BIWAKO PRIZE FOR ECOLOGY

Invitation to apply “Biwako Prize for Ecology.”

Shin-ichi Nakano (Chair of the committee for the Biwako Prize, ESJ)

The Biwako Prize for Ecology is awarded to outstanding researchers under the age of 50 in ecology and other fields related to the aquatic environment, established in 1991 The prize has been awarded to 43 researchers from Japan and abroad. Although the Ecological Society of Japan is the main sponsor of the prize, non-members of the society are also eligible to apply and receive the prize.

The previous winners of the 23rd award were Dr. Hideyuki Doi, Graduate School of Informatics, Kyoto University. Dr. Doi has achieved remarkable results through research that elucidates the structure and dynamics of biological communities in aquatic ecosystems using a variety of analytical methods. His work is particularly characterized by methods that reveal large-scale, long-term community dynamics through analyses utilizing stable isotope ratios and environmental DNA data. His analytical approach, which incorporates computational methods such as meta-analyses using large-scale spatiotemporal data, causal inference, and numerical simulations, covers a wide range of topics, including community dynamics, food web structure, ecosystem functions and ecosystem services, community responses to climate change, and genetic diversity. It is noteworthy that he has been greatly making efforts to comprehensively elucidate the structure of aquatic ecosystems and the dynamics of their biological communities. In recent years, his group has actively pursued the development of survey methods using environmental DNA and has been dedicated to conducting comprehensive analyses of aquatic ecosystem communities, as well as developing new methods for assessing genetic diversity and promoting their widespread adoption for societal implementation. Furthermore, the group is enthusiastic about applying analytical AI technologies to the analysis of ecosystem structure and dynamics and aims to realize digital twins of ecosystems by advancing modeling techniques; it is expected to lead the way in the development of a new era of ecology.

As these facts indicate, the Biwako Prize for Ecology is an academic prize that encourages outstanding researchers who are expected to broaden the scope of science related to the aquatic environment and contribute to society at large in the future.

The panel of the prize consists of not only specialists in aquatic science, but also in biology and environmental science, so there is no bias in favor of any particular field of study. The winners will be honored by the Governor of Shiga Prefecture at an awards ceremony to be held before or after Lake Biwa Day in July 2027, and will also deliver an award commemorative lecture. We also ask the winner(s) to write a review article or a report in a scientific journal published by the Ecological Society of Japan.

We would like to encourage your application to the Biwako Prize for Ecology, hoping we will have the applications as many as possible. Do not miss it!

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