[PORTRAIT] Discover the winners of the 2023 Young Researcher Prize

The Young Researcher Prize

The Young Researcher Prize, currently led by the Métropole de Lyon and created by the City of Lyon, aims to promote excellence in basic and applied research in the Université de Lyon’s laboratories and to highlight the work of its young doctors. This year, more than 40 young researchers applied for the Young Researcher Prize.

The prizes are awarded to post-doctoral researchers under the age of 40 in three themes that encompass all disciplinary fields: bio-health and society, humanities and urban studies and science and engineering.
 

Meet the 2023 winners

• Concepcion Sanchez-Cid Torres, winner of the Bio-health and Society Prize, a 30-year-old postdoctoral researcher in Microbial Ecology and Antibiotic Resistance in the “Environmental Microbial Genomics” group (École Centrale de Lyon), for her work on the consequences of environmental pollution caused by human activities on the spread of antibiotic resistance and the associated risk to human health.
• Samuel Quaegebeur, winner of the Science and Engineering Prize, 28-years-old, currently holding a Junior Professorship at the École Centrale de Lyon, for his work on digital and experimental approaches to innovation in the field of non-linear rotor dynamics.
• Amélie Deschamps, winner of the Humanities and Urban Studies Prize, a 28-year-old post-doctoral researcher working on a project supported by the French National Research Agency at the Université Gustave Eiffel, for her doctoral thesis in geography and urban planning entitled “Faire végétaliser l’espace public aux habitants: quelle participation pour quelle ville durable?” (Getting residents to plant in public spaces: how can they participate to create a sustainable city?), at the Environment, City and Society laboratory (Laboratoire Environnement, Ville et Société – EVS UMR (joint research unit) 5600).

A “Jury’s favorite” prize was also awarded to Kim Larmier, a 35-year-old research engineer at IFP Énergies Nouvelles, who is currently working on converting sugars from biomass into raw materials for the chemical industry.

The aim of each university site, which is widely shared by the local authorities, is to attract the best talent to its higher education and research institutions, whether they be students, doctoral students or researchers. The fact that the City of Lyon and the Métropole de Lyon recognize excellence, especially among young people, is testament to their strong interest in research and scientific progress. This prize for young researchers is also a key factor in talents to Lyon’s research institutions, which offer particularly interesting and innovative opportunities.

Frank Debouck,
President of the Université de Lyon

The Young Researcher Prize 2023 awards ceremony – © Métropole de Lyon / Thierry Fournier