Distinguished Lorentz Fellowship (nias) (original) (raw)
The Distinguished Lorentz Fellowship
The development of interdisciplinary research and the exchange of ideas between the Social Sciences and/or the Humanities and the Natural or Technological Sciences, which have increasingly grown apart, deserve special attention. Many believe that it is at the interface between these particular disciplines that the most exciting advances are to be expected. This parallels the current debate on themes that focus on the 'cultural, social and economic development of society' as stated in the Royal Academy's Strategic Plan. The significance of research in the technical, life and physical sciences and its impact on society needs sustained attention. The Lorentz programme aims to address this issue providing fellowships and workshops where top-researchers from a variety of disciplines and countries can work intensively together to address socially relevant research questions.
In 2008, the Lorentz Advisory Board, NIAS and the Lorentz Center decided to enrich the Lorentz programme by means of a new initiative: the Distinguished Lorentz Fellowship. This fellowship is meant to encourage leading figures working in the Netherlands to pursue a research project during a residential fellowship at NIAS that culminates in an international interdisciplinary workshop. The Distinguished Lorentz Fellowship is open to researchers from the academic world as well as from other research institutions. The main criteria are that nominees should be able to cross the divide between the Social Sciences and/or the Humanities and the Natural or Technological Sciences or have clearly implemented findings from their own interdisciplinary research in service to society.
Each year, members of the Royal Academy (KNAW) and 'De Jonge Akademie', Directors of the KNAW Institutes, Boards, Deans and governors of the Dutch Universities, NWO, TNO, Public Sector Knowledge Institutions and other research bodies are approached to nominate candidates. Researchers working on interdisciplinary themes, who are themselves interested in the fellowship, can approach someone else to nominate them.
The Lorentz Advisory Board, chaired by Prof. A. Rinnooy Kan, selects the winner on the basis of a description of the research project and an outline of the interdisciplinary theme of the workshop, which shows how various disciplines would be involved. Each year, one theme will be highlighted (see the first Distinguished Lorentz Fellow, Prof. Jan van Leeuwen). However, in special circumstances several researchers may share the fellowship if they are working on the same theme.
The annual Distinguished Lorentz Fellowship entails:
- A personal prize of € 10.000
- A Residential fellowship at NIAS including replacement funds of € 5000 per month for a maximum of ten months. The fellowship period may be split into sections of one or more months spread throughout the academic year (1 September to 30 June). Any remaining replacement funds may be used to support a guest researcher.
- A budget of € 25.000 (and assistance) with which to organise an interdisciplinary workshop at the Lorentz Center that leads to one or more publications.
The Lorentz fellowship program receives the generous support of the Board of the Dutch Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences and the Dutch Ministry of Education, Culture and Science.
The deadline for nominations is the second week of September. For details on how to nominate a candidate, please contact P.A. Kievit-Tyson tel. 00 +31 (0)70 5122725. p.kievit@nias.knaw.nl or nomination@nias.knaw.nl