Warning: The revenues of the Marcel Benoist Foundation are used exclusively to fund the Marcel Benoist Prize. Unfortunately we are not in a position to support other projects. Please look at our page "links" for other possible sources of support.
	Summary:
	The Marcel Benoist Foundation for the promotion of scientific research
	The Board of Trustees of the Foundation
	The Marcel Benoist Prize
	Past laureates
	The Marcel Benoist Foundation for the promotion of scientific research was founded on November 5, 1920 by the Swiss Federal Council to execute the last will and testament of Marcel Benoist, a French national living in Lausanne who had unexpectedly left most of his wealth to the Swiss Confederation under the condition that it be used to fund an annual scientific award.
	In his testament written in 1914, he expressed his intent to endow a scientific award: "I give and bequeath to the Government of the Helvetic Republic all the assets which I have deposited in Switzerland, at the Swiss National Bank in Bern and at the Swiss Bank Corporation in Basle. The income from these assets shall be used to award every year a single prize to a scientist of Swiss nationality or a resident of Switzerland, who shall have made during the year the most useful scientific discovery or study, in particular in disciplines which are of significance for human life."
	The wording of this quotation is very similar to the corresponding paragraph in Alfred Nobel's testament, suggesting that this may have been the inspiration of Marcel Benoist. Beyond this, there are no other indications of the motives which led a French lawyer to leave his wealth to the Swiss Confederation and establish what has since become the oldest annual scientific prize in Switzerland.
	The Founding Ordinance enacted November 5, 1920 and the regulations adopted by the Swiss Federal Council on November 19, 1920, both revised for the last time in 1997, define the charter of the Marcel Benoist Foundation and the procedures for awarding the Marcel Benoist Prize.
	Under the supervision of the Federal Council, the foundation is managed by a Board of Trustees, consisting of the Head of the Federal Department Home Affairs as Chairperson, the Director of the Federal Office of Public Health, a representative of the French Ambassador in Switzerland, a representative of each of the cantonal universities of Basle, Berne, Fribourg, Geneva, Lausanne, Lucerne, Neuchatel, St. Gallen, Zurich and of Italian-speaking Switzerland, and a representative from each of the two Federal Institutes of Technology in Lausanne and Zurich.
	The board meets once a year to elect the laureates and determine the amount of the award. A Managing Committee, consisting of the Chairman and three other members of the Board of Trustees, as well as an Executive Secretary take care of the day-to-day administration of the award.
	Since 1993, the secretariat of the Marcel Benoist Foundation has been located within the State Secretariat for Education and Research SER in Berne. In 1995, on the occasion of its 75th anniversary, the Marcel Benoist Foundation published a book (available only in German or French) on the history of the Marcel Benoist Prize in recognition of its significant and long-lasting contribution to Swiss science and the humanities.
	In 1996, the Silva Casa Foundation, executor of the last will of the widow of Justin K. Thannhauser, an art dealer and book collector, made a very significant contribution to the Marcel Benoist Foundation with the wish that candidates from the humanities and the social sciences should also be eligible for the Marcel Benoist Prize. Since 1997, this has indeed been the case.

