Academic Awards and Prizes

The Paul Guggenheim Prize in International Law

 

The Paul Guggenheim Foundation was created in 1981 to honour the memory of Professor Paul Guggenheim, an eminent scholar of international law and professor at the Graduate Institute. Every two years, the Paul Guggenheim Prize rewards a young specialist in the field of international law, author of a first monograph of outstanding quality on a subject of general interest and likely to make a real contribution to the study of international law.

The 2023 Paul Guggenheim Prize has been awarded to Dr Ginevra LE MOLI, for her work “Human Dignity in International Law” (Cambridge University Press, May 2022)

Press Release for the 2023 Guggenheim Prize

The Paul Guggenheim Prize 2025, endowed with CHF 15’000, is now open to receive applications. Please view the call for applications and the Rules of the Paul Guggenheim Prize for detailed information regarding the submission requirements.

Closing date for the reception of applications: 25 July 2025.

Call for applications | Appel aux candidatures

Rules of the Paul Guggenheim Prize | Règlement du Prix Paul Guggenheim

List of the laureates of the Prize since 1981

The Ladislas Mysyrowicz Prize

 

The  Ladislas Mysyrowicz Prize is awarded for an excellent master’s dissertation or PhD thesis devoted to the study of refugees.

  • Laureate: Hirotaka Fujibayashi, PhD in International Relations/Political Science
    Thesis: “Why Host States Restrict Refugee Rights: A Comparative Inquiry into Refugee and Asylum Policies”

 

The Pierre du Bois Prize

 

This annual prize, created by the Fondation Pierre du Bois pour l'histoire du temps présent, rewards a student who prepares the best PhD thesis in international history presented at the Institute.

  • Laureate: Kai Auguste Habel, PhD in International History
    Thesis:  "La Génération de la Bulle: Le Japon face à la question libérale, 1970-1990"

Contact: info@fondation-pierredubois.ch

 

The Leonid Hurwicz Prize

 

This annual prize rewards a student who prepares the best PhD thesis in international or development economics. Leonid Hurwicz was an alumnus of the Graduate Institute. He received the Nobel Prize for Economics in 2007, together with Eric S. Maskin and Roger B. Myerson, for the formulation of mechanism design theory.

  • Laureate: Maximilian Konradt, PhD in International Economics
    Thesis: “Essays in International Finance and Macroeconomics”

 

The Anthropology and Sociology Department Prize

 

  • Laureate: Rayana Ghosh, Master in Anthropology and Sociology
    Dissertation: “Caring and Desiring as Sex Workers: Health Activism and the Queer Art of Resistance in Sonagachi, India"
     
  • Laureate: Sanjna Girish Yechareddy, Master in Anthropology and Sociology
    Dissertation: “Navigating The Archival Archipelago: Politics of Record-Keeping at the International Committee of the Red Cross"

 

The Mariano Garcia Rubio Prize

 

The Mariano Garcia Rubio Prize was created in May 2004 to honour the memory of a former assistant in the International Law Department. It is awarded each year to a student who writes the best master’s dissertation in international law.

  • Laureate: Federica Nucita, Master in International Law 
    Dissertation: “Readmission Clauses in Development and Cooperation Agreements"

 

The Rudi Dornbusch Prize

 

This annual prize rewards a student who writes the best master’s dissertation in international economics. Rudi Dornbusch was an alumnus of the Institute and one of the most influential international economists of all time.

  • Laureate: Benjamin Robert Butcher, Master in International Economics
    Dissertation:  “Adapting to a Warming World: Adaptation Investment and Debt Sustainability in Developing Countries"

 

The International Relations/Political Science Department Prize

 

  • Laureate: Tomonori Miyamoto, Master in International Relations / Political Science
    Dissertation: "A Network of Cybersecurity Norms: Evolution and Novelty"
     
  • Laureate: Yichen Shen, Master in International Relations / Political Science
    Dissertation: “Unpacking the Climate-Energy Institutional Complex on the UNFCCC's Global Climate Action Portal”

 

The Institute's Alumni Association Prize

 

This prize was established by the Alumni Association to reward a student from the Institute who prepares the most outstanding PhD thesis. It is awarded every year by each academic unit in turn.

  • Laureate: Meenakshi Nair Ambujam, PhD in Anthropology and Sociology of Development
    Thesis: "Landless with my Title-deed': Rethinking Landlessness in Adivasi Life, Telangana (India)"
     
  • Laureate: Christin Tonne, PhD in Anthropology and Sociology of Development
    Thesis: “Defending Democracy in the European Parliament: An Ethnography of Political Parties and Institutional Rules"

Contact: carine.leu@graduateinstitute.ch

 

The Arditi Prize in International Relations

 

In 1993, the Arditi Foundation created the Arditi Prize in International Relations, which is awarded to the best master’s dissertation in international studies or international affairs.

  • Laureate: Fabian Benjamin Hofmann, Master in International History and Politics
    Dissertation: “Sousveilling the Smart City: Everyday Queer Resistance to Urban Surveillance in Singapore"

 

Association Genève-Asie Prize
 

  • Laureate: Maira Cardillo, Master in International and Development Studies
    Dissertation: “The Role of Transitional Justice in Restoring Diplomatic Ties Between Consolidated Democracies: a Focus on Japan-Republic of Korea relations"