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Charles DeLisi (Boston University), an administrator and researcher in the Department of Energy in the mid-1980s, was one of 28 honorees to whom President Clinton presented the Presidential Citizens Medal on January 8. According to the award citation, DeLisi was the first government scientist to conceive and outline the feasibility, goals, and parameters of the Human Genome Project. He helped to galvanize an international team of researchers to pool resources, create new technologies, and launch the monumental task of gene mapping and sequencing. See the Exceptional Service Awards

At the presentation ceremony President Clinton added, "Charles DeLisi's imagination and determination helped to ignite the revolution in sequencing that would ultimately unravel the code of human life itself. Thanks to his vision and leadership, in the year 2000 we announced the complete sequencing of the human genome. Researchers are now closer than ever to finding therapies and cures for ailments once thought untreatable."

Established in 1969 by Executive Order 11494, the medal is awarded at the president's sole discretion to U.S. citizens (living or dead) who have performed exemplary deeds of service for the nation or for their fellow citizens. The 2001 award winners were recognized for their remarkable service and accomplishments in a variety of areas such as civil rights, medicine and health, sports, human rights, religion, education, disability advocacy, government service, journalism, and the environment. They include Hank Aaron, Muhammed Ali, Elizabeth Taylor, Ronald Brown, Archibald Cox, Robert Rubin, Warren Rudman, and Charles Ruff.

Human Genome Project
The Human Genome Project is expected to reap fantastic benefits for humankind, some that can be anticipated and others that will be surprising. Already, the medical community is building upon the knowledge, resources, and technologies emanating from the genome project to understand the role of genetics in human health and to apply this knowledge to the diagnosis, monitoring, and treatment of diseases. See Medicine and the New Genetics.

Generations of biologists and other researchers will have detailed DNA information that will be key to understanding the structure, organization, and function of DNA in chromosomes. Genome maps of nonhuman organisms will provide the basis for comparative studies that are critical to understanding more complex biological systems such as humans, and information generated and technologies developed will revolutionize future biological explorations. See the Human Genome Project Information FAQs page.

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