Rolex Awards entries reach record high

Record number of entries

for 2012:

3,512 applications

from 154 countries

A record number of individuals, including a higher percentage of young people, have applied to the 2012 Rolex Awards for Enterprise, more than doubling the figures from recent series.

Rolex has received 3,512 applications for this edition, which represents by far the highest number of projects submitted to the international philanthropy programme since its launch in 1976.

“We are thrilled that so many people are putting forward projects to benefit our planet,” said Rebecca Irvin, head of the Rolex Institute, who attributes the dramatic rise in applicants to greater awareness worldwide of issues such as renewable energy and the need to protect biodiversity, and to a growing recognition of the power of the individual to change the world.

The application process for the Rolex Awards has also been simplified and this has likely encouraged more people to apply.

Analysis of the entries of the current edition and the previous edition in 2008 (the last comparable Awards series) shows a drop in the average age of applicants from 46 years old in 2008 to 41 today; the percentage of women applying rose to 28 per cent, up from 23 per cent in 2008, and the highest percentage ever recorded; and there was more than a 20 per cent rise in the number of countries in which people submitted applications (126 to 154). Of these countries, a striking number are developing countries.

Rolex welcomes the high level of interest in the Awards. However, as a result, the period for screening entries has been extended. Applicants may have to wait longer than initially anticipated to be informed about the status of their applications. All applicants should receive a message before the end of the year.

The names of the eminent scientists, explorers and environmentalists on the 2012 Jury will be announced in September. The jury will meet at Rolex headquarters in Geneva next year and the winners will be announced in late 2012 on the Rolex Awards website and at a special prize-giving event.