The funding will support mid-career researchers and will help them consolidate their teams and conduct pioneering research on topics and with methods of their choosing. Part of the EU’s Horizon Europe programme, this new round of grants will create an estimated 1,900 jobs for postdoctoral fellows, PhD students and other staff at 189 host institutions.
Mariya Gabriel, European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, said: “The results of this European Research Council grant competition are a testament to the impressive excellence of European research. I am proud that the EU can help top researchers thrive in Europe. Finding new solutions in the fields of energy, health or digital technologies is only possible if we can attract and keep scientific talent. Congratulations to all the grantees!”
President of the ERC Prof. Maria Leptin commented: ”Even in times of crisis and conflict and suffering, it is our duty to keep science on track and give our brightest minds free reign to explore their ideas. We do not know today how their work might revolutionise tomorrow – we do know that they will open up new horizons, satisfy our curiosity and most likely help us prepare for unpredictable future challenges. So, I am thrilled to see a new group of ERC grant winners funded for their scientific journey. I wish them the best of luck on their way to push the frontiers of our knowledge!”
Research projects in 24 countries
The future grantees will carry out their projects at universities and research centres across 24 EU Member States and associated countries, with Germany (61 grants), UK (41) and France (29) as top locations. Scientists and scholars from around the world are eligible to apply to ERC calls. This time, the winners represent 42 nationalities, with Germans (58 researchers), Italians (30) and French (26) leading the ranking in absolute numbers. Five researchers from the US and one researcher from New Zealand intend to move back to Europe with their grants.
In this latest call, 2,652 applicants submitted proposals and 12% of them will receive the funding. Male and female applicants were equally successful in winning the grants.
- Consolidator Grants (2021 call) – facts and figures
- Examples of the research selected for funding
List of researchers selected for funding
- All grants
- Grants in physical sciences and engineering
- Grants in life sciences
- Grants in social sciences and humanities
The statistics and final list of successful candidates are provisional. After the negotiations (exploratory talks) were concluded, Switzerland is considered a country non-associated to Horizon Europe. As a result, host institutions in Switzerland are not eligible for funding. Exceptionally for this call and the Starting Grant 2021 call, as they were already closed before the end of the negotiations between the EU and Switzerland, successful applicants in Swiss host institutions can still be funded provided they move to a host institution in an eligible country. In addition, successful applicants based in a country in the process of associating to Horizon Europe will be treated as based in an associated country only if the relevant Horizon Europe association agreement applies by the time of the signature of the grant agreement.