# Japan Prize

The Japan Prize (日本国際賞, Nihon-kokusai-shō, lit. "Japan International Prize") is awarded to individuals whose original and outstanding achievements in science and technology are recognized as having advanced the frontiers of knowledge and served the cause of peace and prosperity for mankind. As of 2024, the Japan Prize has been awarded to 111 people from more than ten countries.
The Japan Prize is presented by the Japan Prize Foundation, which selects internationally-renowned scientists and engineers to be awarded the Prize in one of two areas: one from Physics, Chemistry, Informatics, and Engineering; and one from Life Science, Agriculture, Medicine, and Pharmacy. The corresponding fields for each area are determined in advance, and each year, two awards are presented. Laureates each receive a certificate of merit, a prize medal, and as of 2020, a prize of 100 million yen. Only living individuals are eligible for the award.
The prestigious prize presentation ceremony is held in the presence of the Emperor and the Empress of Japan. According to his book Dancing Naked in the Mind Field, Kary Mullis, 1993 Nobel Laureate in Chemistry, addressed Empress Michiko as sweetie when being awarded the prize in 1993 for the development of the polymerase chain reaction. The events are also attended by the Prime Minister, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, the President of the House of Councillors, the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court, and by government ministers and representatives from various fields and industries. The 2014 Japan Prize Presentation Ceremony was held on April 23 at the National Theatre in Tokyo.
At present the international prize is often considered one of the most prestigious awards in science and technology fields after the Nobel Prize. According to an article in the scientific journal Nature Immunology, the prize is one of the prestigious science awards that recognize immunology as well as Nobel Prize, Sweden (since 1901), Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award, USA (since 1946), Paul Ehrlich and Ludwig Darmstaedter Prize, Germany (since 1952), Canada Gairdner International Award, Canada (since 1959), Wolf Prize, Israel (since 1978), and Crafoord Prize, Sweden (since 1980).

## Background

In 1981, the Japanese government wished to establish a prestigious international award that would contribute to the advancement of science and technology, and private donations would form the foundation of the prize.
The Japanese Government issued the following cabinet endorsement on the establishment of the Japan Prize on October 28, 1983:
The official position of the Japanese Government is that the Japan Prize, to be bestowed by the Science and Technology Foundation of Japan (now known as the Japan Prize Foundation), will serve to deepen the understanding of the role played by science and technology in furthering world peace and prosperity, thereby making a vital contribution to the positive development of mankind. Based on this judgment, the government agencies concerned are urged to offer whatever cooperation necessary in all phases pertinent to this Prize.
The first Japan Prize Presentation Ceremony was held in April 1985.

