After a successful premier of the Swiss Award last year, the Swiss Award, sponsored by Glencore-Xstrata, has again been announced in the frame of a glamorous gala-dinner at the Swissôtel in Sydney. This year the award was given to Prof. Dr. Boris Baer, Swiss bee-researcher and dedicated SAAN Board Member.

The Swiss Award recognizes outstanding contributions by individuals and/or organisations to Swiss-Australian relations in the fields of business, culture, science, academia and sports. In particular, the Swiss Award recognises leadership and innovation that further contribute to the growth of the Swiss-Australian relationship.

Boris Baer is the director of the “Centre for Integrative Bee Research” (CIBER) at the University of Western Australia in Perth and has been focusing on the mysterious global bee mass-extinction. To spread his knowledge and to inform the public about the worldwide phenomenon, Boris Baer, his wife Barbara Baer (also a Bee-Researcher) and his father-in-law, Swiss Oscar nominated director Markus Imhoof, produced the film “More than Honey”.

The documentary itself has been a worldwide success story and has been seen by thousands all over the world. Not only did it win countless awards at notable film festivals, such as the German Film Prize, but it was shown at many public screening events.

Specifically in Australia, the documentary was screened in the frame of the German Film Festival all over the country, which gave many people the opportunity to watch Boris Baer and his family in action and see the important work he has done for the Swiss-Australian relationship.

We congratulate Prof. Dr. Boris Baer to his success and look forward to many more discoveries in the bee-research field.