Helsinki Researchers Secure Academy Fellowships, Funding

Researchers from the University of Helsinki performed well in the Research Council of Finland's winter call. 44 members of the university received Academy Research Fellowship funding, and 79 researchers were awarded Academy Project funding. The total funding awarded to the University of Helsinki amounts to €71.8 million.

The funding period in the Academy Research Fellowship and Academy Project funding schemes is four years.

Academy Research Fellowship funding is intended for early-career researchers on a fast career track who have formed international networks and who are conducting scientifically high-quality and high-impact research that contributes to scientific renewal.

The aim of the Academy Project Funding is to promote the regeneration and broad range of Finnish science and to improve the quality and scientific and other impact of research. The aim is to attain internationally as high a scientific standard of work as possible and to support scientific breakthroughs and top-tier international research collaboration.

Below, you will find all new Academy Research Fellows and Academy Projects at the University of Helsinki.

Academy Research Fellows 2026-2030

• Matti Ala-Lahti, geosciences: Shock Impacts on Current Sheets (SICS)
• Charlotte Angove, forestry: Releasing the unique physiological and climatic information from hydrogen isotopes in temperate, boreal and alpine trees
• Tommi Anttonen, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Stronger together? The evolution, physiological role, and formation mechanism of sensory cell syncytia
• Clement Bouvier, geosciences: AI-Dream: Does Artificial Intelligence dream of imaginary clouds? -- How to use Artificial Intelligence to build the next generation of forecasting system
• Kishor Dhaygude, clinical medicine: Saving Heart Transplants with Multi-Modal Molecular Surveillance?
• Emilie Ellis, ecology, evolutionary biology: Tracing the impacts of climate change across biological scales (THERMOTRAIT)
• Antonio Federico, biomedicine: EpiTheraRx: Harnessing Epitranscriptomic Regulation of Alternative Splicing for RNA Therapeutics Innovation
• Steffen Grebe, plant biology, microbiology, virology: What is sustained non-photochemcial quenching? (WisNPQ)
• Eeva Haataja, educational sciences: Co-teachers' professional vision in adaptive instruction
• Riina Harjumäki, pharmacy: Enhanced extracellular vesicles for chronic wound healing (CUREEV)
• Hiroyuki Iida, plant biology, microbiology, virology: Gas Diffusion-Mediated Wound Healing: Barrier Regeneration or Tissue Reunion
• Toni Ikonen, mathematics: uasiconformal geometry and calibrations
• Sharif Iqbal, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Defining mechanisms of embryonic rejuvenation and maternal age barrier at the onset of mammalian life
• Joachim Jansen, environmental sciences: Understanding and Resolving Recurring Anoxia in Lakes (REOX)
• Erkka Järvinen, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Proteomics-centered approach to reveal molecular mechanisms of drug induced liver toxicity
• Sanna Karhu, other social sciences: Rethinking Resistance: Ecofeminist Philosophy of Nonviolence
• Piaopiao Ke, geosciences: The Combined Climate Cooling Role of Ecosystems: CarbonSink+ in Humid Boreal and Arid Mediterranean Ecosystems
• Samuel Kohtala, neurosciences: Regulation of synaptic plasticity by brain temperature dynamics
• Birgitta van der Kolk, biomedicine: Untangling obesity and aging: molecular pathways affecting metabolic health in monozygotic twin pairs
• Kaisa Kärki, philosophy: Agency, Executive Functioning, Achievement: Foundational Questions
• Antti Lahdenperä, chemical sciences: Pintarakenteiden ohjaama regioselektiivinen radikaalien muodostus
• Hannu Lahtinen: Education - a universal solvent? Towards a cross-disciplinary synthesis
• Maria Lahtinen, history and archaeology: Strontium Isotope Tools to Trace Mobility of Aquatic Diet in the Past, the Present, and the Future (SRTOOL)
• Mia Lempiäinen-Avci, history and archaeology: Neolithic Plant Use, Cultivation and Cultural Roles of Plants in Finland, ca. 3000-1500 BCE
• Emma-Liina Marjakangas, ecology, evolutionary biology: Arising novelty in ecological networks: consequences for ecosystem functioning and biodiversity conservation
• Miika Mattinen, materials engineering: Thin film precatalysts for water electrolysis (ThinCat)
• Olivia Maury: MAPS: Mapping Fragmented Labour in the Platformised Service Sector through Migrant Epistemologies
• Timothee Mickus, computer and information sciences: Facts and Language Models (FLaM)
• Tommi Mikkonen, medical engineering: Ultra-sensitive cantilever microphone for non-invasive measurement of blood pressure
• Stefan Millar, anthropology and ethnology: New Humanitarian Infrastructures at the End of Aid
• Sarah O'Keefe, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Inhibiting Protein Synthesis - Old, New, Borrowed, Blue
• Nalle Pentinmikko, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Investigating cell interactions across scales in liver pathologies
• Darina Petrova, law: International Law and Ordering Infrastructures in a Multipolar World (MultiOrder)
• Arthur Rodrigues, ecology, evolutionary biology: MacroLink: Linking large-scale evolutionary and ecological processes for improved predictions of biodiversity change
• Simone Rubinacci, genetics, developmental biology, physiology: Biobank-scale haplotyping to uncover the impact of structural variation on disease risk and drug response
• Pyry Sipilä, public health care science, environmental and occupational health: Unravelling the mechanism of inflammation and infection-related cognitive decline and dementia using proteomics
• Karoliina Stenlund, law: Memory Regimes and Legal Frames - A Critical History of the International Holocaust Remembrance Alliance (MORALMEM)
• Jitka Stollova, literature studies: The Playwright-President: Václav Havel between Theatre and Politics from Prague to the Nordic Stages
• Karoliina Eeva-Maria Suonpää: ADHD and Youth Crime: Trends, Traits, and Treatment
• Jorinde van de Vis, physical sciences: Understanding the origins of matter with gravitational waves
• Ur Ya'ar, mathematics: Interactions between set theory and non-standard logics
• Zhiyu Yang, genetics, developmental biology, physiology: A Longitudinal Framework to Unravel Genetic Determinants of Disease Progression
• Anže Zupanc, chemical sciences: Sustainable Recycling of Critical Raw Materials with Chemicals from Secondary Sources
• Tuomas Äystö, theology: Playing God? Religionization of Big Tech (RELTEC)

