4 global trailblazers receive Time100 Impact Awards in ceremony held in S'pore for first time
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox
(From left) Time chief people officer Sue Suh, EDB managing director Jacqueline Poh, former James Webb Space Telescope programme director Gregory L. Robinson, actor-producer Alia Bhatt, actress-singer Lea Salonga, Time executive editor John Simons, Dr Pardis Sabeti, Time executive editor Dan Macsai, SIB Director (Industry Marketing) Lilian Chee, and EDB chairman Beh Swan Gin.
ST PHOTO: GIN TAY
Follow topic:
SINGAPORE - For her work in pioneering the use of data to contain and treat deadly infectious diseases such as Zika, Ebola and Covid-19, microbiologist and infectious diseases expert Pardis Sabeti was honoured at the Time100 Impact Awards on Sunday.
Held for the first time in Singapore, the awards ceremony by Time magazine recognises visionaries who have made an impact and moved their respective industries forward.
During the 2014 Ebola outbreak in West Africa, Dr Sabeti, 46, had engineered a solution to expedite the sequencing of the virus' genomes to analyse its spread. This allowed scientists to contain the virus, which causes a deadly haemorrhagic fever, and save countless lives.
She was one of the Ebola fighters who won the Time's Person of the Year Award in 2014. Since then, she has been at the forefront of using genome sequencing technologies to tackle a series of public health crises, including Covid-19.
Dr Sabeti told reporters on the sidelines of the awards ceremony that with the world beginning to move on from the pandemic, she and her team are still continuing to develop technologies to detect pathogens whenever they occur. She is also focusing a lot of her work on education.
"We've been building curricula to train more people around the world (so that we) know how to respond together... to future pandemics.
"So much of my interest is to try to help every place on earth be prepared for what comes next," she added.
The Time100 Impact Awards, which was held at the National Gallery Singapore, was co-organised by Time magazine in partnership with the Economic Development Board (EDB) and Singapore Tourism Board.
The other three award winners are Ms Alia Bhatt, 29, a British actress who is an advocate for mental health; American Gregory L. Robinson, 62, the former director of the James Webb Space Telescope Programme whose work has further propelled humanity into space; and Ms Lea Salonga, 51, a Filipino Broadway singer who also supports children and youth through her work with the United Nations.
Congratulating the winners, EDB managing director Jacqueline Poh said: "These change-makers are pushing the frontiers of science, society and technology... You remind us that we all have an obligation to think beyond our businesses, beyond our fields and beyond ourselves to create a better tomorrow."
Dr Sabeti, an Iranian refugee who now lives in the United States, dedicated her award to young Iranians, such Ms Mahsa Amini, who are still fighting for their freedom, and whose impact should likewise be seen and supported.
Ms Amini, 22, was arrested in Teheran on Sept 13 for improperly wearing her hijab and reportedly killed, leading to widespread protests across the Middle East.
Dr Sabeti added that Ms Amini was about to begin her university studies in microbiology, and could have one day been the one making headway on the global stage, responding to virus outbreaks and playing a part in mitigating pandemics as Dr Sabeti had.
"You see, viruses, they expose and they exploit the cracks in our society, the lack of justice, transparency and equity; the ways that we are indifferent to each other's pain, the loss of trust. This is where viruses thrive," said Dr Sabeti.
To weather these storms, humanity must depend on its ability to uplift one another, fight together, instead of against each other, and empower the most vulnerable, she added.
