祝贺王小云！

Chinese cryptography expert Wang Xiaoyun was among five outstanding women scientists honored at the 2025 L'Oreal-UNESCO For Women in Science International Awards, held on Thursday evening at the headquarters of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization, or UNESCO, in Paris.

Speaking at the award ceremony, UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay stressed the need to close gender gaps in science, particularly in light of contemporary global challenges.

"To respond to the world's greatest challenges — health, climate disruption, and water management — we reaffirm, alongside L'Oreal, that we need all minds, all voices, all perspectives," she said. "Because science is a universal language. And science needs women."

Azoulay pointed to persistent disparities in the field. While more women than men are now enrolled in universities, they represent only 35 percent of science graduates. The gender gap is even wider among researchers, with men outnumbering women two to one — a divide that becomes more pronounced in cutting-edge areas such as data science and quantum science, she said.

Wang, a professor at Tsinghua University's Institute for Advanced Study and a member of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, was recognized for her groundbreaking work in cryptographic mathematics, a discipline that is critical for secure data communication and storage.

In her acceptance speech, Wang described the award as "a profound acknowledgment of my scientific journey and a tribute to the extraordinary resilience and wisdom of women scientists worldwide".

Wang's fellow 2025 laureates include Priscilla Baker of South Africa, honored for her work in developing electrochemical sensors for environmental monitoring; Claudia Felser of Germany, recognized for groundbreaking research in magnetic materials and green energy; Barbara Finlayson-Pitts of the United States, awarded for advancing knowledge on air pollution and its impact on policy; and Maria Teresa Dova of Argentina, celebrated for contributions to high-energy physics and the study of the Higgs boson and cosmic rays.