Academy Projects 2026-2030

• Tero Aittokallio, biomedicine: Cancer-selective and personalized combinatorial therapies
• Leonardo Almeida-Souza, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: The Dynamics and Function of Reticular Adhesions
• Alex Bunker, biomedicine: BIOCONNEXT: Bioconjugation of Next-Generation Therapeutics via Integrated Computational-Experimental Technology
• Andres Canales-Johnson, neurosciences: Disentangling the cortical mechanisms of prediction error communication
• Susana Maria Domingos de Almeida Garcia, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Energy metabolism dysfunction in RNA repeat pathogenesis
• Ismo Dunderberg, theology: Learning, Knowledge, and Leadership in Early Christianity
• Mikael Ehn, geosciences: Which Processes Govern Baltic Sea VOC Emissions? (WhiP)
• Marko Elovainio, psychology: The Role of Biological Aging in Linking Social Relationships and Health Across the Lifespan
• Anniina Färkkilä, biomedicine: Precision elimination of subsister cells in ovarian cancer (SUBSISTER)
• Minna van Gerven: Digital Deservingness and the Moral-Political Economy of the Welfare State

  Anna Villnäs, ecology, evolutionary biology: Functioning of coastal lagoons under increasing marine heatwaves

• Simon Good, geosciences: The Nature and Origins of Mesoscale Fluctuations in Coronal Mass Ejections (MesoCor)
• Thomas Hackman, astronomy and space science: The Population of Exoplanets around Active Suns (PEAS) Hosts star magnetic activity, detectability, space weather and habitability
• Janne Heiskanen, environmental engineering: Vegetation Optical Depth as Biophysical Proxy: Retrieval, Validation, and Applications (VODBIO)
• Minh Ho, agronomy: Delivery system for adsorption-site bioadhesive probiotics containing vitamin B12 for sustainable and planetary health (B-BIOSYS)
• Markus Holopainen, environmental engineering: Forest Growth Measurement and Modelling from Multisource Laser Scanning Time Series
• Teemu Hölttä, forestry: Understanding Tree Resilience to External Stresses Through Hyper Spatiotemporal Multimodal Sensing and AI
• Kuura Irni, other social sciences: Affectivity and Care Labour in the Kitchen: Creating Possibilities for Food Culture Transformation
• Jukka Jernvall, genetics, developmental biology, physiology: Linking continuous to discontinuous variation in the regulation of dental complexity
• Anni Kajanus, anthropology, ethnology: Encountering limits: A culturally grounded theory of exhaustion
• Johanna Kantola, political science: Equality Politics in the Council of the European Union: Contesting and protecting democracy
• Antti Karkman, plant biology, microbiology, virology: Risks and Mitigation of Antimicrobial Resistance Across One Health Sectors - AMaRONE
• Juha Klefström, biomedicine: Decoding MYC-Driven Mitochondrial Vulnerabilities to Develop First-in-Class Therapies for Aggressive Breast Cancer
• Jari Koistinaho, neurosciences: Heparan sulfate-regulated synaptic mechanisms in schizophrenia
• Juha Kontinen, mathematics: Logic and Computation over Semirings
• Riikka Koulu, law: Digitalised Courts in Context
• Markus Kröger, other social sciences: Forests At Tipping points in the Era of Post-truth and Polycrisis - Insights from Brazil and Finland (FATE)
• Mariike Kuijjer, biomedicine: Precision elimination of subsister cells in ovarian cancer (SUBSISTER)
• Satu Kuure, biomedicine: Developmental Programs Governing Mammalian Regeneration
• Hanna Kuusi, history and archaeology: Conflicting Temporalities in Transitions: Urban Industrial heritage Encountering Green Deal Futures
• Pirjo Laakkonen, chemical sciences: New radioligands for alpha therapy of multiorgan metastasis in cancer
• Antti Latvala, psychology: Testing the Biopsychosocial Model: A Systematic Evaluation of Biopsychosocial Interactions for Antisocial Behavior using Longitudinal Twin Cohort and Population Register Data
• Patrick Lauren, agronomy: Adsorption-site bioadhesive vitamin B12 containing probiotics delivery system for sustainable and planetary health (B-BIOSYS)
• Vadim Le Joncour, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Harnessing cellular and molecular neuroplasticity in brain tumors
• Thomas Lilley, ecology, evolutionary biology: It takes three to tango: bat -fungus -microbiome interactions as drivers of coexistence
