24Th EDITION OF THE L’ORÉAL-UNESCO FOR WOMEN IN SCIENCE INTERNATIONAL AWARDS

On September 15^th, 16^th and 17^th, the International Jury consisting of 11 outstanding researchers in Life and Environmental Sciences and chaired by Professor Brigitte Kiefer, Professor of the Psychiatry Department at McGill University (Canada) and Research Director at INSERM (France), deliberated over the 59 short-listed nominees out of 358 candidates, before selecting the 5 International Awards Laureates, one from each major region of the world. 

Based on the conviction that the world needs science and science needs women, the Fondation L'Oréal and UNESCO are committed to the promotion of women in science to make them more visible, to make their talent known and to inspire careers for future generations. 

According to the latest UNESCO Science Report published in June, although the number of women in scientific careers is increasing, reaching just over 33% of researchers^[1] worldwide, this evolution is still too slow and the glass ceiling remains a reality in research: in Europe, 86% of senior academic positions in science are held by men^[2], and less than 4% of Nobel prizes in science have been awarded to women.

Each year, the Fondation L'Oréal and UNESCO celebrate the scientific excellence of five eminent women researchers, each from a major region of the world. Since the creation of the For Women in Science program in 1998, 122 Laureates and more than 3,800 talented young scientists, doctoral students and post-doctoral fellows, have been supported and honored in more than 110 countries.

2022 LAUREATES OF THE FOR WOMEN IN SCIENCE L'ORÉAL-UNESCO INTERNATIONAL AWARDS 

LAUREATE FOR LATIN AMERICA AND THE CARIBBEAN

Professor Maria Guadalupe Guzmán Tirado - Infectious Diseases 

Director of the Research Center of the Pedro Kouri Institute (IPK) Institute of Tropical Medicine, Havana, Cuba

Awarded for her pioneering work on the devastating human infections caused by the dengue virus, one of the world's most important diseases in terms of morbidity and mortality. Her research has led to a better understanding of its pathogenesis, diagnostic, surveillance and prevention.

LAUREATE FOR NORTH AMERICA

Professor Katalin Karikó - Biochemistry

Adjunct Professor at the Perelman School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, United States of America, and Senior Vice President at BioNTech RNA Pharmaceuticals

Awarded for her groundbreaking development of a non-inflammatory mRNA, which can be a potent vaccine and is essential for recently producing effective COVID-19 vaccines. Her work has paved the way for future therapies in complex diseases such as cancer, heart failure, stroke, anemia and autoimmune diseases.

LAUREATE FOR ASIA AND THE PACIFIC

Professor Hailan Hu - Neuroscience

Professor and Executive Director of the Neuroscience Center of Zhejiang University School of Medicine, China 

Awarded for her pioneering discoveries in neurobiology that have revolutionized our understanding of social emotional behavior and mental disorders. Her groundbreaking work has deciphered the mechanism of depression and informed the development of next-generation antidepressants.

LAUREATE FOR AFRICA AND THE ARAB STATES

Professor Agnès Binagwaho - Public Health

Professor of Pediatrics and Vice-Chancellor of Global Health Equity University, Kigali, Rwanda

Awarded for her critical role in establishing, advocating for, and creating a new model of equitable public health care for the most vulnerable in Rwanda, Africa, and the world. Her work and her unwavering commitment to public health are driving access to HIV, malaria and tuberculosis, and under five health services, and universal health coverage more broadly.

LAUREATE FOR EUROPE

Professor Ángela Nieto - Embryology 

Professor at the Institute of Neuroscience (CSIC-UMH), San Juan de Alicante, Spain 

Awarded for her fundamental discoveries on how cells change identity during embryonic development to disseminate and form different tissues. Her work has paved the way for the understanding of how cancer spreads to other organs and forms metastasis.