Dr Edoardo Stoppioni; Credit: MPI Luxembourg

Max-Planck Institute (MPI) Luxembourg announced today that an Otto Hahn Medal has been awarded for the first time to one of its young researchers.

The Otto Hahn Medal is awarded annually by the Max Planck Society. The prize is intended to motivate especially gifted junior scientists and researchers to pursue a future university or research career. A total of 26 Otto Hahn Medals have been awarded this year, among which ten are selected within the Social Science-Humanities sections.

Professor Ruiz Fabri, Director of MPI Luxembourg and supervisor of Dr. Edoardo Stoppioni thesis, said: “I am proud that a researcher from my team has been granted this prestigious distinguished award. Keeping in mind that few Otto Hahn Medals are awarded in my sections’ field, I applaud Dr Edoardo Stoppioni for the extraordinary work that he has performed. This particular award also contributes to the acknowledgment and success of the still young Luxembourg Institute and proves that it has reached a certain level of maturity”. 

Dr Edoardo Stoppioni received the 2019 Otto Hahn Medal for his outstanding legal research. His work applies discourse analysis, as developed by Foucault and the Frankfurt School, to investment awards and decisions of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), in order to unveil the narratives used by adjudicators when exercising power in the international legal order. This linguistic inquiry intends to be a critical assessment of the neoliberal and hegemonic structures of international economic adjudication.

Dr Edoardo Stoppioni commented: “It is an immense honour to receive the Otto Hahn Medal in recognition of my work within the Institution. Luxembourg presents a unique opportunity to develop this scientific posture. In addition to the privilege to work in Professor Ruiz Fabris’ team, the Max-Planck award confirms my thesis and will indeed potentially facilitate further career developments”. 

The prestigious award takes its name from the German chemist and Nobel Prize laureate Otto Hahn, who served as the first president of the Max Planck Society from 1948 to 1960. Since 1978, more than 1,000 scientists and researchers from all fields of expertise have been awarded the Otto Hahn Medal. The young people are proposed by the directors of the Max Planck Institutes where they have conducted research for their respective doctoral theses.

The award comes with a medal and a monetary sum of €7,500 as recognition - mostly for achievements in connection with their doctorate. Medallists are awarded during a ceremony at the General Meeting of the Max Planck Society, taking place annually in alternating venues in Germany. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s ceremony was held online and the official ceremony is postponed to 2021 and will be held in Magdeburg.