Ten prizes awarded annually to researchers who have materially advanced our understanding of the natural world. Spanning life sciences, chemistry, and physics, the Meridian Awards recognise distinct career stages — from early-career investigators to senior scientists whose contributions have endured across decades of inquiry.
The International Foundation for Scientific Progress (IFSP) was established by a consortium of European research institutions with the aim of supporting and celebrating rigorous, independent scientific inquiry. The Meridian Science Awards are the Foundation's flagship programme, presented each year to researchers whose work represents meaningful and verifiable advances in their field.
Awards span three disciplinary areas — life sciences, chemistry, and physics — and are allocated across distinct career stages: early-career investigators, mid-career scholars, and senior scientists with sustained records of distinction. This breadth is intentional; the Foundation believes that excellence is not the exclusive property of a single stage of a scientific life.
Each laureate receives a research grant of USD 10,000 to be applied to ongoing investigative work, formal recognition at the annual ceremony, and inclusion in the IFSP Laureate Register.
Each award carries a research grant of USD 10,000, presented at the annual ceremony in Lyon. Awards span three career-stage categories: senior researchers, scientists under 45, and early-career investigators in the first years of independent research.
Awarded for outstanding lifetime contributions to the molecular mechanisms of cellular function, encompassing protein structure, nucleic acid biochemistry, or enzyme catalysis. The committee recognises investigators whose cumulative body of work has materially shaped the discipline over a sustained period.
Researchers holding a doctorate with a minimum of 20 years of post-doctoral independent research experience. An active professorial or equivalent position is required.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyRecognising exceptional research in genomics, epigenetics, gene regulation, or computational genomic medicine. Nominees should demonstrate a coherent, independent programme of original research with measurable influence on their subfield, including a record of peer-reviewed publication and mentorship.
Researchers who will be under the age of 45 as of 31 December 2026. No restriction on career stage; nominations from all institutional types, including non-university research centres, are welcome.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyCelebrating innovative early-career research in microbiology, bacteriology, virology, or infectious disease biology. The committee gives particular weight to candidates whose work opens new methodological or conceptual directions, and whose research programme shows evidence of intellectual independence.
Investigators within 10 years of their first independent research appointment (faculty position, group leader, or equivalent) as of 30 April 2026.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyAwarded to senior chemists whose careers have advanced industrial, process, or sustainable chemistry in ways with real-world application. Nominees are evaluated on the breadth and durability of their contributions and on demonstrable societal or industrial impact, assessed in conjunction with their research record.
Minimum 25 years post-PhD as of 30 April 2026, currently active in or having recently retired from an active research role in academia, industry, or a national laboratory.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyHonouring chemists under 45 who have made significant advances in total synthesis, asymmetric or transition-metal catalysis, or reaction methodology. The prize committee values scientific creativity and conceptual elegance alongside practical impact; nominations citing a single transformative methodology are actively encouraged.
Researchers under 45 as of 31 December 2026, working in organic synthesis, organocatalysis, or mechanistic chemistry at any accredited research institution worldwide.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyFor early-career researchers making notable advances in polymer design, functional materials, surface chemistry, or soft matter. Nominees should have established a clear independent research identity, a growing record of peer-reviewed contributions, and ideally evidence of supervising the next generation of researchers in the field.
Investigators within 10 years of PhD conferral as of 30 April 2026. Postdoctoral researchers are not eligible; an independent faculty or group-leader position is required.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyAwarded to an early-career physical chemist for original contributions to chemical kinetics, thermodynamics, spectroscopy, or computational chemistry. Work of both experimental and theoretical character is eligible; the committee values rigour, originality, and clarity of scientific reasoning as primary criteria.
Researchers within 8 years of PhD conferral as of 30 April 2026, holding an independent faculty or permanent group-leader appointment at the time of nomination.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyRecognising senior physicists whose careers have substantially contributed to our understanding of subatomic matter, nuclear forces, or high-energy phenomena. Experimental, theoretical, and phenomenological contributions are evaluated on equal standing. International nominations are strongly encouraged, and geographic breadth is a stated priority of the committee.
Minimum 20 years post-PhD as of 30 April 2026, currently or recently active in nuclear or particle physics research at any accredited institution.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyFor physicists and astronomers under 45 who have made significant observational, theoretical, or computational contributions to astrophysics, cosmology, or gravitational physics. Work relating to multi-messenger astronomy, dark matter phenomenology, or large-scale structure is particularly welcomed in the 2026 cycle.
Researchers who will be under 45 as of 31 December 2026. Nominations from both observational and theoretical astrophysics communities, including space-based instrumentation groups, are encouraged.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use onlyCelebrating early-career researchers at the forefront of quantum information science, including quantum computation, quantum communication, quantum error correction, and foundations of quantum measurement. Interdisciplinary work bridging physics, computer science, and engineering is strongly encouraged; the committee does not require a sole affiliation with a physics department.
Investigators within 8 years of their first independent research appointment as of 30 April 2026. Candidates in physics, computer science, electrical engineering, or mathematics departments are all eligible.
Research Grant $10,000 USD — Research use only
The nomination window for the 2026 Meridian Science Awards closed at
23:59 CEST on 30 April 2026. No further nominations are being accepted
for this cycle. The Awards Committee is currently reviewing all received nominations
in strict confidence.
Winners will be contacted by private email on or before 30 June 2026.
The nomination portal will reopen for the 2027 edition in January 2027.
To receive advance notice when nominations reopen, please register your interest
via the ceremony attendance form below.
This form is displayed for archival reference only — all fields are inactive as the nomination period has concluded. Please note that self-nominations are not accepted under any circumstances and will result in automatic disqualification of the nominated candidate.
All laureates notified privately on or before 30 June 2026, 23:59 CEST
Laureates will receive a private communication from the IFSP Awards Secretariat. Please do not contact the Foundation to enquire about nomination outcomes — all decisions are final and held in strict confidence until the public announcement.
The 2026 Meridian Science Awards ceremony will be held in Lyon, France — a city with a distinguished heritage in both science and culture, home to the Institut Lumière, the Hospices Civils de Lyon, and one of Europe's most vibrant biomedical and physical science research communities.
The evening programme includes the formal presentation of all ten prizes, addresses by IFSP leadership and distinguished invited guests, a laureate lecture series, and a seated gala dinner for all registered attendees. The ceremony is open to the broader scientific community, subject to free registration.
Full logistical details — including the precise venue, accommodation recommendations, and the full programme schedule — will be communicated directly to confirmed laureates and registered attendees by 1 July 2026.
Members of the international scientific community are warmly invited to attend the Meridian Science Awards ceremony in Lyon on 25 July 2026. Registration is free of charge, but capacity is limited and early registration is strongly encouraged. A confirmation email will be sent within 5 working days of submission.