Nobel Prize winners will discuss science with students from Brazil

Published on 11/13/2021 3:29 PM / Updated on 11/13/2021 3:30 PM

On Monday (16), 80 students from nearly 24 countries in Latin America and the Caribbean, including Brazil, will gather with five Nobel Prize winners to discuss the role of science and scientists in society. Brazil will be the country with the largest number of representatives, 16 in total. The event will be streamed on YouTube: https://bit.ly/3ncsbgX.

The event, organized by the Nobel Prize for Communication, the Brazilian Academy of Sciences (ABC) and the Inter-American Network of Academies of Science (IANAS), will be broadcast to a global audience on November 16.

The Latin American and Caribbean Nobel Prize Dialogue will be attended by names such as French microbiologist Emmanuel Charpentier, the 2020 Nobel Prize winner in Chemistry, along with North American Jennifer Doudna, a revolutionary tool capable of modifying the structure of human DNA, which has become known for its acronym CRISPR.

In addition to Charpentier, Australian Elizabeth Blackburn and Norwegian May-Britt Moser, winners of the Nobel Prize in Medicine in 2009 and 2014, respectively, will participate in the meeting; North American Saul Perlmutter, 2011 Nobel Prize in Physics; The Dutch Bernard Feringa, the 2016 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.

Divided into five virtual rooms, they will discuss issues such as the responsibility of scientists and building dialogues between science, political actors and society. The five Nobel Prizes will also propose science challenges for young people and answer questions proposed by students.

“This meeting is a great opportunity for students to learn more about the work as well as the lives of Nobel Prize winners. Let them know how these scientists got there. Our focus is on encouraging aspiring scientists to continue on the path of scientific research, interested in issues such as human nature and the universe and helping to develop Brazil and America Latin in general,” said ABC President, Louise Davidovich.

This is the second meeting of the partnership between the Nobel Prize for Outreach and ABC, this time with students from Latin America and the Caribbean at the event, adding to the pluralism of the discussions. The region faces challenges such as climate change, political instability and social inequality, in addition to being one of the regions that has suffered the most from the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic in the world.

“We want to inspire this new generation of scientists to work together, as a team and with society, and use science to address the great challenges ahead,” said Laura Spreichman, Executive Director of the Nobel Prize.

The meeting was organized specifically to respond to all of these challenges in the region, according to IANAS Co-President and ABC Vice President, Helena Nader.

“The countries of Latin America and the Caribbean face enormous challenges that, in order to overcome them, require knowledge and a commitment to the truth, especially in a time when we live with anti-science values. Building solutions to many of the problems we face today, as well as others that will arise, will come from young people By bringing together talented students and Nobel Laureates, we hope to inspire and encourage the formation of a new generation of scholars who will play a key role in helping to build a better future for the region.”

The program will be moderated by Scientific Director of Nobel Prize Awareness Adam Smith and Professor of Integrative Clinical Psychology and Member of the Nobel Prize Committee Julien Zerath.

The event is organized by the Nobel Prize for Communication, the Brazilian Academy of Sciences and the Inter-American Network of Academies of Sciences with the support of Nobel’s international partners: 3M, ABB, Capgemini, Ericsson and Scania.