Since 2021, the Einstein Foundation Berlin, together with the BIH QUEST Center for Responsible Research, has been honoring outstanding initiatives and individuals who are committed to improving research quality globally.
The Einstein Foundation Award for Promoting Quality in Research, which is endowed with a total of 500,000 euros, recognizes scientists and institutions that contribute significantly to improving the quality of research and the resilience of research results. It is awarded in three categories: individuals, institutions, and young researchers. Each year, a renowned jury representing different disciplines and regions of the world selects the winners. The award has been initiated by Ulrich Dirnagl, Director of the BIH QUEST Center.
Award ceremony on Albert Einstein’s 145th birthday
On March 14, the birthday of Albert Einstein, the three winners of the year 2023 were honored at the Bode Museum Berlin:
- Individual Award: Yves Moreau
The Belgian bioinformatician from the Katholieke Universiteit Leuven is a vehement advocate of ethical standards in the use of human DNA data.
- Institutional Award: Berkeley Initiative for Transparency in the Social Sciences (BITSS)
The initiative is globally committed to robust, transparent, and reproducible research in social science
- Early Career Award: Responsible Research Assessment project by psychologist and neuroscientist Anne Gärtner from the Technical University of Dresden
The project aims to develop new criteria for assessing research performance that focus on quality rather than quantity, test and establish them in the behavioral, cognitive, and social sciences.
All three winners will receive a chalk trophy designed by Axel Kufus, former Professor of Design at the Berlin University of the Arts, as well as prize money of 200,000 euros (Individual and Institutional Award) and 100,000 euros (Early Career Award).
Ceremony at the Bode Museum in Berlin
The award ceremony was attended by prominent guests: the program started with welcoming remarks from Berlin's Governing Mayor Kai Wegner and Senator for Science, Health and Care Ina Czyborra. Günther Hasinger, founding director of the German Center for Astrophysics and former science director of the European Space Agency (ESA), follower with a keynote speech.
The trophies were handed over by Marcia McNutt, President of the US National Academy of Sciences and President of the prize jury. The guest list included personalities from science, business, politics, and society as well as numerous Einstein Foundation grantees and the presidents of Berlin and Brandenburg universities and non-university institutions.