## Laureates

| Year | Name | Nationality | Citation |
| 2025 | Russell Dean Dupuis | United States | for his distinguished contributions to the Development of metalorganic chemical vapor deposition technology for compound semiconductor electronic and optoelectronic devices, and pioneering contribution to its large-scale commercialization. |
| 2025 | Carlos M. Duarte | Spain | for his contribution to our understanding of marine ecosystems in a changing Earth, especially through pioneering research on Blue Carbon. |
| 2024 | Brian Hoskins John Michael Wallace | United Kingdom United States | for the establishment of a scientific foundation for understanding and predicting extreme weather events. |
| 2024 | Ronald M. Evans | United States | for the discovery of the nuclear hormone receptor family and its application to drug development |
| 2023 | Masataka Nakazawa Kazuo Hagimoto | Japan Japan | for distinguished contributions to global long-distance, high-capacity optical fiber network through the development of semiconductor laser pumped optical amplifier. |
| 2023 | Gero Miesenböck Karl Deisseroth | Austria United States | for the development of methods that use genetically addressable light-sensitive membrane proteins to unravel neural circuit function. |
| 2022 | Katalin Karikó Drew Weissman | Hungary United States | for pioneering research contributing to the development of mRNA vaccines. |
| 2022 | Christopher Field | United States | for outstanding contributions to estimation of global biospheric productivity and climate change science using advanced formulas based on observation |
| 2021 | Martin A. Green | Australia | for development of high-efficiency silicon photovoltaic devices. |
| 2021 | Bert Vogelstein Robert A. Weinberg | United States United States | for their pioneering work in conceptualizing a multi-step model of carcinogenesis and its application and impact on improving cancer diagnosis and therapy. |
| 2020 | Robert G. Gallager | United States | for pioneering contribution to information and coding theory. |
| 2020 | Svante Pääbo | Sweden | for pioneering contributions to paleoanthropology through decoding ancient human genome sequences. |
| 2019 | Yoshio Okamoto | Japan | for leading contributions to precision synthesis of helical polymers and development of practical chiral materials for separating chiral drugs. |
| 2019 | Rattan Lal | India | for the sustainable soil management for global food security and mitigation of climate change. |
| 2018 | Akira Yoshino | Japan | for the development of lithium-ion batteries. |
| 2018 | Max Dale Cooper Jacques Miller | United States Australia | for the discovery of B and T lymphocyte lineages and its impact on understanding disease pathology and therapeutic development. |
| 2017 | Emmanuelle Charpentier Jennifer Doudna | France United States | for deciphering the molecular details of the type II bacterial immune system CRISPR (Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats)-Cas and the creation of the CRISPR-Cas9 genome editing system, a truly revolutionary technique in genetic engineering, far more economical and faster than those previously available. |
| 2017 | Adi Shamir | Israel | for his significant contributions to the fields of cryptography and computer science. |
| 2016 | Hideo Hosono | Japan | for the creation of unconventional inorganic materials with novel electronic functions based on nano-structure engineering. |
| 2016 | Steven D. Tanksley | United States | for his contribution to modern crop breeding through research on development of molecular genetic analysis. |
| 2015 | Yutaka Takahasi (ja) | Japan | for the contribution to development of innovative concept on river basin management and reduction of water-related disasters. |
| 2015 | Theodore Friedmann Alain Fischer | United States France | for the proposal of the concept of gene therapy and its clinical applications. |
| 2014 | Yasuharu Suematsu | Japan | for pioneering research on semiconductor lasers for high-capacity long-distance optical fiber communication. |
| 2014 | C. David Allis | United States | for the discovery of histone modifications as fundamental regulators of gene expression. |
| 2013 | C. Grant Willson (de) Jean M. J. Fréchet | United States United States | for development of chemically amplified resist polymer materials for innovative semiconductor manufacturing process. |
| 2013 | John Frederick Grassle | United States | for contribution to marine environmental conservation through research on ecology and biodiversity of deep-sea organisms. |
| 2012 | Janet Rowley Brian Druker Nicholas Lydon | United States United States United Kingdom | for the development of a new therapeutic drug targeting cancer-specific molecules. |
| 2012 | Masato Sagawa | Japan | for the developing the world's highest performing Nd-Fe-B type permanent magnet and contributing to energy conservation. |
| 2011 | Kenneth Thompson Dennis Ritchie | United States United States | for writing the Unix operating system. |
| 2011 | Tadamitsu Kishimoto Toshio Hirano | Japan Japan | for the discovery of interleukin-6. |
| 2010 | Shun-ichi Iwasaki | Japan | for contributions to high-density magnetic recording technology by the development of a perpendicular magnetic recording method. |
| 2010 | Peter Vitousek | United States | for contributions to solving global environmental issues based on the analysis of nitrogen and other substances’ cycles. |
| 2009 | Dennis L. Meadows | United States | for contributions in the area of "Transformation towards a sustainable society in harmony with nature". |
| 2009 | David E. Kuhl | United States | for contributions in the area of "Technological integration of medical science and engineering". Specifically, tomographic imaging in nuclear medicine. |
| 2008 | Vinton Gray Cerf Robert E. Kahn | United States United States | for the creation of network architecture and communication protocol for the Internet. |
| 2008 | Victor A. McKusick | United States | for the establishment of medical genetics and contributions to its development. |
| 2007 | Albert Fert Peter Grünberg | France Germany | for the discovery of Giant Magneto-Resistance (GMR) and its contribution to development of innovative spin-electronics devices. |
| 2007 | Peter Shaw Ashton | United Kingdom | for contributions to the conservation of tropical forest. |
| 2006 | John Houghton | United Kingdom | for pioneering research on atmospheric structure and composition based on his satellite observation technology and for promotion of international assessments of climate change. |
| 2006 | Akira Endo | Japan | for the discovery of the Statins and their development. |
