The Wallenberg Scholars program aims to provide leading researchers in Sweden with grants for free research. Following a comprehensive international peer review, the Foundation has chosen to fund 118 researchers for five years, providing up to SEK 18 million each for researchers in theoretical subjects and up to SEK 20 million each for researchers in experimental subjects. Of these leading researchers, 19 are active at Karolinska Institutet.
The Wallenberg Scholars Program is aimed at senior researchers and is one of two programs for free research, or basic research, funded by the Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation.
The foundation is now appointing 19 KI researchers as Wallenberg Scholars. Of these, nine researchers receive extended support, while ten researchers are newly appointed scholars.
"Our goal is to provide outstanding researchers in Sweden with unrestricted funds where they themselves choose what to research. We hope this enables daring and groundbreaking research," says Peter Wallenberg Jr, chair of Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation, in a press release.
Basic research is typically defined as a systematic and methodical curiosity-driven search for new knowledge and ideas without immediate application in mind. Piece by piece, new knowledge is slowly but surely added.
500 peer reviews
Although the primary purpose is not to find applications, basic research has often led to significant and important discoveries resulting in just that.
But it also involves developing methods, conducting advanced calculations, and developing technology to interpret and process all collected data.
In the evaluation of applications for Wallenberg Scholars, close to 500 international expert peer reviews have been gathered. Each application has been reviewed by four to five international experts.
"It is satisfying that 40 percent of the Wallenberg Scholars in this round are women. This is the result of a deliberate effort on the part of the Foundation to have universities nominate more women,"notes Peter Wallenberg Jr. "But it is important to emphasize that they have been appointed on their merits. All applications are competitive, and the evaluation process only considers scientific merits."
During the period 2009–2023, the Foundation granted SEK 1.8 billion to the Wallenberg Scholars program. Together with the new round, the initiative amounts to SEK 3.9 billion.
This article was first published on 26 March by Karolinska Institutet.
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