Honoring International Researchers and Promoting Transformative Discoveries for a Sustainable Future in Medicine, Environment, and Social Well-being.

The Region of Lombardy once again stands out for its ability to promote scientific research and to enhance ideas and talents that we know how to stand out in the field of excellence and innovation. In fact, it reaches its seventh edition of the “Lombardy is Research” Prize, which aims to recognize and promote scientific achievements of international relevance from laboratories, institutions and universities in the region.

The Prize is awarded to researchers and scientists from all over the world who through their work have achieved significant discoveries in Life Science, capable of being translated into new products or policies that benefit people. The jury of the Prize is composed of senior figures in the scientific field who will evaluate those who have been able to innovate the various areas of medicine such as personalized medicine or innovative models of care, therapy and prevention, or who have achieved advances in biology, chemistry, physics or science, such as artificial intelligence, robotics, new materials or nanotechnology. Finally, the ability to improve environmental and social sustainability will also be evaluated, with reference to research on renewable energy, climate change, pollution and global health. The Lombardy is Research Prize, worth a total of one million euros, is an initiative promoted by the Lombardy Region.

The prize money will be divided 30 percent to the scientist or scientists to whom the winning discovery is attributed, while 70 percent is allocated to support research projects related to the winning discovery, carried out by entities in the area, or to support scholarships relevant to the winning discovery, in collaboration with Lombardy universities.

To nominate projects for the Prize, it will be possible to connect from March 25 to July 15, 2024 through the Open Innovation platform of the Lombardy Region. Any scientist with a production proven by an h-index of at least ten can nominate the discovery he or she considers worthy and indicate the author or authors, up to a maximum of three for the same discovery.

The award ceremony will take place on Nov. 8 at La Scala Theater during Research Day, promoted by the Region of Lombardy in collaboration with the Veronesi Foundation. The Region has also provided a space for secondary school students: in fact, teams from high schools in Lombardy composed of at least two students who have developed during the school year an innovative project or invention with prototypical characteristics within the “”Life Sciences”” theme can participate in the Lombardy is Research Students Award (made in collaboration with the Regional School Office).

Projects should be developed through apps that promote healthy lifestyles, web or mobile systems for environmental and health monitoring, wearable devices functional for therapeutic adherence or video games to support frail individuals. In this case, applications are open from Feb. 21 to Sept. 24, 2024, and there are forty thousand euros up for grabs to be divided among the three selected teams: twelve thousand euros to the first, eight thousand to the second, four thousand to the third, and five thousand to each of the institutions to which the three winning teams belong.