...selected 200 Laureates for 2012. Among those named is DigitalGlobe as a 2012 laureate in the innovation award category. DigitalGlobe received this award for its response to the Japanese earthquake and tsunami using FirstLook and FirstWatch, online and analytic services that enabled users to see damage on a street-by-street basis, enabling in-country organizations to deliver aid and medical care and attempt to rescue those trapped in collapsed buildings.
Those named will be commemorated during the Annual Laureates Medal Ceremony & Gala Awards Evening on June 4, 2012 at the Andrew W. Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C. During this ceremony, case studies are formally inducted into the program's International Archives, and honorees are presented with a medallion inscribed with the Program's mission, A Search for New Heroes. For more than two decades, The Computerworld Honors Program has recognized individuals and organizations who create and use information technology to promote and advance public welfare, contribute to the greater good of society and change the world for the better. At the Gala Evening, additional honors will also be given to 50 finalists in the 21st Century Achievement Award—five Laureates from each of the ten categories—each with a Case Study selected by Program Judges to represent outstanding innovation within the information technology field. That field is narrowed further with the presentation of the 21st Century Achievement Awards. These awards are given to only one Finalist in each category, singled out for special recognition by the Program Judges to be the very best among their peers.