In 2001, CEI established an award in honor of the late free market economist, Julian L. Simon, whose classic 1981 work The Ultimate Resource debunks the alarmist predictions of eco-doomsayers like Paul Ehrlich. The award is traditionally presented at CEI's annual gala dinner.  Stephen Moore, a member of the Wall Street Journal's editorial board and former research fellow with Dr. Simon, was the first recipient of the Julian L. Simon Memorial Award.

Former Julian L. Simon Memorial Award Honorees

2012 - Matt Ridley, author of The Rational Optimist: How Prosperity Evolves

2011 - Robert J. Smith, former director of CEI's Center for Private Conservation

2010 – Ross McKitrick and Stephen McIntyre

2009 - Richard Tren, Founder of Africa Fighting Malaria

2008 - President Václav Klaus of the Czech Republic

2007 - Indur Goklany, author of The Improving State of the World

2006 - John Stossel, host of "Stossel" on the Fox Business Network

2005 -  Barun Mitra of the Liberty Institute (New Delhi, India)

2004 - There was no Simon award given.  Instead, CEI honored Nobel Peace Prize laureate Norman Borlaug with our first Prometheus Award for Human Achievement.

2003 - Bjørn Lomborg

2002 - Robert L. Bradley, Jr.

2001 - Stephen Moore