The 10th annual L’OREAL-UNESCO Awards For Women in Science
Saturday, 17th November , 2007 , 22:53 | International
Five distinguished women researchers in the life sciences were named on October 5th as recipients of the 10th annual L’OREAL-UNESCO Awards For Women in Science. The international Life Science Awards Jury, which was presided by Professor Gunter Blobel, Nobel Prize in Medicine 1999, is made up of 18 eminent members of the scientific community. Professor Christian de Duve, Nobel Prize in Medicine 1974, is the Founding President of the Awards.
Five distinguished women researchers in the life sciences were named on October 5th as recipients of the 10th annual L’OREAL-UNESCO Awards For Women in Science. The international Life Science Awards Jury, which was presided by Professor Gunter Blobel, Nobel Prize in Medicine 1999, is made up of 18 eminent members of the scientific community. Professor Christian de Duve, Nobel Prize in Medicine 1974, is the Founding President of the Awards.
The 2008 Award Laureates in life sciences are:
Laureate for Africa & the Arab States: Professor Lihadh AL-GAZALI, Clinical Genetics & Pediatrics, UAE University, United Arab Emirates, “For the characterization of new hereditary diseases”
Laureate for Asia-Pacific: Assistant Professor V. Narry KIM School of Biological Sciences, Seoul National University, Republic of Korea, “For elucidating several key steps in the formation of a new class of gene-regulating RNA molecules”
Laureate for Europe: Professor Ada YONATH Structural Biology, Weizmann Institute of Science, Rehovot, Israel, “For structural studies of the protein-synthesizing system and the mode of action of antibiotics”
Laureate for Latin America: Professor Ana Belen ELGOYHEN Institute for Genetic Engineering and Molecular Biology (CONICET), Buenos Aires, Argentina, “For her contribution to the understanding of the molecular basis of hearing”
Laureate for North America: Professor Elizabeth BLACKBURN Biology and Physiology, University of California, San Francisco, USA, “For the discovery of the nature and maintenance of chromosome ends and their roles in cancer and aging”
The Awards will be presented at a ceremony on March 6th, 2008 at UNESCO headquarters in Paris by Koïchiro Matsuura, Director-General of UNESCO, and Sir Lindsay Owen-Jones, President of L’Oréal.
Created in 1998, the L’OREAL-UNESCO Awards For Women in Science recognize five laureates annually, one from each of the five continents, who have contributed to the advancement of science. The candidates are proposed by a international network of more than 2,000 scientists.
Ten years of advances in science
The result of a unique partnership, the L’ORÉAL-UNESCO Awards aim to recognize the contributions of outstanding women researchers to scientific progress and encourage the participation of women in scientific research. The Laureates serve as role models for future generations, encouraging young women around the world to follow in their footsteps.
The Awards are conferred in life sciences and material sciences in alternating years. With the 2008 Awards in life sciences, a total of 52 women from 26 countries, whose exemplary careers in science have opened up new and sometimes revolutionary ways of improving human well-being, will have been recognized. Each Laureate receives US$ 100,000.
Through their work in life and material sciences, L’OREAL-UNESCO Awards Laureates are actively tackling the major challenges facing modern science. Award Laureates have made notable advances in such widely diverse fields as ecology and sustainable development; gene therapy and inherited diseases; materials and medicines of the future; and innovative technologies.
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The L’ORÉAL Corporate Foundation, created in 2007, is committed to three areas of action: encouraging education, fostering scientific research, and creating bonds of solidarity for those in fragile circumstances. The Foundation, which presently regroups a number of major existing corporate philanthropy initiatives including the L’ORÉAL-UNESCO Awards For Women in Science, will strengthen these actions and ensure their continuity, as well as develop new programs in the coming years.
L’Oréal is a worldwide leader in the cosmetics industry, developing innovative products to meet the diverse needs of customers in 130 countries worldwide. Nearly 3,000 people work in the Group’s 14 research centers, located in France, Asia and America. Their findings are responsible for the registration of hundreds of patents annually. Women represent 55% of the research workforce – a percentage unmatched anywhere else in the industry.
Since its creation in 1945, UNESCO has pursued the mission of promoting science - the “S” in its acronym - for peace. Today, UNESCO reinforces international co-operation in the basic sciences among its 192 Member States and promotes ethical norms in science. The Organisation has been also dedicated to eliminating all forms of discrimination and promoting equality between men and women. As well as developing educational programs in science particularly designed for girls, UNESCO has established a network of academic chairs creating links between women in science around the world.
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