Awards and Grants
Read here the latest news on awards and grants for researchers at the Faculty of Science and Engineering.
The Dutch Research Council (NWO) has awarded a Veni grant of up to €320.000 each to 21 researchers of the University of Groningen and the UMCG.
Researchers from the University of Groningen have received international FWO-SBO funding for two collaborative projects on hybrid nanopore technology and the circular design of polyurethanes, advancing molecular sensing and sustainable materials research.
Dr. Niki Gervais receives funding for research into how the female brain adapts to hormone loss during menopause.
At the UG Ceremony of Merits on July 4, Ana Lazar was awarded the GUF 100 Prize, making her the best student of the Faculty of Science and Engineering 2024-2025.
Bayu Jayawardhana receives an award for his academic achievements and his contribution to collaboration with the University of Groningen
Future Tech Ventures (FTV) has invested in Groningen-based startup Ximplic, a spin-off from the University of Groningen developing technology to dramatically reduce the energy consumption of artificial intelligence applications.
NWO has awarded an ENW-M grant to both Dr. Roberto Lo Conte and Professor Harro Meijer. Lo Conte will investigate new quantum properties; the ENW-M1 for Meijer is for a new device at the Carbon-14 Center to perform faster and easier carbon measurements and can also be used for the continuous measurement of CO2 emissions.
Amina Helmi, Professor of Astronomy at the University of Groningen, has been awarded the prestigious 2026 Kavli Prize in Astrophysics. Helmi will receive the prize alongside Vasily Belokurov (University of Cambridge) and Rodrigo Ibata (Université de Strasbourg). The international award is being presented for ‘uncovering fossil evidence of past mergers that demonstrate the Milky Way was formed through mergers with other galaxies.’
Thijs van der Laan won the Ben Feringa Impact Award 2026 for students. The Master's student in Artificial Intellingence won the prize for the AI-based tool he developed that supports people with aphasia by predicting the possible next word when they hesitate. With the Ben Feringa Impact Award, the University of Groningen distinguishes special achievements of its researchers and students that links scientific research to societal or professional practice.
The 2026 Heineken Young Scientists Award for Natural Sciences has been awarded to Dr. Ayushi Rastogi of the University of Groningen. Rastogi receives the prize for her research on ways to develop reliable and future-proof software, thereby making the digital sector more accessible to a broader group of people. She focuses on the human side of software development by investigating how developers collaborate and deploy AI.
Prof. Vassilis Kyriakou and Prof. Edwin Otten of the Faculty of Science and Engineering receive 1.03 mln EUR to develop innovative technologies for sustainable production routes of ammonia and other nitrogen-based chemicals. They are partner in the new research project HyNITROGEN that brings together more than 40 clean-tech companies, universities and research institutes.
Francesco Maresca leads a €400,000 EUR NWO work package in META-SMA, advancing shape memory metamaterials for defence and civil applications.
The KIWI Aerospace student team from the University of Groningen and the Hanze University of Applied Sciences has achieved an impressive international performance with their mini-satellite KSAT1. At the international CanSat finals in Mexico City, the team from Groningen finished in the global top 10.
The projects are part of a Dutch–Japanese programme exploring alternatives to conventional computer chips. By combining photonics, quantum and neuromorphic technologies, the consortia aim to develop faster, more energy-efficient systems for applications such as AI, medical imaging and climate research.
3 million EUR for a revolutionary drug of spinoff MimeCure against chronic lung diseases such as COPD.
The Horizon Europe PATHFINDER Open call has granted 400,000 EUR to Patrizio Raffa's work package in SUSHI-PACK, a new European research and innovation project. The SUSHI-PACK consortium will tackle one of Europe’s most pressing environmental challenges: packaging waste. Raffa's research focuses on the synthesis of polymeric materials for sustainable packaging via esterification and transesterification routes.
A Groningen-based spin-off from the UG, ModAlgae, is travelling to the US in May to meet with entrepreneurs and investors.
The Netherlands is taking a major step toward energy-efficient computing with a €9 million grant from the NWO Knowledge and Innovation Covenant (KIC) Long-Term Programme, awarded to the ”10X-Factor(y): Towards a Dutch ecosystem for neuromorphic technologies“ project. The project is managed by UG researchers affiliated with CogniGron, a research hub that develops highly energy efficient supercomputers. In total, the project will manage a total budget of 30 million euros, coming mainly from companies and private funders.
