October 25, 2019
Bulletin interne de l'Institut Pasteur
On October 8, as part of the week-long 2019 French National Science Festival, the L'Oréal Foundation held a ceremony at the Museum of Natural History in Paris for the 35 young scientists selected for the 2019 Rising Talents France Award under the For Women in Science program, set up 12 years ago in partnership with UNESCO and the French Academy of Sciences.
Chosen from more than 800 applicants by a panel composed of eminent members of the Academy of Sciences, the scientists were awarded fellowships that will enable them to pursue and consolidate their research.
The 35 young scientists were also given leadership training (management, negotiating skills, public speaking, etc.) to better equip them as they tackle the glass ceiling that remains a reality in the field of research.
The scientists selected to receive L'Oréal-UNESCO For Women in Science fellowships in 2019 included Lyza Hery, a PhD student at the Institut Pasteur de la Guadeloupe. She was chosen for her research on mosquito-borne diseases. Her analyses are still ongoing, but if Lyza Hery is able to demonstrate that some mosquitoes are more dangerous than others depending on the bacterial composition of the environment where the larvae develop, her results will provide an excellent basis for setting up priority mosquito eradication areas in the event of a disease outbreak.
To encourage a new generation of outstanding female scientists, the L'Oréal Foundation works with UNESCO to award nearly 280 fellowships in 118 countries each year, via its national and regional For Women in Science Rising Talents programs, which provide specific support for PhD students and post-doctoral fellows.