Keeping in line with the need to acknowledge and preserve a nation's truly valuable contributions, the ACADEMY is the most important and prestigious institution, bringing together the most prominent personalities of the cultural and scientific world. The award of the title of academician (corresponding member) is in fact the clearest validation of a person's capacity of "creator" of values and "founder" of perennial traditions in various relevant fields. Along the years, very few sociologists (only 16, to our knowledge) reached such a peak of scientific prestige and some of them, Virgil T. Madgearu or Petre Andrei for example, were no longer alive so that they could enjoy this honour that was conferred to them post mortem in 1990, and 1991, respectively. Since 1990, three new full members (Henri H. Stahl and Roman Moldovan - elected in 1990, Vladimir Trebici - 1992) and only two corresponding members (Mihail M. Cernea - and Cătălin Zamfir - who were conferred this title in 1991) were elected to the Romanian Academy from among the sociologists. On October 24th, 2012, the Romanian Academy organised new elections for members, as a result of which professor Mihail M. Cernea was promoted from corresponding member to full member of the prestigious forum. Therefore, given the regrettable passing of the other abovementioned sociologists of the Academy, only Mihail M. Cernea - as full member of the Academy - and Cătălin Zamfir - as corresponding member - continue to be today the representatives of our field of study in the Romanian Academy. Our journal, which has benefited on countless occasions of the support offered by our colleague, professor Cernea, one of the most active members of the editorial team, takes this opportunity to recount the most significant moments in the life and activity of the reputed professor, in order to once again express its admiration and praise for his important contribution to the development of contemporary sociology, including Romanian sociology.
