The Global Energy Prize award ceremony took place at Zaryadye concert hall. It was part of the ceremonial opening of Russian Energy Week organized by Roscongress Fund. This year the laureates were Jin-Liang He (Tsinghua University, China), Yu Huang (University of California, Los Angeles, USA), Vladislav Khomich (Institute of Electro-physics and Electrical Engineering, RAS, Russia).
Alexander Novak, the Deputy Prime Minister of the Russian Federation, presented the awards to the scientists. Sergey Brilev, the President of the Global Energy Association was the host of the ceremony. Rae Kwon Chung, the Nobel Peace Prize laureate and the Chair of the International Committee of the Global Energy Prize, was the guest of honor.
In his speech Alexander Novak emphasized the expansion of the Global Energy Prize geography and reminded about the importance of a balanced approach to forming the energy industry of the future.
“Over the years of its existence, the Global Energy Prize has become an example of successful international cooperation between the governments, industrial community and science – starting from 2003, when 56 scientists from 16 countries (Australia, Austria, Great Britain, Greece, Denmark, Iceland, Italy, Canada, China, Russia, the USA, Ukraine, France, Switzerland, Sweden and Japan) became the laureates. This year, the independent International Committee of the Global Energy Prize selected three laureates representing the leading scientific powers – Russia, China and the USA. Their discoveries reflect the needs of the modern energy complex in an innovative and sustainable approach to forming the energy industry of the future. The development of new areas maintaining a reasonable balance with traditional energy sources is extremely important today, just like searching for new solutions to improve the efficiency and environmental sustainability of the industries belonging to the Fuel-and-Energy Complex. I am happy to congratulate the laureates with their well-deserved victory”.
Rae Kwon Chung emphasized the fundamental importance of the international cooperation in science represented by the Global Energy Prize:
“We live at a time, when energy becomes the foundation of sustainable development. It is especially symbolic that this year the laureates represent the research institutions from Russia, China and the United States – the countries, whose interaction to a great extent determines the global agenda in science and technology. The Global Energy Prize is not just an award, but an expression of international cooperation and of our joint responsibility before the future generations”.
All three laureates emphasized in their speeches the importance of scientific cooperation and called upon their colleagues all over the world to unite in solving global energy-related issues.
Jin-Liang He, the professor of Tsinghua University in China, received the Global Energy Prize in the Traditional Energy category for the development of advanced extra/ultra-high voltage power transmission technologies. He said:
“It is a great honor for me to receive this award here in Moscow. This Prize belongs to all my team members in Tsinghua University, to all the researchers and engineers, who worked diligently to improve the protection from electromagnetic transient in the technology of extra-high voltage power transmission and to implement the innovations in environmentally clean technology of subsoil power transmission. I also would like to express my gratitude to my family and to my colleagues for their continued support, and to the entire global energy community for the inspiring cross-border cooperation. Let us continue to unite our efforts to bring clean and reliable light to the world”.
Yu Huang, the professor of the University of California in Los Angeles, became the first woman-laureate of the Global Energy Prize in history. She received the award in the Non-Traditional Energy category for innovations in the field of catalyst development, which significantly improve the profitability, durability and performance of fuel cells.
“I sincerely thank the International Committee of the Global Energy Prize for the recognition of my work, and I also thank the International Association for its continued commitment to promoting global energy science. My team is engaged in developing new catalysts and in overcoming the barriers between discovery and implementation of technologies, which is even more important. We adjust new materials for energy transformation and storage. This activity requires intellectual curiosity, persistency and cooperation. I am lucky to work with the team of outstanding students, post-doctoral fellows and co-authors. Their creative approach and enthusiasm provide us with the possibility to move forward, and this award belongs to them, just like it does to me. Energy is a global issue, and we cannot find solutions without international cooperation. We need to work together beyond the national and scientific borders for the sake of the public good and future generations, this refers to decarbonization and to equal access to energy”.
Vladislav Khomich, the Chief Research Officer of the Institute of Electro-Physics and Electrical Engineering of the Russian Academy of Sciences, received the award in New Energy Applications category for category for outstanding contributions to the development, creation and fundamental research of plasma technologies and pulsed energy. He also thanked all his colleagues.
“The main thing for me is international recognition of the role and the results of the fundamental studies performed by the scientists from the Russian Academy of Sciences in the energy sphere. I am sure that the Global Energy Prize will provide excellent incentive for further development of fundamental science in the energy sphere and will contribute to expansion of the international cooperation. I would like to thank all my colleagues, scientists from the Institute of Electro-Physics and Electrical Engineering, members of RAS Energy, Mechanical Engineering, Mechanics and Management Processes Branch, the leadership of the Russian Academy of Sciences, as well as my family members for their continued assistance in my work”.
Sergey Brilev, the President of the Global Energy Association, summarized the outcomes of the award ceremony and said that the key mission of the Global Energy Prize was preserving science as the universal language of international trust.
“Today’s event is not just a ceremony, it is a combination of art, science and international mutual understanding. Such meetings demonstrate that energy is not only physics, it is the culture of cooperation. It is extremely important for us, that the Prize unites scientists from different countries turning the scientific achievements into the universal language of trust. This is what our mission is about. We can see that every year the number of nominees and participating countries is growing; and there is no doubt that this process will continue”.
The ceremony finished by the performance of the Symphony Orchestra of the Bolshoi Theatre, which is in its 250th season this year. It was conducted by Anton Grishanin, the Distinguished Artist of Russia, and played the overture to Ruslan and Lyudmila, the opera by Mikhail Glinka, Polovtsian Dances from Prince Igor, the opera by Alexander Borodin, and a suit from the Nutcracker, the ballet by Petr Chaikovsky.