Four UG/UMCG projects receive NWO funding to reduce the environmental impact of scientific research and drive more sustainable practices.
Four UG projects receive NWO funding for innovative research in bioplastics, sustainable materials, and AI-driven antiviral strategies.
Dr. Ayushi Rastogi has been awarded the 2026 Pieter Langerhuizen Bate Prize for her research into the impact of AI on the work of software professionals with disabilities.
Prof. Marco Fraaije has been awarded a grant of EUR 930,000 from the NWO Open Technology Programme for research into the valorization of oxidative enzymes.
Professor Ben Feringa has been awarded EUR 300,000 in funding from the SNN’s Just Transition Fund (JTF) to develop alternatives for high-performance coatings.
Prof. André Faaij is a member of the new Energy Council as of March 1.
Professors Inga Kamp and Martien Kas of the University of Groningen' s faculty of Science and Engineering have been appointed as a new scientific members of the KHMW.
The UG will receive EUR 670.000 for developing a digital platform
Loi will receive the grant for developing safe, highly sensitive and fast infrared detectors for use in advanced sensor technology.
Minnaard's team will convert renewable raw materials such as sugars and fatty acids into industrial semi-finished products using hydrogen.
Een team geleid door prof. dr. Edwin Otten van de Rijksuniversiteit Groningen ontvangt een NWO subsidie van 5 miljoen euro vanuit het Nationaal Groeifondsprogramma ‘Material Independence and Circular Batteries’.
The University of Groningen, in collaboration with Wageningen University & Research, TNO, Saxion University of Applied Sciences, Hanze University of Applied Sciences and industry partners, has secured a €2 million grant from the NWO NXTGEN Hightech programme.
Thijs van der Laan and Prof. Giovanni Maglia won this year's FSE Impact Award.
Prof. Mariano Méndez has received the prestigious Argentine 'Premio RAÍCES 2025' (ROOTS award).
Prof. Ben Feringa has won the Feynman Experiment Prize for pioneering the control of molecular motion.
Alexander Belyy receives the FEBS Excellence Award 2025 for researching pathogenic microorganisms that ‘hijack’ their host cells’ cytoskeleton in order to escape the immune system.
Prof. Moniek Tromp has been selected as one of twenty new members of The Netherlands Academy of Engineering (NAE). The NAE is a select group of engineers, technologists and innovators from science and industry who have delivered outstanding achievements, play a pioneering role in social transitions and are committed to strengthening the role of engineering in our society.
Dr. Sina Katharina Götzfried has been awarded a Faculty of Impact grant from the to develop a new treatment for brain cancer.
Medical Pharmaceutical Sciences student Menna Zaharan of the University of Groningen has been awarded the 2025 Unilever Research Prize for her Master’s thesis.
Fourteen students of the Faculty of Science and Engineering (RUG) win national Young Talent Awards
Three ENW-M grants from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO).
FSE at the University of Groningen has signed a new agreement with Universitas Gadjah Mada (UGM) in Indonesia to establish a double degree programme within the Masters degree programme Mechanical Engineering
A team led by Prof. Moniek Tromp has been awarded a 15.8 million euros grant from the Netherlands Organization for Scientific Research (NWO) to establish a new national X-ray research center.
With a grant from the Wadden Fund and the Ministry of Agriculture, Fisheries, Food Security and Nature, RUG Professor Britas Klemens Eriksson will conduct research into the impact of noise on underwater life in the Wadden Sea.
Two UG research projects have received funding from the National Growth Fund project Big Chemistry via NWO.
Prof. Ajay Kottapalli of the University of Groningen has been nominated for the prestigious Huibregtsen Prize.
Five UG researchers, working at the Faculty of Science and Engineering and the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences, have been awarded an ERC Starting Grant: Miles Wischnewski, Loredana Protesescu, Alexander Belyy, Tim Lichtenberg, and Michael Lerch. The European Research Council's (ERC) Starting Grants amount to €1.5 million each, for a period of five years. The grants are intended for outstanding researchers with the aim of stimulating cutting-edge research in Europe.
Honorary professor Bruno Ehrler of the University of Groningen has been appointed as the new director of AMOLF, the NWO Institute for research into functional complex matter.