Two U.S. researchers win Blue Planet Prize for risk assessment of environmental chemicals like PFAS

The Asahi Glass Foundation (Chairman Takuya Shimamura) has announced that the 2026 (35th) Blue Planet Prize, an award presented to individuals or organizations that have made significant contributions to resolving global environmental problems, will be awarded to two U.S. researchers. They were chosen for advancing risk-assessment research on highly persistent environmental chemical contaminants, such as per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and dioxins. The award ceremony will be held in Tokyo on October 28, with each laureate receiving a certificate of merit, a trophy, and a cash prize of $500,000. The laureates are Dr. Linda S. Birnbaum, former Director of the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS), and Distinguished Professor Edward Barbier of the Department of Economics at Colorado State University.

According to the Asahi Glass Foundation, Birnbaum was selected for leading toxicity research on chemical substances that persist in the environment, including certain types of PFAS, dioxins, PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), and PBDEs (a type of brominated flame retardant), which significantly advanced international risk assessments. Specifically, her research successfully illuminated the sequential processes of how these chemicals are absorbed into and excreted from the body, as well as the mechanisms by which they trigger adverse internal effects.

In particular, she presented the perspective that exposure to endocrine-disrupting chemicals during "highly susceptible windows of development," such as fetal life, infancy, and adolescence, can permanently alter biological systems and contribute to the future risk of chronic illnesses, including cancer and metabolic diseases. Furthermore, she demonstrated that even extremely low doses can change gene expression, with the potential for such impacts to span multiple generations. These findings led to a paradigm shift in risk assessment and regulation, placing a heavier emphasis on protecting vulnerable populations such as pregnant women and children.

Birnbaum is one of the key researchers who formed the scientific foundation for PFAS becoming a target of international regulation as it is today. As the Director of the NIEHS, she also holds the achievement of uplifting PFAS research as a whole through the strategic allocation of research funding.

Birnbaum commented: "I am deeply grateful for the collaboration with Japanese researchers and research institutions who recognized early on the potential impacts of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) on the environment and health, and walked alongside us. That cooperative relationship has greatly advanced our shared mission."

The other laureate, Barbier, systematized an economic framework that views nature and ecosystems as assets called "natural capital," visualizing their value in a format that can be utilized for policy decisions. He established methods to quantify the value of this natural capital as "ecosystem services."

This research has driven the "green economy," which aims for a sustainable society that reconciles environmental conservation with economic development. It served as the foundation for international practices that place the value of nature at the core of economic systems, linking it directly to investment allocations and economic incentives. Furthermore, his work provided a scientific foundation for the philosophy that "protecting natural capital serves as the bedrock for human prosperity, environmental sustainability, and the realization of a just society."