| 2005 | Makoto Nagao | Japan | for pioneering contributions to Natural Language Processing and Intelligent Image Processing. |
| 2005 | Masatoshi Takeichi Erkki Ruoslahti | Japan United States | for fundamental contribution in elucidating the Molecular Mechanisms of Cell Adhesion. |
| 2004 | Kenichi Honda Akira Fujishima | Japan Japan | for pioneering work on photochemical catalysis and its application for the environment. |
| 2004 | Keith J. Sainsbury | New Zealand | for contributions to the understanding of shelf ecosystems and their sustainable utilization. |
| 2004 | John H. Lawton | United Kingdom | for observational, experimental and theoretical achievements for the scientific understanding and conservation of Biodiversity. |
| 2003 | Benoît Mandelbrot James A. Yorke | France United States United States | for the creation of universal concepts in complex systems - Chaos and Fractals. |
| 2003 | Seiji Ogawa | Japan | for the discovery of the principle for functional magnetic resonance imaging. |
| 2002 | Tim Berners-Lee | United Kingdom | for advancement of civilization through invention, implementation and deployment of the World Wide Web. |
| 2002 | Anne McLaren Andrzej K. Tarkowski | United Kingdom Poland | for pioneering work on mammalian embryonic development. |
| 2001 | John B. Goodenough | United States | for the discovery of environmentally benign electrode materials for high energy density rechargeable lithium batteries. |
| 2001 | Timothy R. Parsons | Canada | for the contributions to the development of Biological/Fisheries Oceanography and for conservation of fishery resources and marine environment. |
| 2000 | Ian L. McHarg | United States | for the establishment of an ecological City Planning Process and a proposal of a Land Use Evaluation System. |
| 2000 | Kimishige Ishizaka | Japan | for the discovery of Immunoglobulin E and mechanisms of IgE-mediated allergic reactions. |
| 1999 | W. Wesley Peterson | United States | for the establishment of coding theory for reliable digital communication, broadcasting and storage. |
| 1999 | Jack L. Strominger Don C. Wiley | United States United States | for the elucidation of the three dimensional structures of class I and class II human histocompatibility antigens and their bound peptides. |
| 1998 | Leo Esaki | Japan | for the creation and realization of the concept of man-made superlattice crystals which led to generation of new materials with useful applications. |
| 1998 | Jozef S. Schell Marc C. E. Van Montagu | Belgium Belgium | for the establishment of the theory and method of the production of transgenic plants. |
| 1997 | Takashi Sugimura Bruce N. Ames | Japan United States | for the contribution to establishment of fundamental concept on causes of cancer. |
| 1997 | Joseph F. Engelberger Hiroyuki Yoshikawa (ja) | United States Japan | for the establishment of the Robot Industry and Creation of a Techno-Global Paradigm. |
| 1996 | Charles K. Kao | United States United Kingdom | for pioneering research on wide-band, low-loss optical fiber communications. |
| 1996 | Masao Ito | Japan | for the elucidation of the functional principles and neural mechanisms of the cerebellum. |
| 1995 | Nick Holonyak Jr. | United States | for outstanding contributions to research and practical applications of light emitting diodes and lasers through pioneering achievements in the understanding of physical principles and in the process technology of intermetallic compound semiconductors. |
| 1995 | Edward F. Knipling | United States | for pioneering contributions in the development of Integrated Pest Management by the Sterile Insect Release Method and other biological approaches. |
| 1994 | William Hayward Pickering | New Zealand | for inspirational leadership in unmanned lunar and planetary exploration, and for pioneering achievements in the development of spacecraft and deep space communications. |
| 1994 | Arvid Carlsson | Sweden | for the discovery of dopamine as a neurotransmitter and clarification of its role in mental and motor functions and their disorders. |
| 1993 | Frank Press | United States | for the development of modern seismology and advancement of international cooperation in disaster science. |
| 1993 | Kary B. Mullis | United States | for the development of the polymerase chain reaction. |
| 1992 | Gerhard Ertl | Germany | for the contributions to the new development of the chemistry and physics of solid surfaces. |
| 1992 | Ernest John Christopher Polge | United Kingdom | for the discovery of a method of the cryopreservation of semen and embryos in farm animals. |
| 1991 | Jacques-Louis Lions | France | for the contributions to analysis and control of distributed systems, and to promotion of applied analysis. |
| 1991 | John Julian Wild | United States | for the development of ultrasound imaging in medicine. |
| 1990 | Marvin Minsky | United States | for the establishment of an academic field named Artificial Intelligence and the proposal of fundamental theories in that field. |
| 1990 | William Jason Morgan Dan McKenzie Xavier Le Pichon | United States United Kingdom France | for the initiation of the theory of plate tectonics and contributions to its development. |
| 1989 | Frank Sherwood Rowland | United States | for the studies on the mechanisms of stratospheric ozone depletion by chlorofluorocarbons. |
| 1989 | Elias James Corey | United States | for the pioneering contributions to the syntheses of prostaglandins and their related compounds which are of great therapeutic value. |
| 1988 | Georges Vendryes | France | for the establishment of fast breeder reactor technology. |
| 1988 | Donald Henderson Isao Arita Frank Fenner | United States Japan Australia | for the eradication of Smallpox. |
| 1988 | Luc Montagnier Robert C. Gallo | France United States | for the discovery of the AIDS-causing virus and development of diagnostic methods. |
| 1987 | Henry M. Beachell Gurdev S. Khush | United States India | for the development of the IR8 and IR36 strains for rice breeding strategies geared to the tropical and subtropical zones. |
| 1987 | Theodore H. Maiman | United States | for the realization of the world's first laser. |
| 1986 | David Turnbull | United States | for pioneering contributions to materials science with impact on new materials technology such as amorphous solids. |
| 1986 | Willem J. Kolff | United States | for research and development of artificial organs and their relevant technology. |
| 1985 | John R. Pierce | United States | for outstanding achievement in the field of electronics and communications technologies. |
| 1985 | Ephraim Katchalski-Katzir | Israel | for outstanding achievement in basic theory in the field of immobilized enzymes and their practical applications. |