Scholarships & Awards

The Bonnie Westenberg Pedersen International Midwife Award honors the memory of Bonnie Westenberg Pedersen, Founder and Director of ACNM’s Special Projects Section, by providing an award to an international midwife to encourage them to follow Bonnie’s path of leadership, vision, and significant contributions to the profession of midwifery and international reproductive health, particularly in economically developing countries. 

 AWARD:

This award covers travel and other related expenses related to fulfillment of the Pedersen Award recipient’s agreed objectives. 

BACKGROUND:

This award was established in 1999 by the A.C.N.M. Foundation in memory of Bonnie Pedersen, CNM, MPH, FACNM, a revered colleague, and the Founder/Director of ACNM’s Special Projects Section. To date, the award has recognized ten outstanding midwives from countries such as Zimbabwe, Tanzania, Afghanistan, Nepal, Pakistan, Zambia, Nigeria, the Philippines, and most recently, Rwanda. 

The award honors Bonnie’s tireless advocacy for quality healthcare by midwives for women and newborns globally. Her unwavering dedication to justice and fairness marked her as an exceptional midwife and friend whose inspirational vision and aspirational goals benefited us all. Throughout her career, Bonnie sought to uplift emerging midwife leaders worldwide, encouraging their future contributions to midwifery and global health. She was also a proponent of the value of strong midwifery associations. 

Since its inception, the volunteer midwives of ACNM’s Division of Global Engagement have steadfastly supported Pedersen Award recipients during their Annual Meeting experience. Collaborating closely with the Foundation, they tirelessly strive to raise funds for the Pedersen Fund, aiming to transform this biennial award into an annual celebration of global midwifery excellence.