LF Ascending Investigators

About the grant

Background

The Lundbeck Foundation’s ambition is to make Denmark leading in neuroscience research by funding relevant biomedical, health, clinical and other sciences in Denmark. The goal is to foster world-class research at Danish universities and Danish university hospitals. At the same time, our grants must help provide a research environment that stimulates the best graduates and scientists at all career levels.

In keeping with the purpose of the Lundbeck Foundation, through our support to neuroscience research we seek to “bring discoveries to lives”. Therefore, we value projects that present a clear plan for how the anticipated project outcomes can lead to impact on neuroscience and/or human health.

The Lundbeck Foundation believes that diversity strengthens science and for this reason diversity, including, but not limited to, gender and ethnic origin, is encouraged. We especially encourage scientists from groups that have been traditionally under-represented in academia, including women and scientists of diverse ethnic backgrounds, to apply.

We also encourage applicants to include international exchange in their proposed project, as international collaboration is one of the best ways to elevate the Danish research environment and strengthen the career path of the researchers involved.

Research theme

With this call, we invite applicants to submit proposals from any research field with a high potential for impact on our basic understanding of the brain as well as prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of brain disorders. Advancements in neuroscience often develop from cross-disciplinary interaction, leading to novel insights into biological mechanisms, trial design, emerging technologies, etc. The term ‘neuroscience’ is used here in its broadest sense, including medical, technical, natural and social sciences as well as humanities.

Who can apply?

We expect you to be an experienced and independent researcher with a demonstrated ability to conduct original research at a high international level, either as a permanent/tenured or tenure-track staff member at a university, or in an equivalent position at a university hospital, in Denmark.

Researchers holding an existing Ascending Investigator grant are eligible to apply if this grant runs out during 2024, as long as they still comply with the other eligibility criteria.

Any Danish or foreign-based researcher can be a co-applicant and/or collaborator in the proposed project.

Which proposals are eligible?

Your project proposes frontline basic, translational or clinical research with potential impact on neuroscience- including basic understanding of the brain and prevention, diagnosis and treatment of brain and nervous-system diseases. The research must be based at a non-commercial Danish research institution.

At the time of the submission deadline, you must not have an active grant portfolio for the calendar year 2024 exceeding an annual total of DKK 3 million for which you are principal investigator (PI). Only grants for which you are lead PI should be included in this total.
Note that ERC grants and infrastructure grants do not count towards the annual total.
If changes in the active grant portfolio for 2024 occur after the call deadline, a revised research grant summary must be submitted at the latest 1 September 2024.

How much?

The Lundbeck Foundation expects to allocate DKK 70 million to this call. You can apply for up to DKK 5 million (+1 million if international exchange is involved, see below) for a period of four years. The budget may include all staff and non-staff costs related to the project apart from your own salary.

If substantial international collaboration involving exchange of scientific personnel is planned as part of the project, the applicant may add DKK 1 million to the total budget above the DKK 5 million budget cap (i.e. up to DKK 6 million in total). The extra amount can only be spent on activities directly associated with the international collaboration.

10% of the budget can be reserved for project-related, indirect costs if appropriately justified.

If relevant to the proposed research project, the Foundation encourages applicants to use this grant as an opportunity for prolonged research visits to other research environments outside Denmark. Thus, in addition to the DKK 5(+1) million grant, travel and housing expenses of up to DKK 100,000 + 50,000/year (i.e. 4.166/month) per accompanying child can be allocated for research visits of at least five months’ duration. The DKK 100,000 relocation costs and the additional child support must be clearly stated in the budget as a separate item and must be cleared with the host institution in advance.

For applicants that plan for a prolonged research visit, additional funding can be applied for under the “STIPENDS FOR SABBATICAL LEAVE” programme. Please see:  https://www.lundbeckfonden.com/en/grants/what-you-can-apply-for/

How to apply?

You must submit your application, written in English, via the Lundbeck Foundation’s application system at LANAS (lundbeckfonden.com). Please note that the Foundation will not consider or assess any application material that is not submitted via the application system before the deadline

Your application must include the following:

• Research plan
• If relevant (in case of resubmission of application), comments on feedback and explanation of changes
• If the application builds on a previous or running LF grant, a description of published results and/or preliminary data
• Roadmap to impact
• Publication list
• CV
• A table of active grants and pending applications

• Budget
• Letter(s) of support from the Danish host institution and, if relevant, important collaborator(s)

Please see the Applicant Guide and the application form for further requirements and details.

Ascending Investigator grants are individual grants. If the project in question involves collaboration, the collaboration and its nature should be described in the section on collaborations and recruitment of junior and senior researchers in the application form. The applicant must be the clear driver of the project.

You are welcome to contact Scientific Programme Director Peter Thostrup  (pth@lundbeckfonden.com), Senior Scientific Programme Manager Anette Høye (ah@lundbeckfonden.com) or Senior Grant Manager Ulla Jakobsen (uj@lundbeckfonden.com), if you have any questions regarding your application.

Evaluation process

All proposals will be reviewed by the Foundation’s Talent Panel (https://www.lundbeckfonden.com/en/grants/review-panels/), based on the following criteria:

• Quality of the research project (ground-breaking nature, scientific approach, feasibility, competitive edge)
• Merit and independence of the applicant (scientific achievements, creativity, commitment, leadership skills/capacity development, collaboration, and network)
• Quality of the host environment (scientific skills, facilities, commitment)
• If international collaboration is proposed, (i) the standing of the international collaborator, and (ii) the degree to which the collaboration strengthens the project
• Potential impact on neuroscience and/or human health, including the feasibility of the roadmap to impact.

In the event of fundable applications of equal standing, the Talent Panel will in its final assessment give priority to applications

• that use the grant as an opportunity for strengthening international collaboration, including prolonged research visits to other research environments
• that balance the diversity of the granted applications relative to the application pool
   

Important dates

• Deadline for application: 13.00 CET, 30 May 2024
• Rejection or approval of grants: end of October 2024
• The project can start at the earliest 1 November 2024 and must be initiated before 1 June 2025

What are the grant conditions?

If your proposal is successful, you must accept the Lundbeck Foundation’s Terms and Conditions for Research Grants. The current version can be seen here https://www.lundbeckfonden.com/en/grants/terms-and-conditions-for-research-grants/

Grantees and their group members are expected to join Neuroscience Academy Denmark (NAD) and engage in the activities offered by NAD when relevant, https://neuroscienceacademydenmark.dk/nad-network.

March 2024