ESTSS awards 2007
The ESTSS Board agreed at their Amsterdam meeting in October 2005 to create awards to recognise individuals who have made a significant contribution to psychotraumatology within Europe. The awards for 2007 were presented at the 10th European Conference on Traumatic Stress (ECOTS) in June 2007 in Opatija, Croatia.
This award is the highest honour given by ESTSS. It is named after one of the founders of ESTSS dr. Wolter de Loos and is awarded to an individual who has made a distinguished theoretical, research, or clinical contribution to the field. The award is designed to promote recognition of contributions from all European and adjoining countries to psychotraumatology. The Wolter de Loos Award will comprise € 1000 to the recipient and an ESTSS memorial plaque.
Of four excellent candidates, each with enormous contributions to the field, the award was granted after some lively discussion in the Awards committee to Professor Lars Weisæth, Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies, Oslo.
The Committee, chaired by Prof Sahika Yuksel of Turkey, and including Prof Andreas Maercker (Germany) and Dr. Stuart Turner (Britain), described Prof Weisæth as a clinician and researcher who is held in high esteem not only in Europe but across the world. Moreover, they said, he had played a pivotal part in the formation of the ESTSS.
This award recognizes excellence in the traumatic stress field through service or research by an individual who has completed his or her training within the last 10 years. The award comprises € 1000 to the recipient and an ESTSS memorial plaque.
Again the committee was faced with a very impressive group of people from whom to choose, six candidates in all - five men and one woman, and including three members of the ESTSS.
The award this year went to Psychologist Evaldas Kazlauskas, University of Vilnius, Lithuania, for what the ESTSS selection board noted had been difficult and important research into the effects of political repression.
At the opening ceremony of the 10th ECOTS in Opatija (Croatia) both winners were honoured by Mrs De Loos, by the chair of the awards committee Sahika Yuksel and by the outgoing president of the ESTSS Berthold Gersons.
ESTSS congratulates the winners and thanks the awards committee for their efforts in selecting the two outstanding winners.