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Environ’s Dr Des Fernandes wins Lifetime Achievement Award
Founder and scientific director of Environ Skin Care, Dr Des Fernandes, has been awarded The Skin Cancer Foundation of South Africa's Lifetime Achievement Award for his significant contributions to the skincare industry.
This award is the first of its kind and Dr Fernandes is being celebrated for his pioneering developments, techniques and technologies associated with skin rejuvenation and photo-protection, as well as for his contributions to the field of topical antioxidants and vitamins within the industry.
Dr Fernandes is a globally acclaimed and respected plastic surgeon and scientist who has been developing skincare products for over 30 years.
Says Dr Marc Roscher, CEO of the Skin Cancer Foundation of South Africa: “Dr Des Fernandes has truly adjusted our understanding and influenced the way we work as physicians, not just as South Africans but worldwide. Testament to this is the fact that he received the Dermatological Aesthetic Surgery International League (DASIL) International Lifetime Achievement Award in Doha in 2019. As South Africans, we are very honoured to give this award to him in recognition of his monumental contribution in the fields of skin rejuvenation, photoprotection and the development of the field of needling.”
It was the agonising loss of two young melanoma patients in the 1980s that motivated Dr Fernandes' research into the skin and skin cancer. The defining point in his career was when he discovered the revolutionary effects of vitamin topical applications on the skin, especially that of vitamin A. This scientific breakthrough within the skincare industry led to the conception of Environ Skin Care and an unprecedented 30-year legacy in scientific innovation that followed, including many more 'world first' skin health developments that Environ's products embody.
Says Dr Fernandes, "I am truly humbled to receive this award. My work is and has always been driven by my passion for finding scientific solutions to common skin issues and sharing that knowledge as widely as possible. The skin is the largest organ in the human body and so it's my belief that we should all be united in understanding how it works and should be cared for."
Theresa De Beer, COO of the Skin Cancer Foundation of South Africa, concludes: “Dr Fernandes is truly deserving of this award. He has been giving freely of his knowledge to peers and non-medical healthcare practitioners. This is truly a unique part of who he is, and we thank him for that.”