26 June 2023
Today (26 June), the IFoA was proud to award two Honorary Fellowships and a Finlaison Medal at our annual conference, to recognise individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the actuarial profession.
Honorary Fellowships are awarded dedicated to individuals who have achieved distinction in related fields or given significant service to the actuarial profession. As a professional body, we have around 200 Honorary Fellows who have been leaders in their fields of business, academia and government, either here in the UK, or internationally.
Honorary Fellows are elected by the IFoA membership and are individuals who have achieved distinction in related fields or have given significant service to the actuarial profession. Many of our Honorary Fellows are very active in the profession and complement the work of over 31,000 IFoA members around the world, by sharing their diverse perspectives and expertise on key topics of relevance to actuarial science.
At conference this year, we were proud to award two Honorary Fellowships to Chris Curry (Director of the Pensions Policy Institute) and Russell Picot (Chair of the Trustee board of the HSBC Bank (UK) Pension Fund). Chris and Russell were awarded Honorary Fellowships in recognition of contributions to the development and advancement of UK pensions policy and for services to sustainability and climate-related financial disclosures, respectively.
The Finlaison Medal was first awarded in 1985 and is named after the founding President of the Institute of Actuaries. These medals are awarded in recognition of service to the actuarial profession in fulfilling the responsibilities laid out in our Royal Charter, beyond that which would normally be expected of an ordinary member.
Today we were proud to present a Finlaison Medal to Stuart McDonald MBE. In awarding a Finlaison Medal, IFoA Council wishes to recognise the significant leadership and influence Stuart demonstrated as part of the profession’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic, including the role he played in helping to communicate key information to government, the media and other organisations.
The central role Stuart played as co-chair of the Covid-19 Actuaries Response Group and the Deputy Chair elect of the Continuous Mortality Investigation undoubtedly helped to inform key policy decisions taken during the pandemic, simultaneously raising the profile of the profession and the contribution it can make to public life.
The IFoA would like to congratulate all award winners for their outstanding service to the actuarial profession.