The American Industrial Hygiene Association® (AIHA) yesterday announced the recipients of the 2015 AIHA awards, which honor individuals who provide significant contributions to the industrial hygiene and occupational and environmental health and safety profession. The award recipients will be recognized on Wednesday, June 3, during the Mark of Excellence Awards Breakfast at the 2015 American Industrial Hygiene Conference and Exposition (AIHce) in Salt Lake City, Utah.

“These individuals have demonstrated enduring dedication to strengthening the practice of industrial hygiene and occupational and environmental health and safety,” said Award Committee Chairperson and Past-president Barbara J. Dawson, CIH, CSP.  “The contributions and commitment of this year’s award recipients will go a long way toward achieving AIHA’s vision to eliminate workplace illnesses.”

This year's AIHA named award recipients are:

NIOSH Nanotechnology Field Research Team – Edward J. Baier Technical Achievement Award
As part of NIOSH’s nanotechnology research agenda, the Nanotechnology Field Research Team (NFRT) was formed in mid-2006 to assess workplace processes, materials, and control technologies associated with nanotechnology and conduct on-site assessments of potential occupational exposure to a variety of nanomaterials. The field team was created to fill a critical knowledge gap regarding worker exposure at a time when very little was known.  Over the course of their investigations, the NFRT developed a process that supports a more specific, quantitative approach to exposure assessment. Members of the field team have also been active contributors to the annual AIHce conference via hosting nanotechnology professional development courses, presenting at podium sessions, and hosting and participating in roundtables.  Charles L. Geraci, PhD, CIH, Team Manager, will accept the award on behalf of the NFRT.  The Baier Award is given to the individual or group of individuals, company, academic institution, organization, or association that has made the most significant contribution to industrial hygiene in recent years through technical expertise, innovations, or scientific advancements.

André Dufresne, PhD, CIH – Donald E. Cummings Memorial Award
André Dufresne began his practice of industrial hygiene in the late 1970s at the Iron Ore Company (Québec, Canada) and the Sidbec Normines (Québec, Canada).  In the mid-1980s, he was a scientist at the Quebec Research Institute for Occupational Health and Safety (IRSST, Montréal, Canada). During his time at IRSST he focused his research on dust characterization. He left IRSST to work on his PhD and became, in 1990, professor in occupational hygiene at the School of Occupational Health, later called the Department of Epidemiology, Biostatistics & Occupational Health, McGill University  (Montréal, Canada). In 2005, he received the Antoine-Aumont Prize of the Quebec Occupational Health, Safety and Hygiene Association (AQHSST) in recognition of his contributions to the practice of occupational health and safety in Québec. In 2008, he became professor and director at the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health, Université de Montréal (Montréal, Canada), and was active until his retirement in 2014. He has published more than 100 papers and reports in occupational hygiene regarding specific concerns such as asbestos, beryllium, silicon carbide, ultrafine particles and nanoparticles, and has presented more than 120 scientific presentations. He was on the International Advisory Board of the Annals of Occupational Hygiene until 2013, and as of 2014, Dufresne is an honorary professor and member of the IRSST Scientific Council.  The Cummings Award is bestowed upon an individual who has made outstanding contributions to the knowledge and practice of the profession of industrial hygiene and who has been acknowledged for his/her contributions outside of the field of industrial hygiene (e.g., in the EHS field, occupational health, public health, business, etc.)

Christine A. Hoehn, CIH – Kusnetz Award
Christine Hoehn’s most notable professional accomplishment is her diligence in the development and implementation of a formal industrial hygiene program within the Praxair-United States Industrial Gas Division (USA). Hoehn’s technical expertise was recognized by Praxair when she was named the National Industrial Hygiene Expert, which led to the creation of her current role as the Industrial Hygiene Program Manager for the United States Industrial Gas Division (USA) of Praxair.  She was selected to attend AIHA Future Leaders Institute and was part of a founding group of volunteers who proposed, created, and successfully launched AIHA’s Mentoring Program and Board-appointed Mentoring Committee.  She chairs the Student and Early Career Professionals Committee of the AIHA Board and is the President-elect/Treasurer for the American Industrial Hygiene Foundation.  The Kusnetz Award honors an industrial hygienist under the age of 40 who is currently employed in the private sector and shows promise of leadership in the industrial hygiene profession.

Renee Anthony, PhD, CIH – Alice Hamilton Award
Dr. Renee Anthony began her career as an industrial hygienist in the pulp and paper industry from 1992 through 2000 and has been in academia since receiving her PhD in 2005. She requires her occupational safety students at the University of Iowa to complete community-based projects that teach them to help local businesses develop safety and health interventions, incorporating outreach consultation and educational video development.  Dr. Anthony has contributed to the IH/OH industry by editing the 2nd edition of the Mathematical Models book and teaching professional development courses (PDCs) for the AIHA Exposure Assessment Strategies Committee and AIHA Aerosols Technology Committee.  She has been an active volunteer on AIHA’s Student and Early Career Professionals Committee, and has served as a reviewer for three NIOSH Educational Research Center/Training Program evaluations.   The Alice Hamilton Award is presented to an outstanding woman who has been engaged in IH/OH for at least 10 years and is dedicated to public and community service, social reform, and technological innovation.

Noel Tresider, CIH, COH – Yant Award
In his 35-year career, Noel Tresider’s knowledge and experience of historical exposures related to technological changes in the petroleum refining, distribution, and user industry was instrumental in resolving complex issues in Australia’s Health Watch program.  He has served as an active committee member across the professional associations in Australia (AIOH) and internationally (International Occupational Hygiene Association, IOHA), as well as the Asian Network of Occupational Hygiene (ANOH).  Tresider has been an in-demand visiting academic, presenting lectures to post-graduate industrial hygiene students at Monash University, Ballarat University, Deakin University, and has held the position of Visiting Fellow, School of Health Sciences at the University of Wollongong.  The internationally recognized Yant Award is presented annually for outstanding contributions in industrial hygiene or allied fields to an individual residing outside the United States.

Christine A.D. Lorenzo, CIH, President of the AIHA Board of Directors, stressed the prestige of these awards: “The continuing efforts of our members and volunteers to advance the industrial hygiene profession have inspired many, and we look forward to honoring our AIHA awardees and other outstanding individuals at the inaugural Mark of Excellence Breakfast at AIHce 2015.  This brand-new awards event will showcase these extraordinary contributions and celebrate excellence and leadership in our profession.” 

Lorenzo went on to acknowledge the generous sponsorship contributions by MSA, Bureau Veritas North America, Inc., and Howard and Francis Kusnetz that enable the award recipients to attend AIHce and the Mark of Excellence Awards Event.

About AIHA®

Founded in 1939, the American Industrial Hygiene Association (AIHA) is the premier association of occupational and environmental health and safety professionals. AIHA’s 10,000 members play a crucial role on the front line of worker health and safety every day. Members represent a cross-section of industry, private business, labor, government and academia. AIHA’s annual conference (AIHce) is the premier event for IH and OEHS professionals to learn the latest education and outcomes pertaining to worker health and safety.