Nature Honored with Prestigious Principe de Asturias Award

Nature Publishing Group (NPG) is delighted that Nature has today won the prestigious Principe de Asturias Award established by His Royal Highness Heir to the throne of Spain.

(PRWEB) July 6, 2007 -- Nature Publishing Group (NPG) is delighted that Nature has today won the prestigious Principe de Asturias Award established by His Royal Highness Heir to the throne of Spain.

The Principe de Asturias Award is the best known cultural prize in the Spanish speaking community. The awards honor individuals, groups or institutions whose creative work or research represents a significant contribution to universal culture in the scientific, technical, cultural, social and humanistic fields. Nature shares the 2007 Award for Communication and Humanities with the journal Science.

"This is a wonderful honor that took us completely by surprise. It no doubt recognizes the dual role of Nature in communicating outstanding science and key societal issues to diverse audiences. But above all, it's a reflection of the value and impact of scientific research itself within today's culture", says Nature Editor-in-Chief Dr Philip Campbell on hearing the news of Nature's selection.

The award coincides with NPG's launch earlier this week of NPG Iberoamerica, a new company dedicated to publishing for NPG in the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking worlds particularly in the medical research domain.

"We are so honored to receive this award," comments Dr Annette Thomas, Managing Director of NPG. "Tomorrow I am visiting Madrid for the launch of NPG Iberoamerica and the bestowing of this award on Nature could not be more timely. We look forward with great enthusiasm to working with the Spanish-speaking scientific community not only in Spain but also in Latin America, under the leadership of Lucia Ferreiros, our newly appointed head of NPG Iberoamerica."

Lucia Ferreiros added, "I always knew that by joining NPG I would become part of one of the most prestigious organizations in the scientific world. My colleagues and I are honored and delighted to see Nature bestowed with this distinguished award on the very day we open an office in Madrid."

About NPG
Nature Publishing Group (NPG) is a division of Macmillan Publishers Ltd, dedicated to serving the academic, professional scientific and medical communities. NPG's flagship title, Nature, was first published in 1869. Other publications include Nature research journals, Nature Reviews, Nature Clinical Practice and a range of prestigious academic journals including society-owned publications. NPG also provides news content through news@nature.com. Scientific career information and free job postings are offered on Naturejobs.

NPG is a global company with headquarters in London and offices in New York, San Francisco, Washington DC, Boston, Tokyo, Paris, Munich, Madrid, Hong Kong, Melbourne, Delhi and Basingstoke. For more information, please go to www.nature.com.

For more NPG Iberoamerica information please visit: www.nature.com/press_releases/npg_Iberoamericapr.pdf

About Prince of Asturias Foundation
The Prince of Asturias Foundation, formed in 1980 under the presidency of His Royal Highness Heir to the throne of Spain, aims to acknowledge scientific, technical, cultural, social and humanitarian work carried out internationally by individuals, groups or organizations in the following eight categories: communication and humanities, social sciences, arts, letters, scientific and technical research, international cooperation, concord and sports. It aims to promote achievements which confer the utmost benefit to mankind through its eight yearly awards, which UNESCO has recently recognized as 'World Cultural Heritage'.

The Communication and Humanities Award is bestowed upon the person, group of people or institution whose work or research constitutes a significant contribution to universal culture in these fields

For more details see www.fpa.es

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