During the Monaco Ocean Week*, on Thursday 28 March, His Serene Highness, the Sovereign Prince Albert II, in the presence of Professor Stewart Cole, Director General of the Institut Pasteur, awarded the "Prince Albert II of Monaco - Institut Pasteur" prize to Professor Joacim Rocklöv for his research work on climate-related arbovirus epidemics. Since 2012, this prize has been awarded to researchers who have made significant contributions to the study of the impact of environmental changes on human health.
Joacim Rocklöv, a Swedish national, is Professor of Epidemiology in the Sustainable Health Section of the Department of Public Health and Clinical Medicine at the Faculty of Medicine in Umea (Sweden) and Associate Researcher at the Institute of Public Health at the University of Heidelberg (Germany).
Joacim Rocklöv is conducting epidemiological research on Zika and Dengue fever viruses. To set up early warning systems, he established a mathematical model to predict dengue fever outbreaks based on the dynamics of the Aedes aegypti mosquito using his statistical expertise. At the same time, Joacim Rocklöv has engaged in interdisciplinary public health activities by bringing together health and climate scientists, economists and policy makers. As a specialist in vector-borne diseases, he was invited to join the group of experts gathered in the "Lancet Countdown", and has also contributed to reports from the Intergovermental Panel on Climate Change IPCC and WHO.
Funded by the Princely Government, the "Prince Albert II of Monaco - Institut Pasteur" prize is a result of an agreement that specifically links the Monaco Science Centre, the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation and the Institut Pasteur since 2010 on the consequences of environmental changes on human health. It is part of the framework agreement signed between the three partners on 21 December 2010, financing joint projects to combat emerging diseases, access to training for scientists and health professionals from the least developed countries and the organization of scientific or charitable events, in the context of environmental protection.
The first prize "Prince Albert II of Monaco - Institut Pasteur" was awarded in 2012 to Professor Michelle Bell, Yale University, School of Forestry & Environmental Studies. She is studying the links between air pollution and the risk of hospitalization and mortality.
In 2015, the "Prince Albert II of Monaco - Institut Pasteur" prize was awarded to Dr Samuel Myers, Harvard School of Public Health, USA. Samuel Myers is interested in the impact of environmental and climate change on human nutrition.
*From 24 to 30 March 2019, the Principality sponsored the preservation of the oceans during Monaco Ocean Week. Scientists, experts, NGOs and representatives of civil society gathered for a week-long event to discuss the major challenge of protecting the oceans.
