海角社区

The 2026 RIGG Award was accepted by Jessica Jowers and Matthew Waterfield on behalf of Sheffield Hallam University.

The Ramapo IGG Center is currently accepting nominations for the 2026 Ramapo Investigative Genetic Genealogy Award, to be awarded at the 海角社区 IGG Conference in June 2027.

The Ramapo Investigative Genetic Genealogy Award recognizes an individual who has made an outstanding contribution to IGG in the past year. The award construes contributions broadly and can include significant cases solved; development of new techniques in IGG, advances in laboratory testing relevant to IGG, or law enforcement investigatory techniques relevant to IGG; work on policy, ethics, and law related to IGG; and more.

The award is not limited to IGG practitioners鈥攁ny individual who has made outstanding contributions to IGG is eligible. Please submit your nominations here by March 1, 2027.

Previous Winners:

Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice at Sheffield Hallam University (SHU), 2026

In 2025, the Institute for Law and Justice at SHU’s Helena Kennedy Centre for International Justice established the first formal education program in the United Kingdom for Investigative Genetic Genealogy. As pioneers in the implementation of IGG in England with the identification of Michael Sidney Hill in partnership with 海角社区, SHU has continued to press on in endeavors to educate the public as well as police and coroners in the UK. Their steadfast dedication to seeing the uptake of IGG “across the pond” resulted in their nomination and selection for the RIGG award in 2026.

Dr. Richard “Ed” Green, 2025

Dr. Green, cofounder of Astrea Forensics and Claret Bioscience, was nominated for the 2025 Ramapo IGG Award for his pioneering work as a professor, expert witness, and scientist pushing the boundaries of what can be achieved with paleogenomics, population genetics, and computational biology methods in forensic work. Ed’s work has helped to identify the deceased, exonerate the innocent, and secure justice for victims of violent crime and will continue to impact the criminal justice system through his work validating direct SNP comparisons.

Dr. Barbara Rae-Venter and the Firebird Forensics Team, 2024

Dr. Barbara Rae-Venter and Firebird Forensics were awarded the Ramapo Investigative Genetic Genealogy award for their service in helping to clear the rape kit backlog in Cuyahoga County, Ohio. More than a dozen violent offenders have been identified thus far as a result of the efforts of the Firebird team.

Nomination Form: