TANG PRIZE/Tang Prize laureate encourages young scientists to persevere, pursue dreams

Taipei, Sept. 27 (CNA) Research chemist Omar M. Yaghi on Friday encouraged young scientists to bravely pursue their dreams regardless of hardship or challenges, noting that every step forward eventually leads to something extraordinary.

"As I stand here today accepting this award, I do so not just for myself, but for everyone who has ever felt that their beginnings were too humble to make a difference," Yaghi said after he received the trophy of the 2024 Tang Prize in Sustainable Development at a ceremony in Taipei.

"I believe that the potential for innovation and progress lies within each of us, but it's up to us to activate it … the key is to start wherever you are, with whatever you have."

Recalling growing up in a refugee family in Jordan, Yaghi said he did not "wait for the perfect conditions to pursue [his] passion" for science, and instead seized every opportunity to learn and experiment.

It all comes down to "the courage to start and the willingness to do the experiment, even in the face of uncertainty," he said, adding that each small step forward could ultimately "lead to something truly extraordinary."

"My journey is proof that remarkable things can emerge from the most unremarkable beginnings," said Yaghi, who currently teaches at the University of California, Berkeley's chemistry department.

The 59-year-old scientist was recognized for discovering and developing metal-organic and other ultra-porous frameworks used in carbon capture, hydrogen and methane storage and water harvesting, according to the Tang Prize Foundation.

Yaghi's pioneering work has had a significant contribution as it opened up new solutions to the generation of clean air, clean energy, and clean water, the foundation said.

Meanwhile, former President of Ireland Mary Robinson, who was honored with the Tang Prize in Rule of Law, expressed concern that the rule of law, which she considered to be at the core of global efforts to advance human rights and sustainable development, had been "undermined and threatened."

"A growing number of authoritarian and divisively nationalist leaders have taken steps to undermine or dismantle rule of law norms" to "strengthen their own positions and weaken accountability and inclusive governance at home and internationally," she said.

Robinson, who currently chairs the international NGO, The Elders, went on to say that receiving the Tang Prize in this specific category was her "greatest honor" and that she would continue defending the rule of law "with total conviction."

The principle of the rule of law plays a key role in addressing the globe's most pressing challenges, from halting the climate and nature crisis to tackling the dangers of global pandemics, and ending armed conflict and violence in countries around the world, Robinson added.

Yaghi and Robinson were among the laureates of the 2024 Tang Prize for their "marvelous accomplishments" in the fields of health, science, and humanity, said Chien Shu (錢煦), an Academia Sinica academician and chair of the Tang Prize Selection Committee.

The other recipient who attended the ceremony was Danish physician Jens Juul Holst, who shared the Tang Prize in Biopharmaceutical Science this year with Macedonian-American chemist Svetlana Mojsov and American medical professor Joel Francis Habener.

Mojsov, Habener, and historian Hsu Cho-yun (許倬雲), winner of the Tang Prize in Sinology, did not attend the ceremony but delivered their remarks through pre-recorded videos.