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Biotechnology Heritage Award

The Biotechnology Heritage Award honors extraordinary individuals whose work in biotechnology is helping to heal, fuel, and feed the world through discovery, innovation, commercialization, or public understanding.

First bestowed in 1999, the award is given annually during the BIO International Convention. The Science History Institute is proud to present this award alongside the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO), which represents more than 1,200 biotech companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers, and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations.

The Biotechnology Heritage Award was presented on June 3, 2024, during the BIO International Convention in San Diego.

2024 Awardee: Susan Desmond-Hellmann

Sue Desmond-Hellmann is a nonprofit leader and physician with expertise in oncology and public health. She is currently a senior advisor for GV, BDT, and Lazard, and serves on the boards of OpenAI, Pfizer, and National Resilience. She is also on the board of Stand Up to Cancer and is a member of the President’s Council of Advisors on Science and Technology.

Desmond-Hellmann served as CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation from 2014 to 2020. From 2009 to 2014, she was professor and chancellor of the University of California, San Francisco, the first woman to hold the position. She also previously served as president of product development at Genentech, where she played a leadership role in the development of the first gene-targeted cancer drugs, Avastin and Herceptin.

Among many honors and awards for her work in biotechnology and academia, Desmond-Hellmann was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Institute of Medicine, and as a fellow of the American Association of Cancer Research. She was also recognized as “Woman of the Year” by the Healthcare Women’s association and was named to the Biotech Hall of Fame.

Photograph of Sue Desmond-Hellman speaking on stage.

Interview with Sue Desmond-Hellmann

The former CEO of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation recalls the HIV/AIDS epidemic and the Ebola pandemic: “Early pandemic science is filled with uncertainty.”

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Winners of the Biotechnology Heritage Award

About the Sponsor

The Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) is the world’s largest trade association representing biotechnology companies, academic institutions, state biotechnology centers, and related organizations across the United States and in more than 30 other nations. BIO members are involved in the research and development of innovative healthcare, agricultural, industrial, and environmental biotechnology products. BIO also produces the BIO International Convention, the world’s largest gathering of the biotechnology industry, along with industry-leading investor and partnering meetings held around the world.

Herbert Boyer in 2005.

Herbert W. Boyer and Stanley N. Cohen

By inventing recombinant-DNA technology, Boyer and Cohen jump-started the biotechnology industry, including Genentech, which creates important applications for a wide range of medical uses.

Nancy Chang

Born in Taiwan, Chang made the long trip to the United States to study at Brown University and then Harvard. She became one of the world’s most successful biotechnology entrepreneurs.
John C. Martin holds up a bottle of pills.

Interview with John C. Martin

The former CEO of Gilead Sciences tells us about remdesivir, an older drug showing promise in the fight against COVID-19.

Robert S. Langer

A biochemical and biomedical engineer, Langer works at the cutting edge of research into biologically compatible synthetic materials.
Rosenkranz in a suit and tie, smiling

George Rosenkranz

An organic chemist and a pioneering steroid researcher, Rosenkranz was instrumental in developing one of the most world-changing pharmaceuticals in history: the oral contraceptive.

Phillip Sharp

The codiscovery of RNA splicing by Sharp and Richard Roberts opened up a new and important area of molecular biology.

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