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Updated Jan 24 2012

Vision

 

The Novo Nordisk Foundation is:

  • A Danish self-governing foundation
  • The holding foundation in the Novo Group, which consists of
    - Novo A/S, wholly owned company responsible for the administration of the Foundation's assets
    - Novo Nordisk A/S (with subsidiaries)
    - Novozymes A/S (with subsidiaries)
    - Companies in which Novo A/S or other companies in the Novo Group have a significant interest.

 

 The objective of the Novo Nordisk Foundation is:

  • To provide a stable basis for the commercial activities and research activities conducted by the companies in the Novo Group, and
  • To support scientific purposes as well as humanitarian and social causes.

 

The vision of the Novo Nordisk Foundation
The vision of the Novo Nordisk Foundation is to make a significant contribution to research and development to improve the health and welfare of people. The Novo Nordisk Foundation does so by leveraging its independence, flexibility, and long-term perspective to ensure that its initiatives support:

  • World-class results in research, development, and commercial activities
  • Denmark and in the Nordic region being developed and internationally recognised as a top-class knowledge center and power house within the health sciences and biotechnology
  • The companies in the Novo Group positioning themselves as internationally recognised and significant factors within combating disease and utilisation of natural resources, primarily through research and development within biomedicine and biotechnology.

 

 

The Novo Nordisk Foundation realises its vision through:

  • Wholly and partly owned companies which are run, via Novo A/S, in accordance with the joint values (Charter) of the Novo Group
  • Funding for public research and development projects, including establishment of new research centres and technological platforms within health science and biotechnology
  • Contributing to the development of the general academic research environment in Denmark and the Nordic region
  • Funding for application-oriented biomedical and biotechnology research that has a commercial potential and is carried out by Nordic researchers and entrepreneurs.

 

 

The Novo Nordisk Foundation finances its activities by actively administrating its assets via Novo A/S, with income consisting of:

  • Dividends from wholly and partly owned companies
  • Proceeds from the sale of ownership shares in wholly and partly owned companies
  • Regular returns from financial investments.

 

The Novo Nordisk Foundation works with the goal that:

  • Funding from the Novo Nordisk Foundation is synonymous with recognition of quality
  • Free and independent research as well as the freedom of publication of researchers is protected
  • The Novo name is highly respected
  • The image and general reputation of the Novo Group is maintained at a high level
  • Talented people want to work for or with the Novo Group companies
  • It is attractive to be a part of the Novo Group
  • It is attractive to be a shareholder in the Novo Group companies
  • Companies in the Novo Group work with groundbreaking technologies and are among the leaders within biotechnological development
  • Several important new products, processes, and technologies are developed in the Novo Group.

 

The Novo Group shares a joint set of values, ‘Charter for companies in the Novo Group’, which is established by the Novo Nordisk Foundation.

Charter:

Present as well as future companies in the Novo Group must demonstrate willingness, ability and resolve to meet the following criteria:

  • Company products and services make a significant difference in improving the way people live and work.
  • The company is perceived to be an innovator - in technology, in products, in services and/or in market approach.
  • The company is among the best in its business and a challenging place to work.
  • The company delivers competitive financial performance.

 

Companies in the Novo Group commit to:

  • Value-based management
  • Open and honest dialogue with its stakeholders
  • Continuous improvement of
    - financial performance
    - environmental performance
    - social performance
  • Reporting in accordance with relevant, internationally approved, conventions.

 

 

Novo Nordisk Foundation's grant areas and grant types
The Board of The Novo Nordisk Foundation specifies the grant areas, grant types and financial terms for funding. Within this framework, the Foundation ensures that each project is assessed by experts who evaluate the project on the basis of its quality, potential and feasibility as well as the applicant's qualifications before a grant decision is made. For this purpose, the Foundation has a number of committees consisting of experts at a high international level just as the Foundation makes use of external international experts.

As a general rule, the Novo Nordisk Foundation processes all applications and grants in accordance with the rules followed by public research councils and foundations. This applies, in particular, to conditions concerning confidentiality, eligibility, and impartiality. The Foundation does not, however, provide the scientific arguments for rejections.

 


The Novo Nordisk Foundation supports:

Medical research

  • Research relating to the health and welfare of people, including basic biomedical research, translational research, clinical research and public health science research.

 

Research hospital activities

  • Novo Nordisk A/S's research hospital activities (hospital operations at the Steno Diabetes Center, the lifestyle centre Steno Health Promotion Centre and the education project STAR under the auspices of the Steno Education Center).

 

Other scientific purposes, humanitarian and social causes

  • Other research relating to the health and welfare of people, including biotechnology research
  • Pre-seed projects (managed under the Novo Seeds programme under the auspices of Novo A/S)
  • Art history research
  • Humanitarian and social causes.

 

Research grant types

1. Project grants in open competition

The Novo Nordisk Foundation supports the operation of specific research projects, scholarships and symposia.

 

The grants are awarded annually on the basis of calls for applications and the submission of applications through committees.

 

2. Thematic grants

The Novo Nordisk Foundation awards thematic grants with the purpose of developing a well-defined research area, e.g. in the form of funding for the establishment or possible continuation of a small research centre, major project, research school or professorship. Such grants normally have a duration of five years.

 

Within a selected theme, the Novo Nordisk Foundation also launches major long-term (e.g. 10 years) research initiatives. The grants must provide unique opportunities for the research to excel internationally as ground-breaking and top-quality research. They are awarded for the establishment of a centre, a technological platform or a network of research teams within the same overall concept/framework.

 

The grants may be awarded on the basis of calls for applications and the submission of applications through committees or through the Board of the Novo Nordisk Foundation after project assessment by external experts of a high international standard.

 

3. Honorary awards

The purpose of these awards is to reward researchers for a unique research effort. Honorary awards are not open for application.

  • The Marie and August Krogh Prize (under the auspices of the Danish Medical Society)
  • The Hagedorn Prize (under the auspices of the Danish Society for Internal Medicine)
  • The Novo Nordisk Foundation Lecture (under the auspices of the Scandinavian Society for the Study of Diabetes and the Foundation's Nordic Research Committee)
  • The Jacobæus Prize (under the auspices of the Foundation's Nordic Research Committee)
  • The Novo Nordisk Prize (under the auspices of the Foundation's Prize Committee).

 

Eligibility and impartiality guidelines
Employees in the Novo Group companies may not apply for funding from the Novo Nordisk Foundation.

  • A committee member may not be the main applicant in applications assessed by the committee of which that person is a member
  • A member of the Novo Nordisk Foundation's committees is deemed to have a conflict of interest if that person has a special personal or financial interest in the outcome of a decision.

 

Standards for good research practice

Researchers receiving funding from the Novo Nordisk Foundation must agree to comply with the Foundation's standards for good research practice.

 

 

20-1-2012