The 2022 Collège de France prize for young researchers has been awarded to Aude Bernheim, a researcher in microbiology and genetics, head of the " Molecular diversity of microbes " team within Inserm's " Evolution and engineering of dynamic systems " unit.
The theme of the first prize, which carries a prize of 20 000 euros and an invitation to give a lecture at the Collège de France, was Biodiversity and Evolution.
The jury, chaired by Françoise Combes, professor at the Collège de France and holder of the Galaxies and Cosmology chair, had to choose between a number of very worthy entries.
After deliberation, Aude Bernheim, a specialist in microbial biodiversity, was singled out for the quality of her publications, the pioneering and innovative nature of her work, including the filing of patents, her career path within the best research teams and her ability to surround herself, as team leader at Inserm, with the best specialists, just a few years after defending her thesis.Aude Bernheim 's public commitment to open, participatory science and gender issues was also praised by the jury.
The prize will be awarded on November 15 2022 at a public ceremony at the Collège de France. Aude Bernheim will give her lecture at the Collège de France on December 13 2022.
For Aude Bernheim, " the Collège de France's mission to teach science in the making is the noblest thing a scientist can do. So it's an immense honor to be the recipient of this prize. I never see myself as a scientist making great advances, but as the collective sum of the people with whom I have had and continue to have the good fortune to work ".
