protective counter-measures against their use. * VERIFIN VERIFIN (the Finnish Institute for Verification of the Chemical Weapons Convention) operates as part of the Department of Science at the University of Helsinki, and was founded in 1994. VERIFIN has served as the National Authority of Finland since 1998, as defined under Article VII of the Chemical Weapons Convention. As such, VERIFIN works closely with the main body of the

and has provided considerable assistance through the development of advanced verification methods for use in the detection and identification of chemical weapons and their components; most recently used during the investigation into the alleged use of chemical weapons in the Syrian Arab Republic.

2015 winners

In 2015, the Award was presented to Dr Mahdi Balali-Mood of the

Islamic Republic of Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

, and Dr Alastair Hay of the United Kingdom. * Dr Mahdi Balali-Mood Dr Mahdi Balali-Mood, a leading authority in medical toxicology, was presented with The OPCW–The Hague Award due to his outstanding work in treating the victims of chemical weapon use; most prominently during the 1980–1988 Iran-Iraq War. His wealth of experience in the field lead to the establishment of his own clinic in the aftermath of the war to provide care for victims affected by the long term consequences of surviving exposure to chemical weapons. * Dr Alastair Hay Dr

Alastair Hay Alastair Watt Macintyre Hay (born April 1947) is a British toxicologist, and a Professor of Environmental Toxicology; he works primarily in the fields of chemical warfare and biological warfare (CBW). Education Hay gained a Bachelor of Science de ...

a preeminent expert in the field of occupational health and toxicology, and in this capacity he has participated in numerous missions to investigate alleged uses of chemical weapons. His training courses for doctors and

inspectors working in Syria have aided them in better understanding the long-term health effects of exposure to chemical weapons, and establishing more effective protocols for the treatment of victims. Dr Hay is also a leading figure in international efforts to advocate the peaceful applications of chemistry and biology.

2017 Winners

* African Centre for the Study and Research on Terrorism (ACSRT) * International Master Courses in Protection Against CBRNe Events

2019 Winners

* Robert Mikulak * Cheng Tang * International Union of Pure and Applied Chemistry

2022 Winners

* Special Risks Brigade of the Federal Police of Argentina * Chemical Weapons Convention Coalition * Population Protection Institute, Fire Rescue Service of the Czech Republic

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:OPCW-The Hague Award Peace awards Chemistry awards International awards