Excellent research
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg within many disciplines contribute to the solution of societal problems. In order to provide our researchers with the best possible conditions and to support excellent science, one important goal is to increase our international research funding. Here we present various research programmes co-funded by the Vice-Chancellor and deemed to be strategically important cutting-edge research programmes. Here are the researchers at the University of Gothenburg who have received funding.
European Research Council - ERC
The European Research Council (ERC), which is part of the EU's research and innovation program, promotes high-quality, researcher-driven research across all scientific disciplines through comprehensive and long-term funding. ERC supports cutting-edge research, multidisciplinary projects, and groundbreaking ideas in new and emerging fields
ERC Starting Grant
Individual grants for young promising researchers, 2–7 years post-PhD, with groundbreaking research ideas and strong potential to become future research leaders.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg
who have received ERC Starting Grant
2025
Carolina Guibentif, Sahlgrenska Academy
Stemcells
Florence So, Faculty of Social Sciences
Politicalengagement
Marcel du Plessis, Faculty of Science and Technology
Thesouthernocean
Daniel Bojar, Faculty of Science and Technology
Glycans
2024
Lina Bergman, Sahlgrenska Academy
Preeclampsia
2023
Aksel Sundström, Faculty of Social Sciences
AfricanPolitics
2022
Christine Howes, Faculty of Humanities
IncrementalDialogue
Anne Björkman, Faculty of Science
ClimateChange
2021
Tintin Wulia, The Artistic Faculty
AestheticObjects
2021
Ann-Kristin Kölln, Faculty of Social Sciences
Politicalparties
ERC Consolidator Grant
The ERC Consolidator Grant targets researchers who are 7–12 years post-PhD and have recently established a research group, aiming to strengthen their role as research leaders.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg
who have received ERC Consolidator Grant
2024
George Birchenough, Sahlgrenska Academy
Pregnancy
Jesper Björklund, Faculty of Science
HistoricalClimate
Bart Klem, Faculty of Social Sciences
SeparatistPolitics
2023
Karl Börjesson, Faculty of Science
LightandMatter
ERC Advanced Grant
The grant is aimed at established researchers with significant research efforts in the last ten years, a prominent position as leading researchers in their fields, and with groundbreaking project ideas.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg
who have received ERC Consolidator Grant
2025
Andrew Ewing, Faculty of Science and Technology
Nanoscale
2022
Randi Hjalmarsson, School of Business, Economics and Law
CriminalCycle
Claes Ohlsson, Sahlgrenska Academy
Metabolism
Fredrik Bäckhed, Sahlgrenska Academy
Guttmicrobiotafunction
2021
Thierry Coquand, IT Faculty
ComputingScience
Henrik Zetterberg, Sahlgrenska Academy
AlzheimerDisease
ERC Synergy Grants (SYG)
The purpose of the ERC Synergy Grant is to bring together researchers with different expertise from various institutions to work on highly complex problems that no single researcher or institution can solve alone.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg
who have received ERC Synergy Grant
2025
Bernhard Mehlig, Faculty of Science and Technology
ClimatePredictions
2024
Laura Bristow, Faculty of Science
OxygenMinimum
Joel Speerstra, The Artistic Faculty
HistoricalKeyboards
2023
Sebastiaan Swart, Faculty of Science
OceanResearch
About this section
The University of Gothenburg’s Vice-Chancellor provides co-financing for the researchers who receive funding from the following particularly strategic research programmes: ERC, Wallenberg Academy Fellows, Knut and Alice Wallenberg Project, Wallenberg Scholars, the RJ programme, Pro Futura and The Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research, SSF.
Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation - KAW
The Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation is one of the largest private research financiers in Europe, and finances research in Sweden. The foundation supports "nation-wide, long-term, free basic research", which is judged to have the potential to lead to future scientific breakthroughs. The foundation has a primary focus on medicine, natural sciences and technology, although the personal excellence grants to individual researchers invite candidates from all scientific fields.
KAW Project Grant
The foundation supports projects of high scientific potential, above all in medicine, natural science and technology, which are judged to have the potential to lead to future scientific breakthroughs. The projects must normally be of a basic scientific nature and focused on a coherent scientific question, where the complementary skills of the participating researchers provide increased opportunities to attack the selected research question.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg
who have received KAW Project Grant
2024
Raimund Feifel, Faculty of Science
Photoemssions (KAW)
Maria Falkenberg, Sahlgrenska Academy
Mitochondria (KAW)
2022
Isaac Santos, Faculty of Science
InvisibleEmissions (KAW)
2020
Thierry Couqand, IT Faculty
Interactive soft systems
Wallenberg Clinical Scholar
The goal of the program is to strengthen Swedish clinical research by identifying the best clinical researchers, giving them good opportunities to conduct their activities and achieve an impact for the results of the research, both in science and healthcare.
