Imperial professor who founded European Research Council rewarded by top scientific Academy

Professor Fotis Kafatos from Imperial College London has been awarded the illustrious Leibniz Medal for his dedication to promoting science and scientific achievement - News

by Simon Levey
24 June 2011

An eminent scientist who played a key role in establishing the European Research Council (ERC) has this month received a prestigious prize for his dedication to promoting science and scientific achievement.

Professor Fotis Kafatos from Imperial College London has been awarded the illustrious Leibniz Medal by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities in Germany, which is dedicated to promoting the liberal arts and sciences.

Professor Kafatos was instrumental in creating the ERC, which is considered a milestone for the European scientific community, since it was the first to allocate funding to research based exclusively on scientific merit instead of being evenly distributed among the European nations. Professor Kafatos and his colleague Professor Ernst-Ludwig Winnacker worked solidly through the early part of the 2000s to establish scientific and political support for their vision until, in 2002, the ERC was instituted by the EU Presidency. It granted its first funds for scientific research in 2005, and celebrated a grand opening in 2007.

The Leibniz Medal was given to Professor Kafatos jointly with Professor Winnacker, from the Human Frontier Science Program, in recognition of this work, during a ceremony at the headquarters of the Berlin Academy on 18 June.

Professor Kafatos is the first UK-based scientist to receive the annual award, which was established in 1993 to reward a singular dedication to the promotion of science or scientific achievement beyond the scope of the profession. It has only ever been awarded to 15 people.

Now a Professor of Immunogenomics at Imperial's Division of Cell and Molecular Biology, Professor Kafatos said: "I am very humbled by this honour. I have been driven by my deep love for biology and scientific discovery since I was a boy, and have been lucky enough to be able to follow my dream to become not just a scientist but a polymath. My own experiences have taught me just how important it is to encourage and nurture young talent wherever it arises and the European Research Council with its fair founding principles allows us to do this in such an excellent way across Europe."

1734 medal

In the video (right), Professor Kafatos talks about his recent honour, the ERC, and inspiring the next generation researchers.

Professor Sir Keith O'Nions, Rector of Imperial College London, said: "I am delighted that such outstanding achievement has been recognised in this way. Professors Kafatos and Winnacker's leadership in establishing and developing the ERC has ensured it has become an organisation with significant influence in the research world. Many scientists and researchers will be joining me when I say that the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities has awarded the Leibniz medal to two extremely deserving individuals."

Professor Kafatos first worked to improve the scientific system in Europe by establishing a European basic-research funding organisation in the 1990s. The Initiative for Science in Europe advanced the systematic planning and shaping of a European research funding organisation and eventually, with active support from the scientific community, became the ERC.

After the organisation was established, Kafatos stayed on as the ERC's founding president and chairman of its Scientific Council, and Winnacker as the first secretary general. They worked jointly to overcome its many challenges as the ERC quickly expanded to 300 employees who processed 9,000 funding requests in 2007. The ERC has since been responsible for funding highest quality scientific research projects in all fields with a total budget of EUR 7.5 billion 2007-2013.

Overall the ERC aims to put excellence at the heart of European research, raising its status and visibility and that of its very best researchers and research leaders for of today and tomorrow. It works to encourage diversity in its talent and channel funds into the most promising or distinguished researchers, also rewarding innovative proposals by placing emphasis on the quality of the idea rather than the research area.

Professor Fotis C Kafatos, winner of a Leibniz Medal 2011

Professor Kafatos studied biology at Cornell University and got his PhD at Harvard University. In 1969, at age 29, he received tenure at Harvard, becoming the university's youngest professor, and remained there until 1994. During this time, he also held the Chair of Biology at the University of Athens (1972-1982) and Crete (1982-1993), thereby firmly anchoring the study of modern biology in Greece.

From 1993 to 2005, he was general director of the European Molecular Biology Laboratory (EMBL) in Heidelberg, the largest of its kind in Europe. Over the course of twelve years, he helped to define and improve the institution by establishing three new laboratories. He w as particularly devoted to supporting young researchers, and to this end, he established an international funding programme for young researchers in the field o f molecul ar biology. He also strived to promote equal opportunities for women and young researchers in Europe. He joined Imperial in 2005 as Chair of Immunogenomics.