Bayesian prizes and awards

As I missed the banquet in Nagoya for ISBA 2026, I also missed the award ceremony afterwards. Thanks to the ISBA Bulletin, the whole list is now available. Congrats to all! Esp. to those I have not congratulated yet!)

2025 Savage Award in the Category of Theory and Methods
Filippo Ascolani for his thesis entitled “Hierarchical Structures in Bayesian Statistics” (Supervisors: Antonio Lijoi and Igor Prünster).

2025 Savage Award in the Category of Applied Methodology
Jorge Castillo-Mateo for his thesis entitled “Stochastic Models for the Spatio-Temporal Analysis of Extremes, Applications to the Analysis of Climate Change” (Supervisor: Ana C. Cebrián Guajardo and Alan E. Gelfand).

2025 Mitchell Prize
Michael Pearce and Elena A. Erosheva for their paper “Modeling Preferences: A Bayesian Mixture of Finite Mixtures for Rankings and Ratings,” published in Journal of the American Statistical Association (Theory and Methods) 120 (551): 1621–1632, 2025.

2024 Lindley Prize
Jim Griffin for his paper “Expressing and Visualizing Model Uncertainty in Bayesian Variable Selection Using Cartesian Credible Sets”, published in Bayesian Analysis 20(4), 1371–1397, 2025.

2025 DeGroot Prize
Raquel Prado, Marco A. R. Ferreira, and Mike West for their book “Time Series Modeling, Computation, and Inference, Second Edition”

2026 Zellner Medals

Kerrie Mengersen for her outstanding contributions to Bayesian computation, methodology, and applied modeling, and for her transformative service and leadership within the International Society for Bayesian Analysis and the Australasian statistics community, making a lasting impact on both the science and the culture of Bayesian statistics.

Sylvia Richardson for her numerous and deep contributions to Bayesian statistics and biostatistics throughout her career, for her substantial service to ISBA including her presidency of ISBA in 2005 that saw the launch of Bayesian Analysis, and for her leadership of the
RSS Covid-19 Task Force, which provided rational and crucial support during the pandemic.

2026 ISBA Fellows

Christopher K. Wikle (Curators’ Distinguished Professor, Department of Statistics and Data Science, University of Missouri): For outstanding research in Bayesian statistics with application to spatio-temporal inference in geophysics and ecology, for leadership in implementing neural networks in hierarchical statistical models, for exceptional mentoring and teaching, and for sustained editorial services to professional societies. David Banks (Professor of the Practice of Statistical Science at Duke University): For foundational and sustained contributions to Bayesian decision and risk analysis, broad-ranging applications of statistics in societally important areas, and a substantial record of leadership in the profession, in particular for the Section on Industrial Statistics.
Dani Gamerman (Emeritus Professor, Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro): For his influential contributions to the early development and dissemination of MCMC methods for complex hierarchical, dynamic and spatial models and for his visionary leadership in establishing a strong Bayesian community in Brazil that has inspired and shaped multiple generations of statisticians.
Debajyoti Sinha (Hobbs Endowed Chair of Statistics, Department of Statistics, Florida State University, USA): For his seminal research in the development of Bayesian theory and methods for survival analysis and longitudinal studies, and for his transformative influence on Bayesian biostatistics through the creation of innovative modeling frameworks for complex clinical data science, and for his service to the international Bayesian community.
Long Nguyen (Professor of Statistics, University of Michigan): For profound contributions to Bayesian statistics and machine learning, particularly in advancing Bayesian nonparametric theory; for substantial service within the community; and for dedicated and highly influential mentorship.
Matthias Katzfuss (Professor, Department of Statistics, University of Wisconsin–Madison): For his groundbreaking developments in scalable
Bayesian methods for high-dimensional spatial and spatio-temporal data that bridge the gap between Bayesian theory and large-scale environmental applications, and for his significant service to ISBA and the Bayesian community.
Nicolas Chopin (Professor of Data Sciences at ENSAE, Institut Polytechnique de Paris): For groundbreaking contributions to computational Bayesian statistics, for sustained and dedicated mentorship, and for long-term and distinguished editorial service.
Roberto Casarin (Professor of Econometrics, Ca’ Foscari University of Venice): For his seminal contributions to Bayesian time-series analysis, econometrics, and computation; and for his leadership and service to ISBA in various capacities, including organizing ISBA meetings.
Robert B. Gramacy (Professor, Virginia Tech): For his pioneering work on Bayesian modeling and statistical computing, particularly in the context of computer experiments and surrogate modeling; for his continued and impactful service to ISBA as a member of the editorial board of Bayesian Analysis and of the Executive Council.
Yasuhiro Omori (Professor of Economics, University of Tokyo): For his outstanding contributions to theoretical foundations and statistical
computation in Bayesian statistics and econometrics, for his exceptional service to ISBA, including his leadership in organizing major Bayesian events, and for his dedicated mentorship of young researchers.