Image source,EPA
Hansson said that the Nobel Prize will not use gender or race quotas
The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, which awarded the Nobel Prize, stated that the Nobel Prize does not set quotas on gender or race.
Goran Hansson, the dean of the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, said this is to win awards for the “people who made the most important contributions”.
Since the Nobel Prize was founded in 1901, only 59 Nobel Prizes have been awarded to women. Among them, Marie Curie has won two prizes and is the first and only woman to have won two prizes.
This year’s Nobel Prize has only one female winner-Philippine journalist Maria Ressa (Maria Ressa), she and Russian journalist Dmitri Muratow (Dmitri Muratow) jointly won the peace prize.
No gender or ethnicity quotas
Hanson told Agence France-Presse that “female Nobel Prize winners rarely make people feel sad. This reflects social injustice, especially in the past, but it still exists today. This still needs to be done.”
“We decided not to set quotas on gender or race. This decision is in line with the spirit of Alfred Nobel’s will.”
In 1895, Swedish industrialist and chemist Alfred Nobel made a will to establish the Nobel Prize a year before his death.
He said, “In the final analysis, we have to award awards to those who are most worthy, those who have made the most important contributions, not because of anyone’s gender or race.”
Image source,EPA
Philippine journalist Maria Reza is the only female winner of the Nobel Prize this year
Gender equality and political correctness
In recent years, due to the rise of the gender equality movement, many fields are striving to increase the visibility of women. Whether it is board members or senior management managers of private companies, or members of certain national parliaments, there are systems that are friendly to women. Even the number of women guaranteed.
At the same time, racial diversity is also used by many people as a measure of fairness and justice.
Some organizations that fail to reflect gender balance or ethnic diversity have been criticized by outsiders. For example, Oscars in the film industry are often criticized because there are too few female winners or the list of winners is too white.
However, for the Nobel Prize, which is highly valued by all walks of life, although the number of women winners is much less than that of men, they still insist on not following the trend and deciding not to set quotas for gender or race. Hanson’s explicit statement is therefore particularly interesting.
Few female scientists
Hansong said that compared with the past few decades, more and more women have been recognized, but the number of female award winners has gradually increased from “a very small number.”
“It must be noted that there are only about 10% of female workers in the natural sciences in Western Europe and North America, and even fewer in East Asia.”
Hansson stated that they will “ensure that more female scientists are invited for nominations, while continuing to maintain the Nobel Prize Committee with female members”, but the Nobel Prize also needs help from society.
He said, “We need to change our attitude towards women in scientific careers, so that women can have the opportunity to make contributions and be recognized.”
Last year, Emmanuelle Charpentier and Jennifer Doudna both won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
That was the first time that the Nobel Prize was awarded to two women in science without any male co-listing the winners.
Charpentier said at the time, “I hope this will send a positive message to young girls who are interested in science… let them know that women who are engaged in science can also contribute to their research.”