Within the scope of the Research Cooperation Lower Saxony - Israel funding programme, the Ministry of Science and Culture of Lower Saxony (MWK) and the Volkswagen Foundation have approved 13 research projects in natural sciences, mathematics and engineering sciences. Five of these projects are based at the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, the Faculty of Mathematics and Physics and the Faculty of Natural Sciences of Leibniz University Hannover.
Since the quality of the applications submitted for this funding cycle was yet again exceptionally high, the originally envisaged funding amount of €2 million will be raised to €3.9 million. The funds are part of the Niedersächsisches Vorab initiative of the Volkswagen Foundation. Almost €1.5 million are allocated to research projects carried out in cooperation with LUH.
A total of 63 applications were submitted for this funding cycle, confirming the attractiveness of the programme. "The high number of excellent applications proves the success of our programme. I am glad to see it was possible to almost double the funding amount. In doing so, we are promoting international exchange with regard to research and supporting junior researchers in Lower Saxony and Israel", says Björn Thümler, Minister for Science and Culture in Lower Saxony. Dr. Henrike Hartmann, head of the foundation's funding department, is also pleased: "It is obvious that numerous applicants take the opportunity to develop innovative and - in a positive sense - risky projects, many of which are highly competitive on an international level."
The Federal State of Lower Saxony and the Volkswagen Foundation have been fostering academic exchange between Lower Saxony and Israeli universities and research institutes ever since 1977. More than 430 research projects have been funded with a total of €62.8 million since then. The programme aims at encouraging young researchers from both countries to work together. It is divided into three areas of research that are promoted in turn annually: humanities and social sciences, life sciences and medicine as well as natural sciences, mathematics and engineering sciences. Projects funded are carried out over a period of up to three years.
