The ALLEA Madame de Staël Prize was established in 2014. It is named after Anne Louise Germaine de Staël-Holstein, commonly known as Madame de Staël – a prominent philosopher, woman of letters, and political theorist of the 18th and 19th centuries. She represents a vision of Europe shaped by its longstanding intellectual and cultural values.
The Prize is awarded annually. It is a part of the larger mission of ALLEA to promote the rich and diverse intellectual, scientific, and cultural heritage of Europe. It is awarded to eminent individuals whose work represents a significant contribution to integrity and development of Europe, thereby promoting and strengthening an understanding of Europe as multifaceted, intellectual, open, and vibrant.
In a time when the cultural diversity of Europe seems to be increasingly threatened by skepticism, extremism, and instability, this prize serves to remind us of our deep-rooted and revered commitment to tolerance, mutual respect, and compassion for others.
Viola Priesemann, 2024 ALLEA Madame de Staël Prize Laureate
ALLEA is proud to announce that Viola Priesemann, German physicist and Board Member of the German Young Academy (“Die Junge Akademie”), has been awarded the 2024 Madame de Staël Prize in recognition of her remarkable scientific achievements in the field of physics, her exceptional leadership and her profound commitment to fostering a coordinated European response during the pandemic. The selection committee felt that Prof Dr Priesemann’s unwavering dedication to fostering an environment in which interdisciplinary research can flourish and the advancement pan-European cooperation in science, policy, and public health during a global crisis were both outstanding in their own right, as well as complementary to ALLEA’s own mission of facilitating scientific collaboration across borders and disciplines.
The ALLEA Madame de Staël Prize Lecture is an annual scientific event hosted by ALLEA, the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities. The laureate of each year’s Madame de Staël Prize delivers an interactive lecture reflecting on current affairs in the European political and scientific landscape. The occasion serves as an open invitation to exchange views on the course of the European project among scientists, scholars, policymakers, and the public.
