Dr. Gay Jane P. Perez was conferred the 2021 Outstanding Young Scientist (OYS) award in the field of Satellite Technology (Physics).

The Outstanding Young Scientist Awards are given by the National Academy of Science and Technology, Philippines (NAST PHL) to young Filipino scientists (below 41 years old) who have made significant contributions to science and technology. Twelve (12) OYS Awards are available annually, split among the following divisions: Agricultural Sciences; Biological Sciences; Chemical, Mathematical and Physical Sciences; Engineering Sciences and Technology; Health Sciences; and Social Sciences.

Dr. Perez is currently the Deputy Director General for Space Science and Technology (DDG-SST) of the Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA). She is also an Associate Professor and Scientist II at the Institute of Environmental Science and Meteorology of the University of the Philippines Diliman. Prior to her appointment at PhilSA, Dr. Perez has led various programs on satellite development in the Philippines as well as other projects that utilized satellite and remotely sensed data for environmental applications and climate studies.

Dr. Perez is a recipient of The Outstanding Women in the Nation’s Service (TOWNS) Award (2019) and is the first Filipino woman to receive the ASEAN-US Science Prize for Women (2018).  She was a postdoctoral fellow at the NASA Goddard Space Flight Center (2010-2011). She is a graduate of the National Institute of Physics at the University of the Philippines Diliman, from which she received Bachelor of Science (2003), Master of Science (2005), and Doctor of Philosophy in Physics (2009).

Her research interests include Earth observation satellite product development, drought monitoring and forecasting, forest change detection, land cover/land use change, other satellite remote sensing applications for the environment, seasonal and climate prediction, climate change and variability, complex systems, and interdisciplinary applications of Physics.

A virtual awarding ceremony was held on 15 July 2021 via Zoom and Facebook Live.

About NAST PHL

The National Academy of Science and Technology, Philippines (NAST PHL) is the country’s highest recognition and advisory body on science and technology. Created by Presidential Decree 1003 on 06 October 1976, the NAST PHL honors and recognizes Filipino scientists who make worthy contributions in the advancement of science and technology in the country. The Academy also recommends individuals to be conferred the Order of National Scientist upon approval of the President of the Philippines. In 1982, through Executive Order 818, the NAST PHL was also formally charged with the function of an advisory body to the President of the Republic of the Philippines and the Cabinet on policies concerning science and technology in the country.