ASDS Awards: Guidelines and Procedures

Eligibility and Nomination Process

  • For open awards, nominations may be made by both members and non-members of ASDS (including ASDS council members, see below for further guidance).
  • Self-nominations are not permitted for any award.
  • All nominations must clearly demonstrate how the nominee meets the criteria for the award, as this information will be used for shortlisting purposes. 
  • All nominations for open awards must be submitted using the online submission form for the relevant award. All sections of the form must be completed in full, and any potential conflict of interest declared. 
  • Nominations are now closed. All nominations had to be received by 23.59 hours (BST) on 31 March 2025. Late nominations will not be considered. 
  • Read more about all the Awards here.

For the 2025 Awards, the relevant nomination period* for both the ASDS Book Award and the ASDS Mortality Journal Award is 1 April 2021-31 March 2025. Any works nominated for either of these awards must have been published within this date period. 

Council Members’ Eligibility

  • Current ASDS council members can nominate non-council members for awards, subject to following the nomination process outlined above.
  • Current ASDS council members are not eligible for the Lifetime Achievement Award. 
  • Current ASDS council members are eligible for the other awards, but cannot be nominated for those awards by other current council members. 
  • Any current ASDS council member who is nominated for any award must recuse themselves from the relevant part of the ASDS meeting where awards are discussed, and they will NOT be part of the decision-making process. 

Selection Process

  • ASDS council (or the relevant sub-committee) will review the nominations for each award (with the exception of the ASDS Article Award which is decided by the editors of Mortality) and draw-up a shortlist of nominees (maximum of three) for each award.
  • The shortlisted nominees for each award will be informed by the ASDS Secretary no later than Friday 16 May 2025. 
  • Final decisions on each award (with the exception of the ASDS Article Award) will be made by Council.
  • Results will be announced, and awards presented to recipients, by the ASDS President at the International Death, Dying and Disposal Conference hosted by the University of Utrecht on 27-30 August 2025. 
  • It is expected that recipients will contribute to an ASDS event or publication, reflecting on the work for which they received their award, in the 12-month period immediately after the DDD Conference. 
  • The Council decision on shortlisting and awards is final.
  • Council reserves the right not to award all or any of the designated awards in any given cycle. 

If you have any questions or difficulty filling in the nomination form, please contact deathandsociety@gmail.com.