Leading female scientists awarded scientific heirlooms
Embargoed until 00:01 Wednesday 6 June 2018
[LONDON, UK, 6 June 2018] Leading female scientists awarded scientific heirlooms by their peers at the 5thSuffrage Science Awards for Life Sciences on 6 June 2018.
A hundred years after the first women in Britain got the vote, women still only make up 23% of those working in core science, technology, engineering and mathematics occupations in the UK.
On 6 June 2018, 11 female scientists from across the world will be presented with hand-crafted jewellery at the Suffrage Science awards ceremony, held at the Academy of Medical Sciences, London. The awards celebrate women in science and encourage others to enter science and reach senior leadership roles.
The 11 awardees are chosen by the previous award holders for their scientific achievements and ability to inspire others. The awards themselves are items of jewellery, inspired by the Suffrage movement, and are passed on as heirlooms from one female scientist to the next.
Alongside the awards science writer and broadcaster Vivienne Parry will lead a discussion on Women in Science- Then and Now. Helen Pankhurst, great-granddaughter of Suffragette Emeline Pankhurst, will discuss her new book Deeds Not Words: The Story of Women's Rights - Then and Now, while Chief Medical Officer Professor Dame Sally Davies and ScienceGrrl Director Dr Anna Zecharia, will share their insights on the current landscape for women in science, explore why change is taking so long and discuss how to make a difference for women in the future.
The Suffrage Science scheme was initiated by Professor Dame Amanda Fisher, Director of the MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences (MRC LMS) in 2011.
Amanda says “Now in its seventh year, these heirlooms createa self-perpetuating network of talent and contacts to help others succeed in science. This year’s awardees join a community of over 100 women scientists. Since 2011 the awards have travelled from the UK, across Europe to the USA, Hong Kong and now to Australia, illustrating the international nature of science and the global effort to improve female representation.”
The 2018 award winners are:
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Professor Rebecca Voorhees |
California Institute of Technology, USA |
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Professor Anna Wu |
UCLA, USA |
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Professor Jenny Martin |
Griffith University, Australia |
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Professor Liz Bradbury |
King’s College London, UK |
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Professor Claire Rougeulle |
Paris Diderot University, France |
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Professor Mikala Egeblad |
Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories, USA |
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Professor Susan M.Gaines |
writer/Bremen University, Germany |
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Professor Irene Miguel-Aliaga |
MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, UK |
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Professor Cathy Price |
University College London, UK |
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Professor Denise Head |
Washington University in Saint Louis, USA |
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Professor Anat Mirelman |
Tel Aviv Sourasky Medical Centre, Israel |
Each previous holder chooses whom they want to pass their heirloom onto, below are reasons for two of the nominations.
“I admire Mikala’s extraordinary courage to keep posing scientific questions of her deepest interest, even when they require the most challenging, time-consuming and costly methods.” Professor Marja Jäätelä, Danish Cancer Society Research Centre on her nomination to Professor Mikala Egeblad, Cold Spring Harbor Laboratories, USA.
“She is developing a very successful and original research program and communicates her findings with passion and great clarity. Alongside her research activities, she mentors younger female scientists and actively participates to initiatives to improve the gender balance at senior level.” Professor Corinne Houart, King’s College London on her nomination of Professor Irene Miguel-Aliaga, MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences
The current award holders (2016) were:
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Dr Lori Passmore |
MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, UK |
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Dr Michelle James |
Stanford University, USA |
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Dr Airlie McCoy |
University of Cambridge, UK |
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Professor Catherina Becker |
University of Edinburgh, UK |
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Dr Deborah Bourchis |
Institute Curie, Paris, France |
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Professor Marja Jäätelä |
Danish Cancer Soc. Res. Centre, Denmark |
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Dr Pippa Goldschmidt |
Freelance / University of Edinburgh, UK |
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Professor Corinne Houart |
King’s College London, UK |
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Professor Kia Nobre |
University of Oxford, UK |
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Dr Uraina Clark |
ICAHN School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, UK |
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Dr Sally John |
Biogen Idec, Boston, USA |
The jewellery was created by art students from Central St Martins who worked with scientists to design pieces inspired by research and the Suffragette movement, from which the award scheme takes its name.
The Suffrage Science scheme was founded seven years ago by the Medical Research Council’s London Institute of Medical Sciences (then Clinical Sciences Centre). It celebrates and inspires women in science, creating a self-perpetuating cohort of talent that will encourage others to enter science and reach senior leadership roles. The awards themselves are heirloom items of jewellery commissioned from students of the art and design college, Central St Martins-UAL, who worked with scientists to create pieces inspired by research. The pieces also draw inspiration from the jewellery of the Suffragette movement from which the award scheme takes its name.
MRC London Institute of Medical Sciencesis an Institute of the Medical Research Council, part of UK Research and Innovation. It is a vibrant research environment in which scientists and clinicians collaborate to advance the understanding of biology and its application to medicine. LMS research programmes are focused in three sections: Epigenetics, Genes and Metabolism, and Integrative Biology. ###
If you would like further information about the awards please contact Dr Jenna Stevens-Smith, Head of Engagement and Communications at the MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences.
Contact
Name: Jenna Stevens-Smith
Mobile: 07714 051 445
Email: j.stevens-smith@lms.mrc.ac.uk
Notes for editors:
- Women in the UK STEM workforce– report by WISE campaign
- Deeds Not Words: The Story of Women's Rights - Then and Now– Helen Pankhurst
