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By Itzhak Rabihiya

President Reuven Rivlin spoke today, Monday 13 January, at the announcement of the winners of the 2020 Wolf Prize, which was held at Beit HaNasi. The prize is awarded annually for unique contributions to the fields of science and art. Prof Dan Shechtman presented the president with the decision of the prize committee regarding the winners. Minister of Education and chair of the Wolf Foundation Council Rafi Peretz and acting chair of the Wolf Foundation Prof Dan Shechtman also spoke at the event.

The Wolf Foundation is an official Israeli foundation whose aims are to advance excellence in science and arts. Every year, the president participates in presenting the prestigious international prize to scientists and artists from around the world, for achievements “to promote science and art for the benefit of humankind”. The prizes are awarded in the fields of science – medicine, agriculture, mathematics, chemistry, physics, and arts – drawing and sculpture, music and architecture. Since its foundation in 1975, Wolf Prizes have been awarded to 340 scientists and artists, of whom over a third subsequently won Nobel Prizes in fields where both foundations make awards. The prize is awarded this year for the 42nd time by the Wolf Foundation, established by Dr Ricardo Wolf ז"ל and his wife Francisca Subirana-Wolf, who endowed the foundation.

The 2020 Wolf Prize winners are:

Wolf Prize in Agriculture – Prof Caroline Dean

Wolf Prize in Physics – Prof Pablo Jarillo-Herrero, Prof Allan H MacDonald and Dr Rafi Bistritzer

Wolf Prize in Mathematics – Prof Sir Simon K Donaldson and Prof Yakov Eliashberg

Wolf Prize in Medicine – Prof Jennifer Doudna and Prof Emanuelle Charpentier

Wolf Prize in Art – Cindy Sherman

“I am delighted to host, here at Beit HaNasi, the announcement of this year’s Wolf Prize winners,” said the president at the beginning of his remarks. “Today’s announcement is the beginning of the annual celebration of the most outstanding, ground-breaking and daring scientists, researchers and artists, men and women who are an inspiration to us all. The Wolf Prize is the highest, most prestigious accolade the State of Israel awards in the field of science and art, to the best scientists and artists in Israel and around the world, here in Jerusalem.”

The president added that he was pleased to see the list of winners was divided almost equally between men and women, and said that he hoped that in the years to come we would stop counting.

“Each one of the winners teaches us a lesson in how to look at the world differently. Each one touches a different piece of the complex, exciting and varied jigsaw puzzle we call the universe, life. And when they come here, to Israel, to Jerusalem, every year to receive the prize, they remind us fast-paced start-up people, just how important the human spirit is to advancing humanity, to continue to invest in the infrastructure of science and research. They remind us of the importance of art and social science for developing daring, creative and unusual thinking,” the president said at the end of his remarks.

Attached photo credit: Mark Neyman (GPO)