Silvia Figueirôa, a geologist with a master's and doctorate in Social History and a professor at the Institute of Geosciences (IG) at Unicamp, was awarded the François Ellenberger Prize in 2026 – one of the most important awards in the field in Europe. It is offered by the French Committee for the History of Geology (CofrhigeoThe award aims to recognize authors of outstanding works in the field of geological history and related disciplines.
Founded in 1976 by geologist François Ellenbergeer, the French Committee for the History of Geology is an academic organization dedicated to studying and preserving the history of Earth sciences. The institution promotes historical research and the appreciation of geological heritage. According to Figueirôa, scientific relations between Brazil and France in the field of Earth sciences are very old; they date back to the end of the 18th century.
Figueirôa is a professor in the Multidisciplinary Graduate Programs in Science and Mathematics Education and in Science and Technology Policy, and has experience in the field of History, with an emphasis on the History of Science, Science Education, and the topic of scientific archives. He teaches at the undergraduate and graduate levels, supervising undergraduate, master's, and doctoral research, as well as postdoctoral researchers.
Despite working with the history of science since her master's degree, which began in the 1980s, Figueirôa said she was surprised by the nomination for the prize. She recounts that, at the beginning of January, while revisiting her computer and preparing for the start of another year, she came across a message from the Committee hidden in her spam folder.
“I was completely surprised. I never imagined receiving that message,” she said. “I saw a message in my spam folder from the committee president, someone I know, Pascal Richet, a researcher at the Institute of Earth Sciences in Paris, and I thought: ‘Wait, Richet’s message went to spam? Let me see what it is.’ Then I retrieved the message and saw that it was a statement saying that I had been chosen to win the prize,” she revealed. “I was absolutely surprised and thrilled, because, after all, it was recognition of more than 40 years of work in this field,” she argued.
Figueirôa was a pioneer in the field in Brazil. The professor recounts that in the 1980s, when she began working with the history of science, this was an activity for those nearing the end of their careers. Even at a young age – just over 25 – she began to develop the idea of studying the history of science in Brazil and realized that there was a vast field ahead of her.
The researcher delved into the topic through scientific institutions. “At that time, there were threats to close the Geological Institute of São Paulo, which is now part of the Secretariat of the Environment – an institution of the São Paulo state government, like the Butantan Institute, the Agronomic Institute, and others. From an article in the Journal of the Geologist, published by the Brazilian Geological Society, I discovered a marvelous collection of photos, documents, and reports,” she recalls. Figueirôa then pursued a master's degree on the history of the research institution that gave rise to the Geological Institute, the Geographic and Cartographic Institute, the Forestry Institute, the Botanical Institute, and others, becoming a reference in the field in Brazil today. This year, she celebrates 38 years as a professor at Unicamp.
The professor is scheduled to travel to France in June to receive the award, but she will take advantage of the occasion to work. "I have some research to do there, because I have also been working on the French Geological Society and the Brazilian members of that society," she says.
Cover photo:
