Körber European Science Prize
European science award
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Körber European Science Prize is a science award presented annually by the Körber Foundation in Hamburg, Germany. It recognizes scientists conducting research in Europe and alternates between the life sciences and the physical sciences. The prize is endowed with €1,000,000 (€750,000 up to 2018).[1][2]
History
The prize was initiated by the entrepreneur Kurt A. Körber with the help of Reimar Lüst, the president of the Max Planck Society, and was first awarded in 1985.[1] At first, European research teams were honored, but since 2005, it has been awarded only to individual scientists.[3]
Selection process
The prize alternates between life sciences and physical sciences. Candidates are identified by two search committees, one for each field, and shortlisted candidates are invited to submit a summary of their scientific breakthrough and a research proposal. Independent international reviewers assess the candidates and their work, and up to three finalists are presented to the Trustee Committee, which selects the prize winner. Self-nominations are not accepted.[4]
Prize money
The prize is endowed with €1,000,000; prizewinners can keep 10 percent of the money for themselves and must spend the rest on research in Europe in three to five years. Aside from these restrictions they alone can decide how to use the money.[4]
Presentation
The prize is presented every year in the Great Hall of Hamburg City Hall, often with participation by representatives of the Hamburg Senate.[5]
Prize winners
The Körber Foundation lists the following prize winners (
indicates Nobel Prize recipients):[3]
| Year | Prize winner(s) | Project or research area |
|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Sara Wickström[6] | The hidden senses of cells |
| 2025 | Stephanie Wehner[7] | Pioneering the quantum internet |
| 2024 | Erin Schuman[8] | Making memories: brain-cell communication |
| 2023 | Cordelia Schmid[9] | Smart image recognition for autonomous robots |
| 2022 | Anthony A. Hyman[10] | Cell condensates |
| 2021 | Clare Grey[11] | Battery research |
| 2020 | Botond Roska[12] | Vision restoration |
| 2019 | Bernhard Schölkopf[13] | Artificial intelligence and machine learning |
| 2018 | Svante Pääbo ( 2022)[14] |
Neanderthal genetics |
| 2017 | Karsten Danzmann[15] | Gravitational-wave detection |
| 2016 | Hans Clevers[16] | Organoids and stem-cell biology |
| 2015 | Nicola Spaldin[17] | Multiferroic materials |
| 2014 | May-Britt Moser ( 2014) and Edvard Moser ( 2014) |
The brain's navigation system |
| 2013 | Immanuel Bloch | Quantum gases |
| 2012 | Matthias Mann | Proteomics |
| 2011 | Stefan Hell ( 2014) |
Nanoscopy |
| 2010 | Jiří Friml | Auxin and plant growth |
| 2009 | Andre Geim ( 2010) |
Graphene |
| 2008 | Maria Blasco | Cancer and aging |
| 2007 | Peter Seeberger | Carbohydrate vaccines |
| 2006 | Ulrich Hartl | Protein folding and chaperones |
| 2005 | Philip Russell | Photonic-crystal fibres |
| 2004 | Markus Aebi, Thierry Hennet, Jaak Jaeken, Ludwig Lehle, Gert Matthijs and Kurt von Figura | Therapies for hereditary diseases |
| 2003 | Ben Feringa ( 2016), Martin Möller, Justin Molloy and Niek F. van Hulst |
Light-driven molecular walkers |
| 2002 | Mark W. J. Ferguson, Jeffrey Hubbell, Cay M. Kielty, Björn Stark and Michael G. Walker | Scar-free wound healing using tissue engineering |
| 2001 | Wolf B. Frommer, Rainer Hedrich, Enrico Martinoia, Dale Sanders and Norbert Sauer | Optimised crops through genetic engineering |
| 2000 | Rodney Douglas, Amiram Grinvald, Randolf Menzel, Wolf Singer and Christoph von der Malsburg | Perception of shape in technology with insights from nature |
| 1999 | Bernd Kröplin, Per Lindstrand, John Adrian Pyle and Michael André Rehmet | High-altitude platforms for telecommunications |
| 1998 | Henry Baltes, Wolfgang Göpel and Massimo Rudan | Electronic micronoses to enhance safety at the workplace |
| 1998 | Werner Heil, Michèle Leduc, Ernst W. Otten and Manfred Thelen | Magnetic resonance tomography with helium-3 |
| 1997 | Pawel Kisielow, Klaus Rajewsky and Harald von Boehmer | Mutant mouse models in clinical research |
| 1996 | Michael F. Ashby, Yves Bréchet and Michel Rappaz | Computer-assisted design of materials |
| 1996 | Pierre Charles-Dominique, Antoine Cleef, Gerhard Gottsberger, Bert Hölldobler, Karl E. Linsenmair and Ulrich Lüttge | Tropical treetop habitats |
| 1995 | Rudolf Amann, Erik C. Böttger, Ulf B. Göbel, Bo Barker Jørgensen, Niels Peter Revsbech, Karl-Heinz Schleifer and Jiri Wanner | Genetic probes in environmental research and medicine |
| 1994 | Dénes Dudits, Dirk Inzé, Anne Marie Lambert and Horst Lörz | Modern plant breeding |
| 1993 | Felix Chernousko, François Clarac, Holk Cruse and Friedrich Pfeiffer | Bionics of walking |
| 1992 | Philippe Behra, Wolfgang Kinzelbach, Ludwig Luckner, René Schwarzenbach and Laura Sigg | Spread and transformation of contaminants in ground water |
| 1991 | Lars Ehrenberg, Dietrich Henschler, Werner Lutz and Hans-Günter Neumann | Environmental chemicals and cancer |
| 1990 | Lennart Bengtsson, Bert Bolin and Klaus Hasselmann ( 2021) |
Forecasting short-term changes in climate |
| 1989 | Christian Brunold, Yury Y. Gleba, Lutz Nover, J. David Phillipson, Elmar W. Weiler and Meinhart H. Zenk | Active substances from plant cell cultures |
| 1988 | Alfons Buekens, Vasilij Dragalov, Walter Kaminsky and Hansjörg Sinn | Pyrolytic destruction of toxic wastes |
| 1987 | Riitta Hari, Matti Krusius, Olli V. Lounasmaa and Martti Salomaa | Creating ultralow temperatures |
| 1987 | Karl-Heinz Herrmann, Friedrich Lenz, Hannes Lichte and Gottfried Möllenstedt | Further development of electron holography |
| 1986 | Jean-Claude Gluckman, Sven Haahr, George Janossy, David Klatzmann, Luc Montagnier ( 2008) and Paul Rácz |
Retrovirus research |
| 1985 | Walter Brendel, Michael Delius, Georg Enders, Joseph Holl, Gustav Paumgartner and Tilman Sauerbruch | Applications of shock waves in medicine |
| 1985 | Teodor Balevski, Rumen Batschvarov, Emil Momtschilov, Dragan Nenov and Rangel Zvetkov | Back pressure casting technology |