The 36th WCC Award Ceremony was hosted by the University of Tsukuba in conjunction with the Tsukuba Conference in Tsukuba Science City, Japan.

Prof. Zhong Lin Wang, Chair and Regents Professor, School of Materials Science & Engineering at Georgia Institute of Technology, USA, received the 2019 “Albert Einstein” World Award of Science and Portuguese independent film producer, Paulo Branco received the 2019 Leonardo da Vinci World Award of Arts from Dr. NAGATA Kyosuke, President of the University of Tsukuba, Prof. Sir Colin Blakemore, President, World Cultural Council and Esteban M. Wild, Executive Director World Cultural Council.

“I am extremely honored and privilege to receive the 2019 Albert Einstein World Award of Science, which is the most prestigious honor I have received. Thanks to the WCC for giving me this special honor”. “Thanks to my parents, thanks to my family, thanks my students, postdoc and team, and also thanks to our university and the funding agency support. I will continue to work for the next many years to come and make the nanogenerator to serve the sustainable development of human kind. I will look forward to that nanogenerator will have a broad impact to the energy in the new era – the era of internet of things, artificial intelligence, and big data.

“Thanks to WCC!”

– Prof. Zhong Lin Wang

“Thank you, Professor Nagata, thank you Professor Blakemore and thank you all the members of WCC and deputy and representant of the Government of Japan.

“It’s really a great honor, I never expected to be here.

“… this award gives me more responsibility, more strength to go on, and as well, to try to open doors to young generations, because the transmission is another thing that I think is very important.

“For that, really thank you to all of you, thank you very much.”

– Paulo Branco

“I believe that it was not without reason that WCC has chosen the University of Tsukuba as the very first venue for their award ceremony in Japan.

“We are truly grateful and deeply honored for WCC’s insight and decision.

“Today we are going to honor two outstanding individuals. Dr Zhong Lin Wang from Georgia Institute of Technology, USA and Mr Paulo Branco, a film producer from Portugal. These two individuals who are selected for their excellence in their respective fields, as well as their contributing to the well-being of humanity, and their inspiration of future generations.

“We are also obliged to recognize ten highly promising young Japanese researchers, who have achieved outstanding performance in the field of science. They were chosen specifically from institutions contributing to the Tsukuba Conference with the intention of giving visibility, not only to these brilliant future shapers, but also to the growing synergy within and beyond Tsukuba Science City.”

– Dr NAGATA Kyosuke
President University of Tsukuba

“The World Cultural Council is a non-profit organization whose goal is to promote cultural values, good will and philanthropy.

“President NAGATA, we are deeply grateful to you and the University of Tsukuba for hosting the 36th Award Ceremony as part of the Tsukuba Conference 2019. The University’s goals mirror those of the WCC, one of the missions of the University is to cross the boarders that separate nations, research institutions and fields of study. The University’s origins as a teacher’s college as you said, are reflected in its commitment to innovation in education and it is now also one of the strongest research universities in Japan seating in the heart of the largest science City of Japan.”

Professor Sir Colin Blakemore
President, World Cultural Council

“…It is my great honor to attend the 36th WCC Award Ceremony and to address this distinguished audience and I would like to extend my warmest congratulations to the two WCC Winners, Dr. Zhong Lin Wang and Mr Paulo Branco, they have each excel in domains of science and arts and demonstrated with their inspiring achievements how science and arts can bring about positive influence to global society.”

“Last but not least, I’m much delighted to that this is the first WCC Award Ceremony ever held in Japan.”

Mr. NAKAOKA Tsukasa
Deputy Commissioner for Cultural Affairs
Agency for Cultural Affairs
Government of Japan

“My call is to educators. Inspire your students to become excellent professionals. Inspire your students with a deep sense of ethics.

“We have inherited the multifaceted treasure of all human culture and we should build on it. We should take whatever is good, from the East and the West, to teach our children and our students to fulfil themselves. In this way can we aspire to the advent of a more enlightened world in which all differences are respected, a world of freedom and responsibility, rights and obligations, wisdom and peace.”

Rafael Estrada
Founder and President Emeritus
World Cultural Council
(Presented by Dr René Asomoza Palcio, Member of the WCC)

To read the full speeches, please use the links below:

• Opening address, NAGATA Kyosuke
• Welcoming speech, Mr. NAKAOKA Tsukasa
• Message, Maestro Rafael Estrada
• Acceptance speech, Prof. Zhong Lin Wang
• Acceptance speech, Paulo Branco
• Winner’s book, Prof. Gary Marquis
• Closing speech, NAGATA Kyosuke

Special Recognitions Diplomas were presented by Professor Sir John Walker, 1997 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry and Member of the WCC and by Professor Sir Fraser Stoddart, 2016 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry and Winner of the 2007 “Albert Einstein” World Award of Science to ten distinguished Japanese scholars that have made outstanding contributions in different fields of science:

ENAMI Shinichi, Senior Researcher, National Institute for Environmental Studies

ICHIHASHI Yasunori, Team Leader, BioResource Research Center, RIKEN (Institute of Physical and Chemical Research)

IKEDA Kazuhiro, Research Group Leader, Photonics System Group, National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology

KIKUCHI Yasunori, Associate Professor, Institute for Future Initiatives, University of Tokyo

MATSUMOTO Masayuki, Professor, Faculty of Medicine, University of Tsukuba

MIYAUCHI Hiroyuki, Senior Research Engineer, Building Research Institute

SHIMADA Yuko, Assistant Professor, Life Science Center for Survival Dynamics, Tsukuba Advanced Research Alliance, University of Tsukuba

UCHIDA Ken-ichi, Group Leader, Spin Caloritronics Group, National Institute for Materials Science

USHIRODA Yutaka, Professor, High Energy Accelerator Research Organization

YOSHIOKA Taiyo, Researcher, National Agriculture and Food Research Organization

For more information please visit:   https://tsukuba-conference.com/wcc/