Scientist Laureate

Vivian Wing-Wah Yam, a professor at the Chemistry Department of the University of Hong Kong, was recently announced among the five laureates of the 2011 L'Oreal-UNESCO Women Scientist Awards, for her contributions in light-emitting materials and innovative ways of capturing solar energy.

Yam, 47, obtained her Ph.D at the University of Hong Kong and became professor there in 1997 and chair professor in 1999. She was head of the university's Chemistry Department from 2000 to 2005, and became the Philip Wong Wilson Wong Professor in Chemistry and Energy in 2009.

Yam was elected an academician of the Chinese Academy of Sciences at 38, the youngest member of the top Chinese research institution at that time. In 2006, she became a fellow of the Academy of Sciences for the Developing World, and has also been awarded a Royal Society of Chemistry (UK) centenary lectureship and medal.

Initiated 13 years ago, the L'Oreal-UNESCO Awards each year honor five outstanding women scientists—one per continent—for their research contributions, the strength of their commitments and their impact on society. Yam is the laureate for the Asia-Pacific region.