One of my favorite agenda items every fall at the Optica Board of Directors meeting is the approval of the awards and the recommendations for candidates for Optica Fellow. Don’t get me wrong, the rest of the leadership meeting is interesting and essential, giving the Board an opportunity to strategize on initiatives, long-term direction and outreach to our community. But I always look forward to the moment when we turn to the Fellows list. Once we approve candidates for awards and Fellows, we have to stay completely silent on the topic until the results become public. For someone as enthusiastic as I am about our community, that is not easy.
This year, 121 scientists, engineers and business leaders from 24 countries on 5 continents, who have made outstanding contributions to optics and photonics, have been elevated to the grade of Optica Fellow. Being approved for the Fellow distinction in a professional society is a true honor. It is not an entry-level designation but a recognition reserved for those who have navigated a rigorous, multi-step pathway of progressive advancement. This journey includes building credentials through years of engagement, contribution and service, culminating in a rigorous review process by the Awards Council and final confirmation by the Board of Directors. To provide context for how special this honor is, the number of Fellows is limited by the society’s bylaws to no more than 10% of the total membership, and the number elected each year is limited to approximately 0.5% of the current membership total.
Throughout 2026, the new class of Optica Fellows will be recognized at Optica conferences and meetings around the world, and this issue of OPN highlights their achievements and contributions to our field. I hope their stories will inspire you to think about your own professional journey and about the colleagues whose work and service deserve recognition. Please join me in congratulating the Optica Fellows Class of 2026 and in continuing to build the vibrant, inclusive community that makes our society so special.
If you are curious about the criteria for Optica Fellow or about how to nominate a colleague, I encourage you to visit optica.org/FellowNominations and to talk with current Fellows in your network.
As we begin the new year, there are numerous opportunities for members at every career stage to engage with Optica and to start, or to continue, building their own credentials on the road to future nomination and candidacy as an Optica Fellow. That might mean taking on leadership roles in technical groups; contributing to conferences and/or journals as authors, reviewers or chairs/editorial board members; serving on committees or councils; mentoring early-career professionals; or helping with outreach and education activities that broaden the impact of optics and photonics worldwide.
However you choose to engage, your time and expertise help strengthen the professional home we share. I look forward to celebrating the impact you’ll make and to recognizing many more of you as future Optica Fellows.
—Gisele Bennett,
Optica President