Chairman: Pascal Couchepin Federal Councillor, Head of the Federal Department of Home Affairs http://www.edi.admin.ch First Vice-Chairman: Prof. Martin Schwab Representative of the University of Zurich http://www.unizh.ch Second Vice-Chairman: Prof. Thomas Zeltner Director of the Federal Office of Public Health http://www.admin.ch/bag/ Members: Prof. Hubert van den Bergh Representative of the Federal Institute of Technology of Lausanne http://lpas.epfl.ch/ Prof. Vincent Kaufmann Representative of the University of St. Gallen http://www.kwa.unisg.ch Prof. Rico Maggi Representative of the University of Italian-speaking Switzerland http://www.ire.eco.unisi.ch/ Prof. John P. Maier Representative of the University of Basle http://www.chemie.unibas.ch/~maier/ Prof. Jean-Pierre Montani Representative of the University of Fribourg http://www.unifr.ch/inph Prof. Martine Rahier Representative of the University of Neuchatel http://www.unine.ch Prof. Anik de Ribaupierre Representative of the University of Geneva http://www.unige.ch Prof. Paul Richli Representative of the University of Lucerne http://www.unilu.ch/rf/5507.htm Prof. Jean-Hilaire Saurat Respresentative of the French Ambassador in Switzerland http://www.hcuge.ch Prof. Christoph Schäublin Representative of the University of Berne http://www.unibe.ch/index_e.html Prof. Maia Wentland Forte Representative of the University of Lausanne http://kmu.unil.ch/mwentlan Prof. Kurt Wüthrich Representative of the Federal Institute of Technology of Zurich http://www.mol.biol.ethz.ch/wuthrich/ Executive Secretary: Dr. Jean-François Conscience State Secretariat for Education and Research SER http://www.sbf.admin.ch/index.html Past and Honorary Chairwoman and Chairmen: Flavio Cotti former Federal Councillor and former Head of the Department of Home Affairs Ruth Dreifuss former Federal Councillor and former Head of the Department of Home Affairs Alphons Egli former Federal Councillor and former Head of the Department of Home Affairs

In agreement with the will of its founder, a French lawyer who resided in Lausanne and who died in 1918, the Marcel Benoist Prize has been awarded every year since 1920 to scientists working in Switzerland who have made, as formulated in the founder's testament, "the most useful scientific discovery or study, in particular in disciplines which are of significance for human life."

With its administration tightly linked to the federal government, the Marcel Benoist Prize, as the oldest scientific award in Switzerland, has become to be regarded as the Swiss Confederation’s highest recognition for outstanding achievements in the sciences and the humanities. The distinction of the past and present laureates has further established this as an internationally recognized and prestigious award. Every Autumn, the Federal Councillor of the Department of Home Affairs, as Chairman of the Marcel Benoist Foundation, presides over the award ceremony. The prize money comes from the revenues of the fortune Marcel Benoist bequeathed to the Swiss government, and the size of the award is determined each year by the foundation. Nearly half of the laureates are from the basic medical sciences (physiology, endocrinology, anatomy, neurobiology, etc.) or clinical medicine (cardiology, ophthalmology, surgery, internal medicine, etc.). The other half come from a large array of fields, ranging from pure mathematics to physics, chemistry, geology, biology, and ecology. Since 1997, candidates from the humanities and the social sciences have become eligible for the award. Following Marcel Benoist's last will, the significance of the work for human life has always been an important criterion for the selection of the Prize. Almost all the laureates come from the Swiss universities or the two Swiss Federal Institutes of Technology. Most are Swiss nationals, but several foreign scientists working in Switzerland have also been distinguished. With few exceptions, the laureates have been well-known scientists in mid-career, several of whom later received other prestigious honors for their contributions to sciences.

Of particular note are the winners of the Marcel Benoist Prize who were also honored with the Nobel Prize: Paul Karrer, 1937 Nobel Prize in Chemistry; Walter R. Hess, 1949 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine; Leopold Ruzicka, 1939 Nobel Prize in Chemistry; Tadeus Reichstein, 1950 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine; Vladimir Prelog, 1975 Nobel Prize in Chemistry; Nils K. Jerne, 1984 Nobel Prize in Physiology and Medicine; Johannes G. Bednorz and Karl A. Müller, 1987 Nobel Prize in Physics; Richard R. Ernst, 1991 Nobel Prize in Chemistry; Kurt Wüthrich, 2002 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. Likewise, the Marcel Benoist Prize winner for the year 1998, the Genevese astronomer Michel Mayor, was awarded the Balzan Prize 2000.