2019/2024 Ann Hellström, Sahlgrenska Academy
Babiesbornearly
Wallenberg Scholars
The program aims to support and stimulate some of the most successful researchers at Swedish universities. The idea is to give leading researchers freedom and resources to motivate them to stay in Sweden.
Here is a list of Wallenberg Scholars
at the University of Gothenburg
New 2024:
Ruth Palmer, Sahlgrenska Academy
ALKreceptor
Johan Åkerman, Faculty of Science
Breakingencryption
Extensions 2024:
Thomas Nyström, Sahlgrenska Academy
ProteinfromCells
Andrew Ewing, Sahlgrenska Academy
BrainCells (KAW)
Richard Neutze, Faculty of Science
ImagingtheBrain (KAW)
Fredrik Bäckhed, Sahlgrenska Academy
DiabetesDsease (KAW)
Maria Falkenberg, Sahlgrenska Academy
MitochondrialDNA (KAW)
Henrik Zetterberg, Sahlgrenska Academy
AlzheimerDisease
Wallenberg Academy Fellows
Wallenberg Academy Fellows is the largest private initiative for young researchers in Sweden. In addition to providing the most promising young researchers with long-term resources, enabling them to concentrate on their research, the programme contributes to the internationalisation of the Swedish research environment.
Here is a list of Wallenberg Academy
Fellows at the University of Gothenburg
2025
Kristen Kao, Faculty of Social Sciences
Post-Conflictresolution
2023
Gaya Olivo, Faculty of Social Sciences
Read more (only in Swedish)
2022
Elin Naurin, Faculty of Science
Read more (only in Swedish)
Karl Börjesson, Faculty of Science
QuantamMechanical (KAW)
2021
Linda Johansson, Sahlgrenska Academy
Biomedicine
Davide Angeletti, Sahlgrenska Academy
ImmunologyMechanisms
2020
Ann Towns, Faculty of Social Sciences
HierarchyswithinDiplomacy
Sebastiaan Swart, Faculty of Science
OceanPysisics
Graham E Leigh, Faculty of the Humanities
ReflectionandTruth
Erik Larsson Lekholm, Sahlgrenska Academy
HumanGenomics
Björn Burman, Sahlgrenska Academy
ProteinMachines
2019
Ann Björkman, Faculty of Science
Biodiversity
Riksbankens Jubileumsfond - RJ
Riksbankens Jubileumsfond supports research in the humanities and social sciences. The aim is to enable Swedish research within the foundation's scope to achieve a prominent position internationally.
Pro Futura Scientia
Pro Futura is a postdoctoral advanced research program that provides exceptionally talented junior researchers with the opportunity to dedicate an extended period to free research. The program is a collaboration with the Swedish Collegium for Advanced Study, SCAS, one of Europe's foremost institutes for advanced studies.
As Pro Futura researchers, they receive five years of research time, three at the University of Gothenburg, one year at SCAS in Uppsala, and one year abroad at a leading institute.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg
who have received Pro Futura Scientia
2024
Lewis Webb, Faculty of Humanities
AncientHistory
2023
Ylwa Sjölin Wirling, Faculty of Humanities
KnowledgeandIgnorance
Jack Wright, Faculty of Humanities
SocialDemarcation
2022
Sari Nauman, Faculty of Humanities
TrustandSecurity
RJ Program
The RJ Program refers to a joint and well-coherent research task in the social sciences and humanities that a group of qualified researchers with connections to Sweden carries out over a longer period of time. The researchers are free to define their research task themselves. The programs require a highly qualified research environment for a research group that is well anchored in the international research community and makes significant contributions to national and international research.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg
who have received RJ Program
2024
Kajsa Yang Hansen, Faculty of Education
SchoolSegregation
2023
Martin Lövdén, Faculty of Social Sciences
PreventionIntervention
2021
Johan Ling, Faculty of Humanities
MaritimeEncounters
Nina Tahmasebi, Faculty of Humanities
StatisticsinHumanities
The Swedish Foundation for
Strategic Research - SSF
The Swedish Foundation for Strategic Research (SSF) supports research in science, technology and medicine with hundreds of millions a year. SSF is a free, independent player in the public research funding system. The goal of the foundation is to promote the development of strong research environments of the highest international class with significance for the development of Sweden’s future competitiveness.
Future Research Leaders
The program is intended to support and promote young researchers who have the ability to become future leaders of academic and/or industrial research in Sweden. The foundation's vision of a future research leader is a young researcher with the highest scientific and pedagogical qualifications who also shows a potential for leadership and management. He or she shows ambition to implement research results and is prepared to take responsibility at a later stage of his/her career for a complete academic environment and constellations larger than his own research group. The announcement is made every three years.
Researchers at the University of Gothenburg who have been elected Future Research Leaders
2021
Carolina Guibentif, Sahlgrenska Academy
NewbornsandCancer
Julia Morud Lekholm, Faculty of Science
SecretsoftheNervoussystem
Anne Björkman, Faculty of Science
TheChangingArctic