Prof. Quarraisha Abdool Karim is the 2021 VinFuture Prize Laureate of Special Prize for Innovators from Developing Countries for groundbreaking scientific research on HIV prevention. — VNS Photo Thanh Hai
In 2021, Prof. Quarraisha Abdool Karim, scientific director of the Centre for the AIDS Programme of Research in South Africa (CAPRISA), was the VinFuture Prize Laureate of Special Prize for Innovators from Developing Countries along with Professor Salim Abdool Karim for groundbreaking scientific research on HIV prevention. This year, as a member of the pre-selection jury of the VinFuture Prize Council and Pre-screening Committee, she talks with Viet Nam News about how VinFuture Prize can bring Vietnamese scientists to the world.
Last year, you were the VinFuture Prize Laureate of Special Prize for Innovators from Developing Countries. What reasons that made you come back to Viet Nam and be a member of the pre-selection jury?
My husband and I, we've been fortunate that our work has made an important contribution. But what is the VinFuture Prize difference? Was that just about discovery? It was about scientific discoveries that are impacting millions of lives. I tried to make my contribution with HIV, and was very keen to see other scientists living meaningful lives, making sure that the world is a better place. So, when I was invited to join the pre-selection jury, it was an honour and privilege to have that opportunity. I didn't hesitate about accepting.
So, after receiving the VinFuture Prize, what have you done to contribute back to Viet Nam?
Yes, a part of it is collaboration. So already we have students from Viet Nam coming to South Africa, and then me coming here and meeting as well. So I was recently elected as the President of the World Academy of Science and a Vietnamese mathematician also is one of the academy’s governing council members so I'm also using the opportunity when I'm here to meet with other Vietnamese scientists, and to look at how we can get more Vietnamese scientists and the work that they're doing profiled globally. So it is a bit of paying it forward, some of it is about increasing awareness of Vietnamese science in the global community. Part of it is how we strengthen like in math and physics, you have excellent scientists. I want to see whether the life sciences and maybe medicine and biology are where my strength is, and how my collaborations can help to build that capacity in Viet Nam.
As a member of the pre-selection jury, what do you say about this year’s VinFuture Prize nominations?
I'm very excited about my new role as a member of the pre-selection jury because I get the opportunity to review and read all the exciting things scientists from around the world are doing. And for me, that's amazing. This is my first time this year as a member of the pre-selection jury and I have been so impressed with the number of nominations that we received, the quality of the nominations that we received and the diversity of impactful research underway from all over the world.
As a female researcher, what difficulties did you have to face and how did you overcome them?
Right, so I was very fortunate that I had supportive mentors. My work though is on young women. And in doing the research in young women, I was able to understand some of the many obstacles that women face in the 21st century. One of the Sustainable Development Goals is gender equity. And today, we still have to fight all the way for women to have equal rights, for women to have equal opportunities and for women to make a contribution to the world.
I feel as a female scientist, I've been able to ask certain questions because we have a particular lens of looking at problems that is a bit different from where men do but when we work together, as men and women, we can find solutions that work for everybody that's relevant, that's equally important. And we're not doing something that's only meeting the needs of half of the population.
What message do you want to send to the students, especially Vietnamese students and female students?
Yes. I'd like to say, you know, for me, science has just been such an exciting journey and I feel I've lived such a meaningful life as a scientist. I would say if each of us can find what is our passion, what we want to do, that will leave the world a better place. So don't give up when you fail. Just keep going. Follow your passion. Follow it with excellence and persevere and you'll get the medal.— VNS