The BRIGHT research initiative will take over from the Novo Nordisk Foundation Centre for Biosustainability. Both initiatives owe their existence to investments from the Novo Nordisk Foundation. The latest grant of approximately DKK 1 billion over the next seven years will fund BRIGHT, the Novo Nordisk Foundation Biotechnology Research Institute for the Green Transition.
The mission-driven research environment at BRIGHT will thus continue with around 300 employees. Over the past 15 years, they have developed cell factories where genetic engineering is used to get microorganisms such as bacteria and yeast cells to produce substances such as chemicals, thereby making it possible to replace the industry's use of fossil resources in production.
Now we must move forward, says BRIGHT's Executive Director Luuk van der Wielen, who comes from a position as head of the Bernal Institute and professor of Biosystems Engineering & Design at the University of Limerick in Ireland.
"We must contribute to realising three missions that are crucial for the world in order to achieve the green transition. A transition where we move away from fossil resources and replace them with biologically based production solutions. At BRIGHT, we will focus on the biosolutions that can promote the production of sustainable materials, microbial foods and climate-neutral agriculture," says Luuk van der Wielen.
