Winner of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry 2020, Emmanuelle Charpentier, Gave a Speech to the Research Community at the University of Sharjah
Over the years, several Nobel Prize winners have exchanged ideas and discussions with faculty and students at the University of Sharjah (UOS). They have delivered lectures and established collaborative exchanges with experts at the UOS as part of the process of internationalization and in the context of partnership with international scholars.
In 2022, Professor Emmanuelle Charpentier, Nobel Prize laureate in Chemistry in 2020, gave an inspirational lecture to the research community at the UOS, answering their questions while discussing a variety of topics about her research. This event was part of the Nobel Prize Inspiration Initiative (NPII), held in partnership with the Anglo-Swedish multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company AstraZeneca.
The UOS was chosen to be a part of it, with the aim of introducing the discovered technology (genetic modifier), its programming, stages of development, and applications. The meeting was organized by the Research Outreach Department of the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and Graduate Studies (OVCRGS) and the College of Pharmacy.
The NPII was designed to help Nobel Prize laureates share their inspirational stories and insights. The event was an example of how the university links with top international scholars around the globe. Professor Charpentier is a French professor and researcher in microbiology, genetics, and biochemistry and director at the Max Planck Institute for Infection Biology in Berlin, Germany. She received the Nobel prize for her work deciphering the molecular mechanisms of a bacterial immune system and repurposing it into a tool for genome editing.
Prof. Hamid Al Nuaimi, Chancellor of the UOS, gave a speech on the occasion, where he expressed his happiness at hosting one of the distinguished world scientists and learning about her scientific achievements, which would certainly inspire researchers among faculty and students at the UOS. He also highlighted the university’s keenness to support research and researchers locally, regionally, and internationally.
Ken Rutherford, leader of the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize-Winning Coalition to Ban Landmines, a Keynote Speaker at the First International Conference on Applied Research in Humanities and Social Sciences held at the UOS
Kenneth R. Rutherford is co-founder of the Landmine Survivors Network and a professor of political science at James Madison University. Rutherford was a prominent leader in the International Campaign to Ban Landmines which won the 1997 Nobel Peace Prize. He was a keynote speaker at the First International Conference on Applied Research in Humanities and Social Sciences which was organized by the Research Institute of Humanities and Social Sciences and held on the UOS premises from October 31 to November 2, 2023. In his speech, Professor Rutherford gave a briefing on his journey in the field of humanitarian and peace activities in Bosnia, Kenya, Mauritania, Senegal, and Somalia. He also related his survival story after being injured by a landmine, which ultimately led him to engage in and run the international campaign to ban landmines. He also explained how he played a key role in the drafting of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and the Convention on Cluster Munitions. Professor Rutherford’s speech was very inspiring to the audience and was received with a round of applause.
Find out more about Nobel Prize Winners Invited by the UOS, see:
