11 research projects from AU receive a total of 68 million DKK

Independent Research Fund Denmark (IRFD) has just awarded funding to 52 research projects through the Research Project2 programme, which is awarded to pioneering and original research ideas across all scientific fields. In total, grants totalling DKK 318 million will be awarded. The foundation writes in a press release. 

According to IRFD, the aim of the grant is “to promote quality and foster collaboration in Danish research, giving individual researchers the opportunity to realise their strong and original research ideas in collaboration with other researchers.”

Projects funded through this pool typically run over a period of 4.5 years and often involve not only the grant recipient, but also postdocs and PhD students.

11 researchers from Aarhus University receive Research Project2 funding totalling DKK 68 million. Among the 11 are researchers from all of AU's five faculties, with the Faculty of Natural Sciences best represented with four grant recipients. The projects range from investigating the mechanisms behind restless leg syndrome to studying educational mobility among young people from minority backgrounds.

In total, 566 researchers have applied for a grant via the research project, and if you look at that number in relation to the 52 grants, it gives a success rate of 9.2 percent.

Overview of AU recipients of DFF research project2 funding 2025

1. Laura Gilliam, associate professor at Danish School of Education, Arts
   Educational Optimism. Aspirational Orientations and Mobility of Minority Ethnic Youth
   Amount granted: DKK 6,190,786
2. Selin Kara, professor at the Department of Biological and Chemical Engineering, Tech
   Biocatalyst and Process Engineering for Efficient Synthesis of Green Ammonia by Nitrogenases (ENGREENIT)
   Amount granted: DKK 6,192,000
3. Hatice Tankisi, clinical professor at the Department of Clinical Medicine, Health
   Neuromodulation of restless legs syndrome: exploring mechanisms and treatment strategies
   Amount granted: DKK 6,186,240
4. Klaus Koren, associate professor at the Department of Biology, Nat
   HOT-SPOT - Sub-surface N2O detection in time and space using 2D Surface Enhanced Raman Spectroscopy
   Amount granted: DKK 6,191,972
5. Mette Vestergård Madsen, professor at the Department of Agroecology, Tech
   Faba bean exploitation of cereal phytochemicals for pest resistance
   Amount granted: DKK 6,190,848
6. Mikkel Wallentin, professor at the School of Communication and Culture, Arts
   IN•SPE: Inner speech frequency and valence
   Amount granted: DKK 6,191,942
7. Brigitte Maria Städler, professor at Interdisciplinary Nanoscience Centre, Nat
   Biomimetic Neural Network-Like Materials with Adaptive Learning (BIONIMAL)
   Amount granted: DKK 6,187,579
8. Simon Heiner Albrecht, associate professor at the Department of Physics and Astronomy, Nat
   Discovering Tatooine: A New Era of Circumbinary Planet Detection - Demographics and Orbital Architectures from GAIA DR4
   Amount granted: DKK 6,185,336
9. Marit-Solveig L.S. Seidenkrantz, professor and head of the Department of Geoscience, Nat
   Hydrography, deglacial history, and ice-ocean interaction of NE Greenland fjords through 12,000 years (GreenFjords)
   Amount granted: DKK 6,191,644
10. Claus Bossen, professor at the School of Communication and Culture, Arts
    Implementing Artificial Intelligence in Healthcare: Cases and frameworks
    Amount granted: DKK 6,191,948
11. Jakob Tolstrup, associate professor at the Department of Political Science, Aarhus BSS
    Controlling Crisis or Losing Control? The Logic and Consequences of Autocrats’ Crisis Behavior
    Amount granted: DKK 6,185,357

This text is machine translated and post-edited by Cecillia Jensen.