The Catalan government today approved awarding the Narcís Monturiol Plaque for merit in science and technology to the Vall d’Hebron Research Institute (VHIR) in recognition of its work. The Narcís Monturiol Medal was also awarded to 10 researchers in the Catalan knowledge system (five men and five women).

These awards, introduced by the Generalitat in 1982, are given to people and institutions who have made significant contributions to the development of science and technology in Catalonia while paying homage to the popular 19th-century Catalan inventor and politician Narcís Monturiol Estarriol (1819-1885).

The VHIR is a CERCA research centre founded in 1994. Our work is to promote, develop and transfer research in the Vall d’Hebron University Hospital with the aim of improving people’s health and quality of life, making us a pioneering centre in southern Europe while excelling in scientific impact and wealth creation through knowledge transfer.

The winners of the Narcís Monturiol Medal were:  Àlex Arenas, Quique Bassat, Isabel Cacho, Rosa Congost Colomer, Roberto Emparan, Xavier Oliver i Olivella, Raquel Piqué i Huerta, Rosa M Poch Claret, Trinitat Pradell i Cara and Salvador Ventura Zamora.

In total, the Government has awarded 301 Narcís Monturiol Medals (232 to men and 69 to women), while 47 institutions have been awarded the Narcís Monturiol Plaque. The award-winning people and institutions come from all areas of knowledge, including life and health sciences, the humanities and social sciences, architecture, engineering and the other sciences. This year, as in previous years, progress continued towards establishing a gender balance in the Catalan R&D system, in which 41% of staff are women.