Research Council of Norway announces €8M for research on global challenges

Twelve international research projects have received funding from the Global Research Council (GRC) to develop solutions contributing to the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals. Norwegian researchers are involved in five of these projects.

This is the first time the Global Research Council has issued a joint call supporting projects aimed at developing solutions for common challenges we all face. The projects will develop concrete, sustainable, and green products, services, and processes," says Mari Sundli Tveit, Chief Executive of the Research Council of Norway.

In the 12 projects, researchers from at least three countries, often more, collaborate. Together with businesses, governments, and civil society, they aim to develop or improve tools that can help achieve the UN's Sustainable Development Goals. The Research Council of Norway is co-financing the projects.

Projects with Norwegian Partners:

• OsloMet's Project: Norwegian partners from OsloMet are involved in a project using big data to better understand the quality of life for vulnerable groups in cities. This knowledge is crucial for promoting fair urban development. With more than half of the world's population living in cities and the proportion increasing rapidly, there is a significant need to understand how cities and urbanization can reduce social inequality and ensure sustainability.
• University of Bergen's Project: Another project, involving researchers from the University of Bergen, explores how small fish can contribute to achieving the UN's SDGs on zero hunger, good health and well-being, and life below water. Eating small fish is much more sustainable than consuming larger species and is equally nutritious. However, small fish are not sufficiently recognized as part of global food security and are often absent from strategies to ensure a nutritious diet.
• NMBU's Project: In a third project, researchers from, among others, NMBU, focus on securing water and managing water systems within agriculture, fisheries, and forestry. The project aims to develop knowledge to promote increased entrepreneurship and a more circular economy. The company Biomar is also a partner in the project.
• E-VIBES Project: Researchers at SINTEF, along with a mining company in Chile, are developing an instrument to harness energy from the Earth's vibrations. These vibrations are recorded daily, whether natural or caused by human activities like mining. The project aims to develop systems that convert mechanical energy from vibrations into electrical energy. The instrument will be tested in the city of Camarones in Chile, a city with significant poverty. The energy will be used for lighting in schools and charging points, contributing to achieving the UN's Sustainable Development Goals on clean energy for all and sustainable cities and communities.
• NILU's Project: Researchers at NILU, together with partners from Switzerland, China, and Chile, are participating in a project addressing air pollution, a significant health hazard in urban environments. The project will use advanced sensor networks and modeling techniques to map and analyze air quality in three cities in Chile and China. The data will be essential for guiding residents to minimize exposure to harmful pollutants, thereby improving health and well-being in urban areas.

This article was first published on 31 May by the Research Council of Norway.