The Osaka 1990 International Exposition prominently proclaimed as its theme "The Harmonious Coexistence of Nature and Mankind." Since 1993 the Commemorative Foundation of that exposition has awarded its Cosmos International Prize to 11 scientists from different countries, recognizing them as important contributors to the exposition's principles. This year's recipient is professor Julia Carabias Lillo of Mexico.
In 2002, Ochanomizu University, Tokyo, established an honorary doctorate "to commend and honor individuals who have made great contributions to academic research and international cultural exchange." The first recipient of this honor was Sadako Ogata, Japan's renowned former U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees. This year, believing that Carabias' career was an inspiration to its female students, the university conferred the honorary degree on Carabias, Mexico's leading environmentalist.
The child of Basque immigrants from Spain, Carabias was born exactly 50 years ago in Mexico City. She said, "I grew up witnessing the living conditions of people in Mexico, a developing country." Those childhood observations led her, later on, when she was a qualified scientist, to formulate her basic research policy: "always to view issues and envisage the future from the perspective of developing nations." She faced a dual task that she regards as a single, indivisible issue: the alleviation of poverty and the preservation of natural resources.
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