On 3 March, Kyoto University held an award ceremony for the winners of the 14th Tachibana Award for Outstanding Women Researchers. The annual award honors the University's early-career women scholars who have made exceptional achievements.
Due to Covid-19 concerns, the 2022 ceremony was held without an on-site audience, but was live-streamed to a large number of viewers tuning in from both on and off campus.
The proceedings began with remarks from Dr Kyoko Inagaki, executive vice-president for gender equality, international affairs, and public relations, who as the award committee chair reflected on the selection process. President Nagahiro Minato then presented a certificate and plaque to each of the two Tachibana Award winners, one in the student category and the other in the researcher category. The student winner was Tomoko Nakanishi, in her fourth year in the doctoral program at the Graduate School of Medicine, and the researcher winner was Assistant Professor Yukako Oda of the Institute for Frontier Life and Medical Sciences. Each also received a Wacoal Prize from Mr Yasuo Kamoshita, Wacoal Corporation's director and managing corporate officer.
Next, two contestants selected for an honorable mention, both in the student category, accepted certificates and additional prizes, also from President Minato and Director Kamoshita: Tamao Maeda from the Graduate School of Science and Junna Kawasaki from the Graduate School of Biostudies. Both are doctoral candidates, Ms Maeda in her second year and Ms Kawasaki in her third year of studies.
President Minato then delivered a congratulatory address, wishing all the awardees continued success in their research, followed by Director Kamoshita's congratulations.
Afterward, Ms Nakanishi and Dr Oda presented their winning research, the former discussing "Genetic determinants of susceptibility and severity of respiratory diseases and their clinical implications", and the latter, "Discovery of anti-inflammatory physiological peptides that promote tissue-repair by reinforcing epithelial barrier formation", as the ceremony presenters and others at the venue listened attentively.
The lively event concluded with an address from Mr Takashi Muranaka, executive vice-president for strategy coordination, planning, student affairs, and health, safety, and environmental management.
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Kyoto University Tachibana Award for Outstanding Women Researchers
