Women in Science: PSL doctoral students and postdoc fellows granted the 2021 L'Oréal-UNESCO Young Talents award

Sophie Bavard, Alice Marcotte, Pauline Palmas, Lauren Reynold, Nour Skaf, Judith Pineau and Marina Katava are doctoral students and postdoctoral fellows at the ENS – PSL, the ESPCI Paris – PSL, the labex Corail of the EPHE - PSL, the Observatoire de Paris – PSL, the Institut Curie and the Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique. Their research work explores fields ranging from biology to computer science, astrophysics, ecology or mathematics within the cutting-edge laboratories and departments of Université PSL, such as the Laboratoire de Physique of the Ecole Normale Supérieure - PSL, the Laboratoire de Plasticité of the ESPCI Paris- PSL, the Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Computationnelles of the ENS - PSL, the LESIA of the Observatoire de Paris - PSL, the Immunité et Cancer team of the Institut Curie, the Labex Corail, the Laboratoire de Biochimie Théorique of the Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique...

The seven brilliant young researchers were selected among more than 700 other applicants because of the excellence of their academic level, the originality of their scientific project, but also their desire to pass on their passion to the younger generation. They will receive a €15,000 research grant for doctoral students and €20,000 grant for post-doctoral students, and each of them will benefit from a training program to complement their scientific career and help them break the glass ceiling.

For 15 years, the L'Oréal-UNESCO "For Women in Science" Young Talent program has been promoting the rise of a new balance of power in the scientific field. Every year, Université PSL calls young scientists to apply for this call for projects and is really proud to include so many winners.

 “We need to encourage young women in science to take the plunge!” , a joint interview with Fabienne Casoli (President of the Observatoire de Paris–PSL), Anne Christophe (Associate Director, Sciences, at ENS–PSL), Geneviève Almouzni (CNRS Research Director at the Institut Curie) and Annie Colin (Associate Director, Institut Pierre-Gilles de Gennes).

The winners

• Sophie Bavard, postdoctoral fellow at the Laboratoire de Neurosciences Cognitives et Computationnelles of the Département d’Études Cognitives at ENS – PSL
• Alice Marcotte, doctoral student at the Laboratoire de Physique of the ENS - PSL
• Marina Katava, postdoctoral fellow at the Laboratoire de Biochimie Théorique UPR 9080 (CNRS, Université de Paris, Institut de Biologie Physico-Chimique)
• Pauline Palmas, postdoctoral fellow at the l'UMR 241 EIO (Université de Polynésie Française), the Labex Corail and Institut méditerranéen de biodiversité et écologie marine et continentale (Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, IRD, Avignon Université)
• Judith Pineau, doctoral student at the Immunity and Cancer Unit, Institut Curie, Inserm U 932
• Lauren Reynolds, postdoctoral fellow at the UMR 8249 « Plasticité du cerveau » (CNRS, ESPCI Paris – PSL) and the  Neuroscience Paris Seine – IBPS (CNRS UMR 8246, INSERM U1130, Sorbonne Université)
• Nour Skaf, doctoral student at the Laboratoire d’Etudes Spatiales et d’Instrumentation en Astrophysique (LESIA) (Observatoire de Paris – PSL) and at the Subaru telescope national astronomical observatory of Japan, Center for Space Exochemistry Data, (University Collège London)

PSL also congratulates Laura Monk, from the ENS-PSL and now a doctoral student at the Université de Strasbourg: she was awarded the prize as well.