The medal is named after Gerardus L. Krol (1912-1984) who played a key role in the foundation and development of SGA. Particularly from 1965 to 1969 G.L. Krol consistently displayed all his talents and communicated his strong enthusiasm and his clear vision of the future to the small group that was to be the Provisional Executive Committee of SGA. This group gathered for the first time on 23^rd April 1965, in Heidelberg to launch Mineralium Deposita and to found SGA. He was unanimously asked to preside over the Provisional Executive Committee. Those who participated in this venture will not forget the meetings of this committee during which a heavy agenda was rapidly and efficiently dealt with under his humorous, energetic, and clear guidance (Schneider 1984). Thanks to his sense of diplomacy, good relations were soon established with other organizations like the IUGS. Once SGA was officially formed, Dr. Gerardus L. Krol was elected its first President, a well-deserved honor, given the efforts and the time, which he had devoted to it. So it is most appropriate to establish this new award to recognize service to the SGA in the name of one of its founder, and first president.

The SGA-KGHM-Krol Medal is minted from three troy ounces of pure silver. The medal is slightly oval in shape. The face of the medal shows a portrait of G.L. Krol, whereas the reverse shows the logos of the SGA and KGHM (Figure 1). We sincerely thank the Krol family for permission to name this prestigious award after G.L. Krol.

The SGA-KGHM-Krol Medal has been awarded for the first time, in presence of the Krol family, during the Opening Ceremony of the 50^th SGA Anniversary Meeting on 24^th August 2015 in Nancy, France.