1920 Maurice Arthus (1862-1945) Immunologist University of Lausanne 1921 Conrad Brunner (1859-1927) Surgeon University of Zurich 1922 Paul Karrer (1889-1971) Chemist University of Zurich 1923 Albert Heim (1849-1937) Geologist University of Zurich 1924 Heinrich Zangger (1874-1957) Toxicologist University of Zurich 1925 Alfred Gysi (1865-1957) Dentist University of Zurich 1926 Emile Argand (1879-1940) Geologist University of Neuchatel 1927 Hermann Sahli (1856-1933) Physician University of Berne 1928 Jules Gonin (1870-1935) Ophtalmologist University of Lausanne 1929 Paul Niggli (1888-1953) Geologist FIT1 of Zurich 1930 Aloys Müller (1892-1979) Physiologist University of Fribourg 1931 Walter R. Hess (1881-1973) Neurologist University of Zurich 1932 Maurice Lugeon (1870-1953) Geologist University of Lausanne 1933 Robert Doerr (1871-1952) Virologist University of Basle 1934 Max Askanazy (1865-1940) Oncologist University of Geneva 1935 Jakob Eugster (1891-1974) Physician University of Zurich 1936 Alfredo Vannotti (1907-2002) Physician University of Lausanne 1937 Charles Dhéré (1876-1955) Biochemist University of Fribourg 1938 Leopold Ruzicka (1887-1976) Chemist FIT1 of Zurich 1939 Fritz Baltzer (1884-1974) Biologist University of Berne 1940 Friedrich T. Wahlen (1899-1985) Agronomist FOFW2 1941 Hermann Mooser (1891-1971) Physician University of Zurich 1942 Arthur Stoll (1887-1971) Chemist Sandoz AG, Bâle 1943 Paul Scherrer (1890-1969) Physicist FIT1 of Zurich 1944 Robert Matthey (1900-1982) Biologist University of Lausanne 1945 Ernst A. Gäumann (1893-1963) Botanist FIT1 of Zurich 1946 Alexander von Muralt (1903-1990) Physiologist University of Berne 1947 Tadeus Reichstein (1897-1996) Chemist University of Basle 1948 Hans E. Walther (1883-1953) Oncologist University of Zurich 1949 Albert Frey-Wyssling (1900-1988) Botanist FIT1 of Zurich 1950 Emile Guyénot (1885-1963) Biologist University of Geneva 1951 Anton Fonio (1881-1968) Hematologist University of Berne 1952 Otto Gsell (1902-1990) Physician University of Basle 1953 Alfred Fleisch (1892-1973) Physiologist University of Lausanne 1954 Ernst Hadorn (1902-1976) Biologist University of Zurich 1955 Max Holzmann (1899-1994) Cardiologist University of Zurich 1956 Siegfried Rosin (1913-1976) Hematologist University of Berne 1957 Jakob Seiler (1886-1970) Biologist FIT1 of Zurich 1958 Klaus Clusius (1903-1963) Chemist University of Zurich 1959 Albert Wettstein (1907-1974) Chemist Ciba AG, Basle 1960 Pierre Duchosal (1905-1988) Cardiologist University of Geneva 1961 Werner Kuhn (1899-1963) Chemist University of Basle 1962 Alfred Hässig (1921-1999) Hematologist University of Berne 1963 Gerold Schwarzenbach (1904-1978) Chemist FIT1 of Zurich 1964 Vladimir Prelog (1906-1998) Chemist FIT1 of Zurich 1965 Georges de Rahm (1903-1990) Mathematician University of Lausanne 1966 Edouard Kellenberger (1920-2004) Biophysicist University of Geneva     Alfred Tissières (1917-2003) Biochemist University of Geneva 1967 Kurt Mühlethaler (1919-2002) Botanist FIT1 of Zurich     Hans J. Moor (1933-2009) Botanist FIT1 of Zurich 1968 Michel Dolivo (1921-) Neurobiologist University of Lausanne 1969 Walter Heitler (1904-1981) Physicist University of Zurich 1970 Charles Weissmann (1931-) Biochemist University of Zurich 1971 Manfred Bleuler (1903-1994) Psychiatrist University of Zurich 1972 Albert Eschenmoser (1925-) Chemist FIT1 of Zurich 1973 