Juan de Pablo has been awarded the 2022 inaugural Bennett Family Award for Collaboration in the Science of Wellness along with Professor Alon Chen, President of the Weizmann Institute of Science. Each year, the Bennett Family Award will recognize individuals engaged in collaborative research, merging science and wellness for the advancement of human health.
The inaugural award was endowed this year by noted global wellness advocate and philanthropist, Bija Bennett, at the 2022 Global Wellness Summit in Tel Aviv Oct. 31 - Nov. 3, an international meeting of leaders and visionaries who positively impact and shape the future of the global wellness industry.
“I would like to extend my deepest gratitude and appreciation to Bija Bennett and the Global Wellness Summit for this award,” said de Pablo. “It is an honor to be an inaugural recipient and to celebrate our research group’s work.”
Bennett initiated this new award in partnership with the Global Wellness Summit to celebrate the legacy of her parents. The Marshall and Arlene Bennett Family Fund, established in 2011, currently supports a program of scientific collaboration between the Weizmann Institute of Science and the University of Chicago. Their collaborative efforts include a yearly call for proposals and an evaluation of the projects proposed by joint teams of scientists.
“Through my involvement with the University of Chicago and Argonne National Laboratory, I have seen the impact that the Marshall and Arlene Bennett Family Fund has had in advancing scientific discovery,” de Pablo added, “It has forged an invaluable partnership with the Weizmann Institute, paving the way for innovative thinking that wouldn’t have been possible without the power of collaboration.”
“Scientific research partnerships that go beyond the disease process can help our contemporary world learn how to restore health, promote resilience and prevent diseases across a lifespan,” said Bennett. “This new award honors cutting-edge researchers in the science of wellness like Juan and Alon, who have demonstrated the power of scientific collaboration to advance solutions for health and wellbeing globally.”
Juan de Pablo is the executive vice president for science, innovation, national laboratories, and global initiatives for the University of Chicago; Liew Family Professor of Molecular Engineering at the Pritzker School of Molecular Engineering; and senior scientist at Argonne National Laboratory. Some of his research has sought to stabilize live bacteria for survival and extended performance after lyophilization (freeze-drying). Such processes are now used throughout the world in the food and probiotic industries.
de Pablo’s work entails developing molecular models and conducting supercomputer simulations to understand and design new materials for emerging technologies from the bottom up. He is a leader in simulations of polymeric materials, DNA, proteins, and liquid crystals.