The Moire Anne Wadleigh Student Prize in Stable Isotope Science is awarded to the student presenting the best paper or poster at the Advances in Stable Isotope Techniques and Applications (ASITA) Conference, as determined by an independent panel of judges convened by the conference organizers.

This prize is given in memory of Professor Moire Anne Wadleigh, a prominent member of the Canadian stable isotope community, and co-organizer of the 2002 Canadian CF-IRMS Workshop at Memorial University. Dr. Wadleigh contributed an enormous amount to our science in her all too short life. Her MSc thesis research on strontium isotopes in rivers, conducted at the University of Ottawa, remains the first and critical reference on this topic. Her PhD research at McMaster on the isotopic behaviour of sulphate in rain, and the environment more generally, was years ahead of its time in helping us to track and understand the movement of these compounds in the atmosphere. Dr. Wadleigh’s post-doctoral research on the oxygen-isotope composition of ancient oceans, and its implications for Earth’s evolution, remains central to one of geochemistry’s most important controversies. Her work as a Research Associate at The University of Western Ontario on fluid-flow in the continental crust provided new ways of understanding these systems. But her most enduring scientific contributions are, and will be, her pioneering research conducted at Memorial University from 1991 to 2004, in collaboration with her staff and students.

Professor Wadleigh had a fascination with the behaviour of sulphate and nitrate in the atmosphere. She studied these compounds in rain, in aerosols, on lichens – wherever they might be found – to understand their origin and their impact on Earth. At the time of her death, she was actively engaged in the Canadian and International SOLAS projects to determine the connection between ocean uptake of greenhouse gases and natural emissions of sulphur-bearing compounds. During these investigations, Dr. Wadleigh worked very closely with her graduate students. She gave them her time and advice without limit, and she gave them room to evolve their own ideas as young scholars.

It is therefore fitting that we honour her memory in this way.

The Moire Anne Wadleigh Student Prize was established and endowed by FJ Longstaffe in 2005. Additional donations from the 14th (2008) Canadian CF-IRMS Workshop, jointly hosted by the University of Saskatchewan and Environment Canada in Saskatoon, the 15th Canadian CF-IRMS Workshop (2009) at Cornell University, ASITA 2016 in Philadelphia, ASITA 2017 in Waterloo, G Koehler (ASITA 2019) in Winnipeg, and ASITA 2023 in Ottawa have further strengthened the Prize. This year, the prize is worth CDN$600.

The 2026 Winner – Damon Tarrant, PhD candidate, Simon Fraser University, for “Developing sulfur isoscapes for mobility studies using modern plants”. Presented at the 30th ASITA conference, held at the University of Saskatchewan Department of Soil Science Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, June 7-10th, 2026. Co-author Michael Richards.

Previous Winners

Moire Anne Wadleigh Student Prize in Stable Isotope Science

2005 – Sam Russell, MSc candidate, The University of Western Ontario, for “Airlock laser fluorination triple oxygen isotope analysis of clays and meteorites”. At the 11^th Canadian CF-IRMS Workshop, The University of Western Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada, August 14-17, 2005.

2006 – Michelle Chartrand, PhD candidate, University of Toronto, for “Stable Carbon Isotope Analysis of a-Hexachlorocyclohexane: potential for source fingerprinting”. At the 12^th Canadian CF-IRMS Workshop, University of Victoria, Victoria, BC, Canada, June 12-14, 2006.

2007 – Tim Jardine, PhD candidate, University of New Brunswick, for “On-line organic hydrogen isotope analysis: anchors, exchangeability and equilibration”. At the 13^th Canadian CF-IRMS Workshop, University of New Brunswick, Fredericton, New Brunswick, Canada, June 24-27, 2007.

2008 – Sam Russell, PhD candidate, The University of Western Ontario, for “Online δ¹⁵N, δ¹⁸O and δ¹⁷O measurements of dissolved nitrate by chemical reduction and catalytic decomposition.” At the 14^th Canadian CF-IRMS Workshop, University of Saskatchewan, Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, June 15-18, 2008.

2009 – Ying Zhang, PhD candidate, Cornell University, for “Uniform isotopic standards for gas chromatography combustion isotope ratio mass spectrometry of steroids.” At the 15^th Canadian CF-IRMS Workshop, Cornell University, Ithaca, New York, USA, June 28-July 01, 2009.

