The purpose of the Debut in Research: Young Talents from Africa Prize is to help new generations of African researchers to emerge, offering them the opportunity to attend a PhD course in cooperation with prestigious Italian universities and research institutes and supporting their research and innovation on the various scientific topics promoted by Eni Award.
The Eni Award Debut in Research: Young Talents from Africa Prize constitutes one of the six sections of the Eni Award, composed by the Energy Frontiers, Advanced Environmental Solutions, Energy Transition and the Young Researcher of the Year Prizes, together with the Recognition at Innovation Eni.
The purpose of the Debut in Research: Young Talents from Africa Prize is to help new generations of African researchers to emerge, offering them the opportunity to attend a PhD course in cooperation with prestigious Italian universities and research institutes and supporting their research and innovation on the various scientific topics promoted by Eni Award.
The Eni Award has become an international benchmark for energy innovation. Its history began in 2008, when it was included in the Eni Technological Master Plan and replaced the Eni-Italgas Award with the aim of developing a better use of energy sources, promoting science and technology applied to the environment and supporting new generations of researchers.
The Award has evolved in the years: since 2017, it has opened up to Africa's scientific talent and has included research on sustainability and access to energy, in line with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals. The Eni Award also includes a section for the best PhD theses and prizes for technological innovations developed by Eni researchers and technicians.
Today, the Eni Award involves both leading scientific institutions around the world and Eni's Research Centres.
The Eni Award has honoured highly prestigious figures: for example, Canadian scientist Barbara Sherwood Lollar was selected for her work on the application of stable isotope geochemistry to the protection of aquifer resources and of the environment. She became famous for her studies on the presence of water on Mars.
Italian researcher Roberto Danovaro was honoured for his studies on the marine environment and its role in the CO2 cycle. In December 2020, Danovaro was selected by Expertscape as the world's leading scientist in the oceans and seas category.
Since its establishment, the Eni Award has involved prominent scientists, among them John Craig Venter, known for his sequencing of the human genome, Gérard Férey, a researcher of nanoporous hybrid and inorganic solids (who died in 2017), and Emiliano Mutti, one of the fathers of modern Italian geology. Giorgio Parisi and Klaus Hasselmann, winners of the 2021 Nobel Prize in Physics, were both Eni Award (then Eni-Italgas Award) winners. Giorgio Parisi was previously a member of the Award's Scientific Committee.
Again in 2025, Eni Awards will provide: three main prizes for Advanced Environmental Solutions, Energy Transition and Energy Frontiers; awards for the Young Researcher of the Year and for Young Talents from Africa; “Eni for Innovation” Recognitions for our researchers. See the Official announcements! Transmission of applications will close on:
- November 15th, 2024 for Advanced Environmental Solutions, Energy Transition, Energy Frontiers and Young Researcher of the Year
- December 20th, 2024 for Young Talents from Africa
- January 31st, 2025 for “Eni for Innovation” recognitions