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By Correspondent –
Accolades from the Academy honor both up-and-coming scientific leaders and lengthy careers rich with scientific advances.
TWAS has announced its slate of awards for 2026, as well as the recipients of the next group of TWAS Medallists, slated to deliver TWAS Medal Lectures at the 18th TWAS General Conference in 2027.
Every year, TWAS awards contributions to science in the Global South. These awards are designed to provide a powerful incentive for scientists to excel at new levels while bringing global recognition to the achievements of researchers from the developing world. Some of them are annual, others are conferred every two years, and several are named after generous and highly accomplished TWAS Fellows.
The new medallists are:
2027 TWAS–Abdus Salam Medal:
Ronald Leger of Canada: For his profound commitment to advancing science in the Global South; his steadfast support during the formative years of TWAS, which helped lay the foundations for its growth and success; and his pioneering advocacy for women in science, particularly his unwavering support for the TWAS Conference on Women in Science, which led to the establishment of the Organization for Women in Science for the Developing World (OWSD).
2027 TWAS Medal Lectures:
TWAS Fellow Yongyuth Yuthavong (Thailand) served as TWAS Vice-President for East and Southeast Asia and served as Minister of Science and Technology for Thailand from 2006 to 2008 and Deputy Prime Minister of Thailand from 2014 to 2015.
TWAS Fellow Tania Crombet Ramos (Cuba), a medical doctor and immunology specialist (1997) and 2007 TWAS Prize for Young Scientists in Developing Countries recipient. Her work has contributed to two cancer vaccines and two monoclonal antibodies for epithelial tumors, autoimmune diseases, and COVID-19.
TWAS Fellow Syed Qaim (Germany) is chair of the Education Committee of the World Council on Isotopes and a tutor at the IAEA-supported e-learning school on radionuclides. His work covers radiochemistry, nuclear data, and radionuclides in medicine.
TWAS Young Affiliate Alumna Ramia Al Bakain (Jordan, shared), an associate professor at the University of Jordan, Department of Chemistry.
· TWAS Young Affiliate Alumna Jaqueline Mesquita (Brazil, shared), a full professor at the University of Campinas, Brazil.
The new award recipients are:
The 2026 TWAS–Mohammad A. Hamdan Award
Sara Abdelsalam of Egypt, for pioneering contributions to mathematical fluid dynamics and nanobiomedical transport phenomena, advancing knowledge in areas where mathematics applies to medical science.
The 2026 TWAS–CAS Young Scientists Award for Frontier Science in Astronomy and Cosmology.
Rita de Cassia Dos Anjos of Brazil, for her significant contributions to high-energy astroparticle physics, particularly to understanding the astrophysical sources, acceleration, and propagation of cosmic rays.
The 2026 TWAS–Abdool Karim Award in Biological Sciences
Helen Nigussie of Ethiopia, for her outstanding contributions to genomics and its application to food security, public health, and biodiversity conservation in Ethiopia.
The 2026 TWAS–Fayzah M. Al-Kharafi Award in Agricultural Sciences and Biology
Kamrun Nahar of Bangladesh, for her pioneering research demonstrating that the antioxidant defense system and the glyoxalase system coordinate to reduce oxidative stress and methylglyoxal toxicity in plants.
The 2026 TWAS Atta-ur-Rahman Award in Chemistry
Md. Abu Rashed of Bangladesh, for his contribution to the development of cost-effective nonenzymatic electrochemical sensors using semiconductor metal oxide nanostructures for detecting organic pollutants in environmental samples.
The 2026 TWAS–Samira Omar Innovation for Sustainability Award
Newayemedhin A. Tegegne of Ethiopia, for her exemplary research advancing efficient and stable organic solar cells for sustainable clean-energy technologies in Africa.
