PR96589

TAIPEI, June 22, 2022 /PRNewswire=KYODO JBN/ --

Since the outbreak of COVID-19, more than 530 million inflections have been

reported globally. With the virus still raging in many countries, the world is

suffering from supply chain disruptions and decade-high inflation, which has

been exacerbated by the rising food and fuel prices due to regional conflicts.

Political tensions in the international community also mean no one country can

be immune to the adversities mentioned above. In addition, the European Union's

CBAM is scheduled to be implemented with a transitional period in 2023, and it

is expected that the US, the UK, and Japan will follow suit soon. How would

different governments react to the pressure of achieving net zero by 2050? Six

laureates of the 2022 Tang Prize, newly introduced to the public in four press

conferences taking place from June 18 to 21, have all shown selfless devotion

to the advancement of human civilization and the improvement of the wellbeing

of humanity. It is, thus, our sincere belief that their outstanding

contributions to their individual disciplines and the insightful views they

have expressed can bring stability and new opportunities to a world at a

critical juncture at the moment.

In 2022, the Tang Prize in Sustainable Development was awarded to Jeffrey

Sachs. A world renowned professor of economics who served as Special Advisor to

three UN Secretaries-General, Professor Sachs is currently Director of the

Center for Sustainable Development at Columbia University and President of the

UN Sustainable Development Solutions Network (SDSN). He has made important

contribution to the establishment and promotion of the UN Sustainable

Development Goals (SDGs) and was recognized by the Selection Committee for

"leading transdisciplinary sustainability science and creating the multilateral

movement for its applications from village to nation and to the world."    

The Prize in Biopharmaceutical Science went to three scientists who played a

critical role in the development of SARS-CoV2 mRNA vaccines: Katalin Kariko,

Drew Weissman, and Pieter Cullis, "for the discovery of key vaccinology

concepts and approaches, leading to successful development mRNA-based COVID-19

vaccine," according to the Selection Committee's citation. The breakthrough

discoveries of these three laureates and the ingenious approaches they

pioneered are the key to the rapid and successful development of vaccines

against SARS-CoV-2. While Dr. Kariko and Dr. Weissman found a way to reduce the

immunogenicity of mRNA, Prof. Cullis is credited with designing lipid

nanoparticles for the delivery of mRNA vaccines.

The Prize in Sinology is awarded to Professor Dame Jessica Rawson, "for her

gift and mastery of the craft of the visible to read the art and artifacts of

Chinese civilization. By giving voice to the ancient world of objects, she has

taught generations how to see when they look at things, and her acuity and vast

visual learning have given new insight into the world of the lineages,

transformations, and migrations of mute things."

Her contributions show that, besides the written word, there is another talent,

another craft, which, by reading the art and artifacts of the world, allows us

to interpret and understand distant and ancient societies, with their beliefs

and interactions. Professor Rawson has taken this approach in her study of

Chinese bronzes and jades, ancient Chinese tombs, and most especially in the

exchanges between the peoples of the central China and their neighbors. In

short, her original and trailblazing achievements in the archaeology of China

and Inner Asia have revolutionized and broadened our understanding of early

contact and exchange between the East and the West.

Professor Cheryl Saunders won the Prize in Rule of Law, for "her pioneering

contributions to comparative constitutional law, and in particular her work on

constitutions-building in the Asia-Pacific region." In the citation, the

Selection Committee paid tribute to her working methods, noting that she

applies "her scholarship to inspire and advise constitution-making exercises,

often under challenging circumstances," and that she "consistently broadens the

boundaries of comparative constitutional law scholarship through active

engagement, dialogue and collaboration with scholars and political actors at

home and abroad."

As the first woman to be appointed a law professor at the University of

Melbourne, Professor Saunders has been made an officer of the Order Australia,

awarded the Australian Centenary Medal, and Legion d'Honneur of France, and

granted an honorary doctorate from the National University of Cordoba.

Currently Laureate Professor Emeritus at the University of Melbourne, Professor

Saunders is not only a pioneer in comparative constitutional studies but also

an academic practitioner. She places special emphasis on an inclusive approach

to comparative constitutional studies, advocating for incorporating

constitutional experience from all over the world into our thinking, which

broadens the vision of studies of comparative constitutional law beyond

focusing on developments in Europe and North America.

SOURCE: The Tang Prize Foundation

Image Attachments Links:

   Link: http://asianetnews.net/view-attachment?attach-id=423720

   Caption: 2022 Tang Prize Laureates