Today (February 26), VinFuture Fund officially announced the list of VinFuture Award Council for the 2024 season with 11 members who are outstanding scientists, having made significant contributions to humanity. Particularly, 3 new faces joining the Award Council this year have been previously honored in previous seasons and are also excellent scientists in the fields of solar energy, plant biology, and atmospheric chemistry.
In 2024, the Award Council welcomes three new members: Prof. Martin Andrew Green (University of New South Wales, Australia, co-recipient of the VinFuture 2023 Main Award), Prof. Pamela Christine Ronald (University of California, Davis, USA, recipient of the 2022 VinFuture Special Award for Female Scientists), Prof. Susan Solomon (Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA, recipient of the 2023 VinFuture Special Award for Female Scientists).
3 New Members of the VinFuture Award Council 2024
Prof. Martin Andrew Green is the co-recipient of the VinFuture 2023 Main Award. Photo: MH
Among them, Prof. Martin Andrew Green is currently a Professor of Science and Founding Director of the Advanced Optics Center at the University of New South Wales, Australia. With breakthroughs in inventing the Passivated Emitter and Rear Contact (PERC) technology, the research team he leads have held the record for improving the energy conversion efficiency of silicon solar cells for three decades, and are considered one of the 10 most important milestones in the history of solar photovoltaics. In 2021, PERC solar cells accounted for 91.2% of the global PV module production, becoming the main component for the global renewable energy conversion process.
Prof. Martin Andrew Green has been awarded prestigious international awards, including the Global Energy Prize 2018, the Japan Prize 2021, the Millennium Technology Prize 2022, the Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering 2023, and the VinFuture 2023 Main Award.
Prof. Pamela Christine Ronald is a new member of the VinFuture Award Council in 2024. Photo: MH
In the field of biology, the Award Council has an additional member, Prof. Pamela Christine Ronald. She is a Ph.D. in Molecular Biology and Plant Physiology and a Principal Investigator at the Innovative Genomics Institute at the University of California, Berkeley.
As the co-author of the book Tomorrow’s Table: Organic Farming, genetics and the Future of Food – Prof. Pamela Christine Ronald has been voted by Scientific American magazine as one of the 100 most influential people in the world in the field of biotechnology. In 2022, Prof. Ronald was awarded the Wolf Prize in Agriculture – considered the “Nobel Prize of Agriculture” and the VinFuture Special Award for Female Scientists. In addition, she is a member of the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences (AAAS).
Prof. Susan Solomon is the recipient of the 2023 VinFuture Special Award for Female Scientists. Photo: MH
Prof. Susan Solomon is currently the Lee and Geraldine Martin Professor of Environmental Studies and Program Head for Atmosphere, Ocean, and Climate at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA. Previously, she held the role of the Ellen Swallow Richards Professorship of Atmospheric Chemistry and Climate Science at MIT, Director of the Atmospheric Chemistry Division at the National Center for Atmospheric Research, and particularly a Senior Scientist and Chemical Researcher at the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Prof. Susan Solomon is widely recognized for her outstanding contributions in elucidating the mechanisms of the “ozone hole” in the Antarctic and advancing our understanding of the complex interactions between atmospheric chemistry and climate change. Throughout her illustrious career, she has received numerous prestigious awards, including the United States National Medal of Science in 1999, the Volvo Environment Prize in 2009, the Crafoord Prize from the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences in 2018, and the VinFuture 2023 Special Award for Female Scientists. In 2008, she was named one of Time magazine’s 100 most influential people in the world.
Prof. Martin Andrew Green speaks after receiving the VinFuture 2023 Main Award. Photo: MH
Upon accepting the invitation to join the VinFuture Award Council, Prof. Martin Andrew Green expressed: “I am very impressed with the ascent of VinFuture to become one of the leading awards in the world in just three short years. Personally, I am particularly interested in Vietnam’s role in leading the energy transition process in Southeast Asia through the production and use of solar cells. Therefore, I am delighted to join the VinFuture Award Council. I commit to actively contribute to the solid achievements that the Council has established over the years, by selecting and making decisions to honor the most deserving pioneering innovators“.
Regarding the role of the new members, Prof. Richard Henry Friend, Chairman of the VinFuture Award Council, said: “The three new members of the Award Council will bring important perspectives to key areas in which we have received many strong nominations. Sustainability is often seen as an imbalanced factor with the need to supply energy to all communities globally. Therefore, the new members of the Council will bring extensive experience and expertise in these fields“.
The official list of the 2024 VinFuture Award Council includes 11 members:
1. Chair of the Council: Professor Sir Richard Henry Friend, FRS – University of Cambridge, United Kingdom, Millennium Technology Prize in 2010
2. Professor Pascale Cossart – Pasteur Institute of Paris, France
3. Professor Dang Van Chi – Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research and Johns Hopkins University, USA
4. Professor Soumitra Dutta – University of Oxford, United Kingdom
5. Professor Martin Andrew Green – University of New South Wales, Australia, Millennium Technology Prize in 2022, VinFuture 2023 Main Award
6. Dr. Xuedong David Huang – Zoom Corporation, USA
7. Professor Daniel Merson Kammen – University of California, Berkeley, USA
8. Professor Sir Konstantin (Kostya) S. Novoselov, FRS – University of Manchester, United Kingdom, and National University of Singapore, Singapore, Nobel Prize in Physics in 2010
9. Professor Pamela Christine Ronald – University of California, Davis, USA, Wolf Prize in Agriculture and VinFuture 2022 Special Award
10. Professor Susan Solomon – Massachusetts Institute of Technology, USA, Volvo Environment Prize in 2009 and VinFuture 2023 Special Award
11. Professor Leslie Gabriel Valiant, FRS – Harvard University, USA, A.M. Turing Prize in 2010
VinFuture Award Season 4 is currently accepting nominations from 2:00 PM on January 9, 2024, to 2:00 PM on April 17, 2024 (Vietnam time, GMT+7). Nominations submitted after this deadline will automatically be considered for the 2025 season. After 3 years of implementation, the Award has attracted three times the number of nominations – from 599 nominations in the first year to 1,389 nominations in 2023.
