Carlsberg Foundation awards funding of almost DKK 460 million for Danish research

The grants span all career stages and are intended to generate new knowledge on areas of research such as the hormones that regulate blood sugar and digestion, as well as the universe’s first black holes and potential uses of AI to solve the mental health crisis. Other areas of research granted support include the democratic basis for evidence-based policy, insects’ tolerance of heat, and how life in the Arctic Ocean has been affected by 4,500 years of human presence.

The total funding awarded of DKK 460 million breaks down into DKK 240 million for research projects in the humanities and social sciences and DKK 220 million for research in the natural sciences.

The grants are a result of the Carlsberg Foundation’s Autumn Call 2023, which aims to promote basic research at the highest international level and contribute to generational transition and talent development in Danish research.

DKK 170 million for postdocs and young associate professors

Once again, the Carlsberg Foundation has approved significant support for aspiring young researchers at postdoctoral level. Funding of almost DKK 50 million has been awarded for 42 postdoctoral grants across three different programmes: Reintegration Fellowships, Internationalisation Fellowships, and Visiting Fellowships at the University of Oxford.

Young associate professors have also been a priority in grants awarded this year, with DKK 120 million going to 25 newly appointed associate professors through the Semper Ardens Accelerate programme. The aim of these three-year grants is to help young tenured researchers at associate professor level stand on their own two feet by consolidating an independent research group. In addition, almost DKK 173 million is awarded to established professors for innovative and ambitious research projects through the Semper Ardens Accomplish programme.

The Carlsberg Foundation’s CEO, Professor Lasse Horne Kjældgaard, comments:

“I’d like to congratulate all of the successful applicants who can now set about the scientific studies for which they applied for funding in the Autumn Call. I’m particularly pleased that we’ve been able to reward 42 young researchers with various postdoc grants of almost DKK 50 million, because the growing shortage of external support for young research talent in Denmark has brought a real need for free, non-thematic funding for postdocs in particular. We’re also delighted to be awarding more than DKK 120 million to young associate professors who can now consolidate their own research groups and so help rejuvenate Danish research.”

Funding for monographs and infrastructure

In addition to the above, almost DKK 28 million has been awarded to 31 leading scholars in the humanities and social sciences for the production of a monograph or doctoral dissertation, and close to DKK 85 million in the form of 68 Research Infrastructure grants for equipment, register data and databases.

The Autumn Call in numbers

The Autumn Call 2023 attracted a total of 827 applications by the application deadline of 1 October 2023. Of these, 521 were from male applicants, 293 from female applicants and 13 from applicants who chose not to disclose their gender. All applications for grants under the Semper Ardens Accomplish and Semper Ardens Accelerate programmes have been reviewed by external experts before being assessed by the Carlsberg Foundation’s board, which takes the final decision on grant awards.

A total of 192 grants have been awarded, breaking down into 72 for female researchers, 115 for male researchers and 5 for researchers who chose not to disclose their gender. Based on applications where gender was disclosed, this translates into a success rate of 24.6 percent for female applicants and 22.1 percent for male applicants.

Applications for almost DKK 2.8 billion were received in the Autumn Call. The total amount of research funding approved by the Carlsberg Foundation in 2023 is DKK 620 million.