ISN Pioneer Awards honor the 'unsung heroes' of nephrology. They reward doctors on a regional level who have carried out extraordinary efforts to advance nephrology in a specific country or region. Without their dedication, nephrology would have been far behind its current state in their country and region
Find below the 2017 Pioneer Awardees:
| Region | Name | Country |
| Africa | Hasan Abu-Aisha | Sudan |
| Middle East | Riyad Said | Jordan |
| North & East Asia | Wu-Chang Yang | Taiwan |
| South Asia | Harun Ur Rashid | Bangladesh |
| OSEA | Wiguno Prodjosudjadi | Indonesia |
| Latin America | Nestor Schor | Brazil |
| Russia and CIS | Assiya Kanatbayeva | Kazakhstan |
| Central & Eastern Europe | Ayla San | Turkey |