We are delighted to announce that Council has awarded the IMA Gold Medal 2022 to Professor Philip K. Maini FRS FMedSci FIMA of the University of Oxford.
Institute Gold Medals are awarded in recognition of outstanding contributions to mathematics and its applications over a period of years, with nominations being considered every two years.
The citation for this year’s award to Professor Philip K. Maini follows.
Citation
Philip K. Maini is awarded the IMA Gold Medal 2022 in recognition of his profound contributions to mathematics in biology and medicine, for the sustained role he has played in supporting and mentoring researchers in the early stages of their careers, and for the leadership he has shown in the biological mathematics community and the Centre for Mathematical Biology in Oxford.
Maini has been Director to the Wolfson Centre for Mathematical Biology (WCMB) since 1998, and has obtained significant funding to develop the Centre. The WCMB is an interdisciplinary research centre which has trained over 100 students, with over 50 going on to academic posts. Philip himself has supervised over 50 success ful PhD theses and through this supervision and his broader roles he has shown great leadership in creating such a powerful centre for research in mathematical biology in the UK. He has been a mentor for colleagues at all stages of their careers.
Philip Maini was elected Fellow of the Royal Society in 2015. He is a Fellow of the IMA, Fellow of the Society for Industrial and Applied Mathematics, an Inaugural SMB Fellow, a Fellow of the Royal Society of Biology, Miembro Correspondiente (Foreign Fellow) de la Academia Mexicana de Ciencias, Fellow of the Academy of Medical Sciences, Foreign Fellow of the Indian National Science Academy, Fellow of the European Academy of Sciences and Fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science.
The scope and scale of Maini’s research is impressive. He has made major contributions to the understanding of developmental biology, wound healing, host-pathogen interactions, tumour growth and intestinal crypt morphology. He has developed the art of mathematical modelling in biological and medical settings, including models of multi-scale structure and spatiotemporal structure more generally.
He has authored or co-authored more than 500 publications in a diverse range of mathematical, biological, medical and interdisciplinary journals and six books. His research has been supported by grants totalling millions of pounds from across the UK Research and Innovation portfolio (EPSRC, BBSRC, NERC), NIH/NCI in the United States, the European Commission, the Wellcome Foundation, the Nuffield Foundation, Cancer Research UK, the Royal Society and many others. He has also put effort into gaining support for research opportunities for early-career researchers, which whilst not financially large, provide life-changing experiences for those involved.
Philip K. Maini’s contribution to the mathematical sciences is underpinned by a world class research record, combined with a strong sense of service to the community through his involvement as an editor with many journals and as Director of WCMB, and an extraordinary level of support and encouragement for emerging researchers in the interdisciplinary area of mathematical biology.