2010 – Not Awarded

2011 – Courtney V. Holden, BSc (Honors) candidate, Queen’s University, for “Isotopic analysis of fish otoliths: Insights into the thermal history and stock origin of the American eel (Anguilla rostrata).” At the 17^th ASITA Conference, Queen’s University, Kingston, Ontario, Canada, June 12-15, 2011.

2012 – Not Awarded

2013 – Anthony J. Menicucci, PhD candidate, University of California Davis, for “Microfluorination: a new approach for analyzing quartz and biogenic silica δ¹⁸O via continuous flow mass spectrometry.” At the 19^th ASITA Conference, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada, June 02-05, 2013.

2014 – Bobby Walsh, PhD candidate, University of California, Davis, Graduate Group in Ecology, for the oral presentation Rapid, compound-specific δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N analysis of amino acids with chloroformates and the poster “Data from over 100 isotopic studies of amino acid carbon and nitrogen: Emerging patterns and trends”. At the 20^th ASITA Conference, University of California, Davis, USA, June 15-18, 2014.

2015 – Chris Spencer, PhD candidate, School of Geography and Earth Sciences, McMaster University, for the oral presentation Development and Final-Stage Testing of McMaster’s CO₂ Clumped Isotope Facility. At the 21^st ASITA Conference, University of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, June 27-30, 2015.

2016 – Andrew Barber, PhD candidate, Concordia University, for the poster presentation “Measuring the δ¹³C of Dissolved Organic Carbon in Canada’s Eastern Coastal Waters“. At the 22^nd ASITA Conference, The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA, June 19-21, 2016.

2017 – Anic Imfeld, PhD candidate, Concordia University, for the poster presentation “Environmental Forensics: Using Compound-specific Stable Carbon Isotope Analysis to Track Petroleum Contamination“. At the 23^rd ASITA Conference, University of Waterloo, Ontario, Canada, June 24-27, 2017.

2018 – John Mering, PhD candidate, University of Waikato, for the oral presentation Applying laser spectroscopy to measure isotopic alteration in carbonates and phyllosilicates: new tools for exploring hydrothermal systems. At the 24^th ASITA Conference, Smithsonian’s Museum Conservation Institute, Washington, DC, USA, June 04-06, 2018.

2019 – Frédéric Séguin, MSc candidate, Concordia University / IRNS, for the poster presentation “Implications of isotope correction to account for derivatization of small non-volatile molecules“. At the 25^th ASITA conference, University of Manitoba, Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, June 09-12, 2019.

2020 – No conference due to global COVID-19 pandemic.

2021 – No conference due to global COVID-19 pandemic.

2022 – Shared

– Yeganeh Mirzaei, MSc candidate, Concordia University, for the oral presentation Application of Stable Isotope Ratios in Kinetic Study of Bacterial Preference in Degradation of Organic Matter in the Largest Semi-enclosed Estuary of the World. At the 26^th ASITA conference, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), GEOTOP, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, June 12-15, 2022.

– Shamsunnahar Suchana, PhD candidate, University of Toronto, for the poster presentation “CSIA of substituted chlorobenzenes at sub-μg/L using passive sampler“. At the 26^th ASITA conference, Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM), GEOTOP, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, June 12-15, 2022.

2023 – Susanna Smith, PhD candidate, Bristol University, for the oral presentation A compound-specific stable isotope approach to explore the routing of hydrogen from drinking water to tissues in ruminant animals. At the 27th ASITA conference, University of Ottawa, Ján Veizer Stable Isotope Laboratory, Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, June 11-14, 2023.

2024 – Milad Ezzati, PhD Candidate, Concordia University, for the poster presentation “A Systematic Reassessment of the Method Used to Quantify Organic Matter Associated with Iron Oxides in Marine Sediments . At the 28th ASITA conference, Dalhousie University, CERC.OCEAN laboratory, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, June 16-19, 2024.

2025 – Allyson Girard, PhD Student, Texas A&M University–Corpus Christi, for the oral presentation “Investigating Nitrate Sources and Export in an Alpine Catchment Using Orbitrap-Based Stable Isotope Techniques.” Presented at the 29th ASITA conference, held at the University of Texas Marine Science Institute in Port Aransas, Texas, May 18–21, 2025. Co-authors: J. David Felix, Justin Elliott, Hussain Abdulla.