Lucien Girardier (1929-) Physiologist University of Geneva     Eric Jéquier (1937-) Physiologist University of Lausanne     Georges Spinnler (1931-) Engineer FIT1 of Lausanne 1974 Ewald Weibel (1929-) Anatomist University of Berne 1975 M. Gazi Yasargil (1925-) Surgeon University of Zurich 1976 Theodor K. Brunner (1918-) Immunologist University of Lausanne     Jean Charles Cerottini (1938-) Immunologist University of Lausanne     Jean Lindenmann (1924-) Virologist University of Zurich 1977 Hans Günthard (1916-2006) Chemist FIT1 of Zurich     Edgar Heilbronner (1921-2006) Chemist University of Basle 1978 Nils K. Jerne (1911-1994) Immunologist BIFI3 1979 Michel Cuénod (1933-) Neurobiologist University of Zurich 1980 Hans Kummer (1930-) Biologist University of Zurich 1981 Karl Illmensee (1939-) Biologist University of Geneva 1982 Franz Fankhauser (1924-) Ophtalmologist University of Berne 1983 Hans R. Brunner (1937-) Physician University of Lausanne 1984 Harald Reuter (1934-) Pharmacologist University of Berne 1985 Richard R. Ernst (1933-) Chemist FIT1 of Zurich 1986 Johannes G. Bednorz (1950-) Physicist IBM4, Rüschlikon Zurich     Karl A. Müller (1927-) Physicist IBM4, Rüschlikon Zurich 1987 Maurice E. Müller (1918-) Surgeon University of Berne     Martin Allgöwer (1917-2007) Surgeon University of Basle     Hans R. Willenegger (1910-1998) Surgeon University of Basle 1988 Ulrich Laemmli (1940-) Biophysicist University of Geneva 1989 Niklaus Wirth (1934-) Computer scientist FIT1 of Zurich 1990 Bruno Messerli (1931-) Geographer University of Berne     Hans Oeschger (1927-1998) Geophysicist University of Berne     Werner Stumm (1924-1999) Ecologist FIT1 of Zurich 1991 Duilio Arigoni (1928-) Biochemist FIT1 of Zurich     Kurt Wüthrich (1938-) Biophysicist FIT1 of Zurich 1992 Gottfried Schatz (1936-) Biochemist University of Basle 1993 5 no Marcel Benoist Prize     1994 Martin Schwab (1949-) Neurobiologist University of Zurich 1995 Henri Isliker (1922-2007) Immunologist University of Lausanne     Alfred Pletscher (1917-2006) Pharmacologist University of Basle 1996 Bernard Rossier (1941-) Pharmacologist University of Lausanne 1997 Jürg M. Fröhlich (1946-) Physicist FIT1 of Zurich 1998 Michel Mayor (1942-) Astronomer University of Geneva 1999 Jörg Paul Müller (1938-) Jurist University of Berne     Luzius Wildhaber (1937-) Jurist University of Basle 2000 Dieter Seebach (1937-) Chemist FIT1 of Zurich 2001 Ruedi Imbach (1946-) Historian University of Fribourg 6 2002 Rüdiger Wehner (1940-) Zoologist University of Zurich 2003 Denis Duboule (1955-) Biologist University of Geneva 2004 Adriano Aguzzi (1960-) Neuropathologist University of Zurich 2005 Othmar Keel (1937-) Historian University of Fribourg 2006 Timothy J. Richmond (1948-) Molecular biologist FIT1 of Zurich 2007 Ari H. Helenius (1944-) Biochemist FIT1 of Zurich 2008 Ernst Fehr (1956-) Economist University of Zurich           N.B. FIT1 = Federal Institute of Technology FOFW2 = Federal Office for Food Supply in Time of War BIFI3 = Basel Institute for Immunology IBM4 = IBM Research Laboratory, Rüschlikon/Zurich 5 Until 1993, the year's prize was awarded during the following year. In 1994, the foundation decided to identify the prize by the year of its award, and as a consequence of this new system, the 1993 Prize was re-named as the 1994 Prize. 6 until 2000; since then at the University of Paris IV - Sorbonne