By Susanne Clement Justesen, AAU Communication and Public Affairs
Photo: Søren Emil Søe Degn, AAU Communication and Public Affairs

AAU's three missions will receive a new financial boost to strengthen the maturation of even more research projects. The requirements for the applications include that they support the missions' long-term goals and interdisciplinary cooperation, and have a clear strategy for external funding.

According to Niels Bech Lukassen, Head of the Mission Secretariat the seed funding for the missions is important for ensuring quality in the early project phase:
"The financial support helps to maintain the direction and focus of new research projects. We thus support the systematic development of the mission project portfolios. In the long term, it helps to strengthen the implementation of solutions addressing the complex societal challenges at the core of the missions."

Progress and good prospects

The experience from the autumn 2025 call indicates great interest in seed funding among AAU's researchers. The Mission Secretariat received 49 applications; of these 18 projects were supported. As of 2026 the missions report progress and good prospects for further project work.

According to the PI for one of the projects that received seed funding for the Well-being Mission, Trine Rolighed Thomsen, the funds have been crucial in bringing researchers, students and external actors together on young people's digital data and well-being:
"We have identified key knowledge and research needs and developed ethical and co-creative interventions that now inform applications for external funding."

When it comes to the Health Mission, the seed funding has accelerated the development of new collaboration formats:
"In a short time, we have built up a strong and diverse research community that can serve as a foundation for long-term efforts," says Kristian Damgaard Lyng, PI for the Health Mission's group "Implementation as the Missing Link".

Ambitious applications and more external funding

Several projects highlight that the funds have made it possible to raise the level of research and increase the acquisition of external funding. The Executive Management's seed funding has led to applications that together create the opportunity for bringing in more than DKK 100 million in external funding.

Hongbo Zhao, PI for the SMArtHeat project in the Energy Mission, says that the support has been crucial in maturing the project and optimizing data so they could submit ambitious applications to the Villum Foundation and Innovation Fund Denmark.

Amin Hajizadeh, PI for BUILD-FLEX, highlights the strengthening of partnerships:
"We have developed a solid concept, engaged new partners and conducted workshops that have enabled a strong application to Horizon Europe."

Translated by LeeAnn Iovanni, AAU Communication and Public Affairs.