Six University Of Helsinki Researchers Earn Prestigious ERC Research Funding

Six University of Helsinki academics have been awarded ERC Starting Grants by the European Research Council. The ERC is one of the most esteemed long-term, high-quality research funders.

Lassi Ahlvik’s (Faculty of Agriculture and Forestry) ERC-funded project Green tax reform for a just climate transition investigates the effects of climate policy on various social groups, people’s notions of fairness, and how harmful effects can be mitigated through taxation. The initiative supports the development of a socially just green transition in Finland and Europe.

Daria Gritsenko (Faculty of Arts, Aleksanteri Institute) investigates how we desire to be governed by AI in her project Algorithmic Governance – A Public Perspective. The initiative seeks to comprehend how individuals’ perceptions of legitimacy are formed and altered. If we can uncover the cognitive processes underlying the legitimacy of AI, we will acquire a fundamentally new understanding of the mechanisms underlying the social order’s construction.

The legal concept of agency is evolving; international treaties mandate that children and individuals with disabilities be regarded as actors. Visa Kurki’s (Faculty of Law) project Agency in Law will generate a theory that will assist both courts and legislators in comprehending the evolving concept of agency in law.

StemCellSize, an initiative funded by the European Research Council and led by Jette Lengefeld (Helsinki Institute of Life Science), will investigate a new concept in cell biology: the effect of cellular size on cellular function. The anticipated discoveries will unveil a new facet of stem cell biology and provide new mechanisms of cellular aging, possibly disclosing a new cancer driver.

Joonas Nattila’s (Faculty of Science) project Illuminating neutron stars with radiative plasma physics (ILLUMINATOR) investigates the physics of the universe’s most extreme and energetic cosmic events: the bursts, flares, and sparkles generated in neutron star magnetospheres. This project’s theoretical and numerical tools shed new light on the functionality of neutron stars and black holes.

The objective of Shiqi Wang’s (Faculty of Pharmacy) project Quantitative analysis of endosomal escape and intracellular delivery via bioorthogonal luminescent reaction (BioLure) is to develop a straightforward and accurate method for quantifying intracellular delivery using an unorthodox method: bio-orthogonal reactions. The research endeavor can provide critical insights for future efficacy evaluations and formulations in nanomedicine.
Designed for aspiring research supervisors

Designed for aspiring research supervisors

The ERC Starting Grant is a grant program administered by the European Research Council for aspiring research directors at the beginning of their careers. Starting Grants may be awarded for up to €1.5 million over a period of five years for the establishment of a research group and the commencement of independent research activities in Europe.

Researchers from the University of Helsinki have successfully obtained prestigious ERC funding. More than a hundred University of Helsinki researchers have received funding from the ERC to date.