Finnish body invites nominations from Indian techies for leading science and tech award

An independent foundation set up jointly by the Finnish industry and the Finland government on Monday launched an appeal for Indians to nominate deserving innovators from the country for its prestigious Euro one million Millennium Technology Prize, which celebrates ground-breaking innovations that promote sustainable development.

The prize, which is presented every two years, is set up by the Technology Academy Finland (TAF) as one of the world's largest technology awards.

The nomination process for the 2020 prize will run until July. The winner will be awarded by Finnish President Sauli Niinisto in Finnish capital Helsinki on May 26, 2020.

"India has a rich history of scientific discovery. Today teams of researchers in the country are working on a wide range of projects, from those which expand our understanding of space to new ways to tackle everyday problems posed by pollution," TAF CEO Ari Ahonen said.

"Winners of the Millennium Technology Prize are leading innovators in their respective industries. With their innovations, they have enhanced the quality of life for humanity as well as conservation of the environment. The winning innovation must have solid evidence of existing practical applications and the potential for generating new research," he said.

The nominees for the prize are evaluated by an International Selection Committee, composed of leading experts in research and industry. The patron of the Millennium Technology Prize is the President of Finland and the award of 1 million euros is donated by the Finnish government.

Past winners include Shinya Yamanaka for the development of ethical stem cells, Tim Berners-Lee for the World Wide Web and Tuomo Suntola for ALD a nanoscale technology that enables the manufacturing of modern, high-performance computers and smart devices.

Three of the winners of the Millennium Technology Prize have subsequently also won the Nobel Prize most recently Frances Arnold, the 2016 Millennium winner, who received the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2018.

Arnold's Millennium Technology Prize winning innovation, directed evolution, enables the production of novel enzymes to be used in environmentally-friendly processes in several industrial sectors.

The nominations, of a single person or a team, for the 2020 award can be made through the MillenniumPrize.fi/cfn portal.