Liberty Science Center will honor four people at its 13th Annual Genius Gala on May 21 in Jersey City. This year’s Genius Award honorees are:
Jennifer Doudna, co-inventor of CRISPR gene-editing technology and Nobel Prize winner; Roya Mahboob, founder of the all-girls Afghan robotics team and advocate for women in STEM; Edgar McGregor, a 24-year-old amateur meteorologist whose climate alerts helped save lives during L.A. wildfires; and Leo Villareal, digital artist behind The Bay Lights, whose work blends light, code, and public space.
- Doudna is a Nobel laureate in chemistry, the Li Ka Shing Chancellor’s Chair in biomedical and health sciences, and a professor of biochemistry, biophysics and structural biology. Her research focuses on RNA as it forms complex globular structures, some of which function like enzymes or create functional complexes with proteins. Her lab’s research into RNA biology led to the discovery of CRISPR-Cas9 as a tool for making targeted changes to the genome. In bacteria, CRISPR systems preserve invading genetic material and incorporate it into surveillance complexes to achieve adaptive immunity.
- Mahboob was one of the first female tech chief executives in Afghanistan and is an advocate for women’s rights. Her mission is to use technology to transform the futures of women and girls. She is CEO of Afghan Citadel Software Company, Bright Citizen (Coffee & Tea) and the Digital Citizen Fund, which supports digital literacy for women and children in developing countries. Mahboob is a champion of the famed Afghan girls robotics team, The Afghan Dreamers. She is developing plans to construct STEM schools in remote places and to use blockchain technology to create opportunities for entrepreneurs.
- McGregor is a climate activist, leader of the Altadena Weather and Climate group on Facebook, and publisher of the WeatherMcGregor service. He issued a warning two days before a wind event on Jan. 7 in advance of the Eaton Fire, advising Pasadena-area residents to leave. The fire danger was “going to be sky-high,” and told them to pack the car with everything needed for evacuation in case a wildfire erupted during the “damaging, potentially rigorous Santa Ana windstorm.” The climatology graduate of San Jose State University is credited with saving hundreds of lives because of the warning.
- Villareal is an artist known for his large-scale light installations. He created Evanescent Field, a light sculpture that will illuminate the facade of Figge Art Museum in Davenport, Iowa, in 2025. Once completed, it will be the largest public artwork in Iowa. Some of his prominent works include The Bay Lights on San Francisco’s Bay Bridge; Illuminated River in London, which connects nine bridges through a single artwork; and Multiverse, an installation connecting the East and West buildings of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
The four honorees will be recognized by Liberty Science Center CEO Paul Hoffman at a celebration that also serves as the center’s largest fundraiser for STEM education in underserved communities.
