On University Day each year, UNC-Chapel Hill recognizes alumni for their outstanding contributions to Carolina and society. On Oct. 12, the University will present five Distinguished Alumni Awards.

Here are this year’s winners:

Judi Aubel is an internationally recognized leader in global health and community development whose career exemplifies Carolina’s ideals of public service, innovation and global impact. After decades of work in Africa, Asia and Latin America, Aubel co-founded Grandmother Project-Change through Culture, a nonprofit that aims to increase the capacity of communities to promote the well-being and rights of women and children, especially girls, in the global South. Her work has reshaped policies and programs, garnering recognition that includes honors as a BBC 100 Women Laureate in 2016, an Ashoka Fellow in 2015 and the 2017 Global Thinkers Forum Award for Excellence in Positive Change.

Morris Bullock has been active in chemistry since he worked as a laboratory technician over two summers while a Carolina student. He went on to be an internationally recognized organometallic chemist whose experimental work in sustainable energy has propelled him to prominence in the field. He spent 15 years as founding director of the Center for Molecular Electrocatalysis at the Pacific Northwest National Laboratory, where he also published hundreds of articles in scientific journals and co-authored numerous book chapters and one book. He’s the only recipient of the American Chemical Society’s Organometallic Award not to be a University professor but maintains strong ties to Carolina through the Center for Hybrid Approaches in Solar Energy to Liquid Fuels (CHASE) Solar Hub.

Gigi Davidson began practicing veterinary pharmacy upon earning her bachelor’s degree at Carolina. She spent several decades building and expanding the body of knowledge in her discipline, including through her role as director of clinical pharmacy services at the NC State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She’s an advocate for animals as patients and veterinary pharmacy education to ensure pharmacy graduates are practice-ready to provide care for all species. She has served in leadership roles in professional organizations, notably the US Pharmacopeia, where her work to reassert established minimum standards led to her receiving the Beal Award for Distinguished Volunteer Service.

Charles Nam served as a sociology professor at Florida State University for more than 30 years. A leader in the field, he made significant contributions toward the Nam-Powers Index, created to estimate the living conditions of a typical person in a particular occupation. It has been adopted as a key measure of socioeconomic status. A well-regarded academic, Nam was elected to several high-profile leadership positions during his career. He founded the FSU Center for Demography and Population Health, chaired the sociology department, served as editor of the journal Demography and won numerous NIH and NSF grants. After retiring, Nam has continued to write academic papers and books, including publishing his first novel at age 80, and serving the Tallahassee community.

Anna Maria Siega-Riz, dean and professor in the School of Public Health and Health Sciences at the University of Massachusetts at Amherst, is an internationally recognized reproductive and perinatal epidemiologist with expertise in maternal and child nutrition. Her leadership in advanced dietary assessment and groundbreaking research on diet quality have transformed the understanding of how nutrition affects a variety of health outcomes. Her research has received millions of dollars in funding, and Siega-Riz’s findings have been disseminated in numerous books and chapters and peer-reviewed articles in top journals. She’s served in and been recognized by multiple national organizations for her work. Most recently, the Massachusetts Health Council recognized her with a “Beacon for the Common Good” award.

Read more about the recipients and this year’s celebration on the University Day webpage.