• Ivan Mammarella, geosciences: Revisiting the contribution of terrestrial ecosystems to the global budget of carbon monoxide
• Linda Mannila, computer and information sciences: What Makes Us Human? Identifying, Evaluating and Modelling Specialist AI Competence (HUMAIN)
• Michael Mathioudakis, history and archaeology: Interpreting Early Modern Intellectual Networks and Texts: an Interdisciplinary Approach (IMPRINT)
• Satu Mustjoki, clinical medicine: Integrating genetic and pharmacologic mechanisms to uncover and enhance immune responses in cancer
• Mika Mäntylä, computer and information sciences: Monitoring-Assured LLMs for Testing and Chaos Engineering
• Martti Nissinen, theology: Prophecy, Body, and Society in Early Judaism, Christianity and Islam
• Markku Ollikainen, forestry: Viable restoration and carbon pathways for boreal forests
• José Filipe Pereira da Silva: Potentiality in Medieval Natural Philosophy (POTENTIAL)
• Markus Perola, genetics, developmental biology, physiology: Investigating Genomic Resilience to Mendelian Disease in Large-Scale Cohorts
• Tuukka Petäjä, environmental engineering: Observing the Invisible - Spatio-temporal view of the formation of airborne aerosols by utilising novel satellites (LUMOS)
• Matti Pirinen, computer and information sciences: Global meta-analysis of genome-wide data sets
• Jens Pomoell, geosciences: The Nature and Origins of Mesoscale Fluctuations in Coronal Mass Ejections (MesoCor)
• Craig Primmer, ecology, evolutionary biology: A socio-eco-evolutionary approach for natural resource management in the changing Arctic: Teno river salmon as a model system
• Mikko Puustinen, educational sciences: Tracing Knowledge: Universities and the Risk of Empty Education
• Tanja Pyhäjärvi, ecology, evolutionary biology: Thousand ways to die-evolutionary and molecular background of excessive early developmental mortality in Scots pine
• Katri Pynnöniemi: Remaking Russia through War and its implications for Europe (REWAR)
• Tarja Pääkkönen, veterinary science: Biomarkers for Drug Resistant Epilepsy in Canine Spontaneous Epilepsy Model
• Bernhard Reischl, physical sciences: Heterogeneous ice nucleation on atmospheric feldspar mineral dust particles (HINATMIN)
• Sulevi Riukulehto, social and economic geography: Embedded in Place: Exploring Historical Consciousness of Rural Enterprises (EPHiC)
• Claudio Rivera Baeza, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Building Inhibition: How KCC2 Shapes Interneuron Maturation and Cortical Network Stability in Early-Life Epilepsy
• Tomas Roslin, ecology, evolutionary biology: Ecological Interaction Networks - A New Synthesis
• Elina Räsänen: Missing Medieval Art: Tracing the Lost, the Fragmented, and the Undervalued Polychrome Sculptures
• Marjo Saastamoinen, ecology, evolutionary biology: Climate vulnerability assessments from individuals to communities
• Konstantinos (Kostas) Sarakinos, materials engineering: Nanoscale design of multi-functional metal-alloy contacts (NanoMAC)
• Mirkka Sarparanta, chemical sciences: New radioligands for alpha therapy of multiorgan metastasis in cancer
• Åsa von Schoultz, political science: Disentangling Gender and Sex in Candidate Evaluation and Electoral Support (DIGEST)
• K Elina Sihvola, physical sciences: Cosmology from the Euclid mission
• Karri Silventoinen, sociology,: Biological pathways of socioeconomic health inequalities: from genes to society
• Eeva Sippola, languages: Documenting Traditional Palenquero: A Community-Based Approach
• Tarja Sironen, plant biology, microbiology, virology: Pandemic influenza and beyond: decoding the pathways of virus emergence
• Simo Taimela, clinical medicine: Finnish Imaging of Shoulder Study (FIMAGE)
• Li Tian, psychology: TRITONE: CharacTerizing intergeneRational genetIc Transmission Of meNtal hEalth
• Mikko Tolonen, history and archaeology: Interpreting Early Modern Intellectual Networks and Texts: an Interdisciplinary Approach (IMPRINT)
• Alexandru Ioan Tomescu, biomedicine: Decompositions and Optimization in Pangenome Graphs
• Pia Vahteristo, genetics, developmental biology, physiology: Molecular background of uterine tumors: Towards personalized treatment options
• Sakari Vanharanta, biochemistry, cell and molecular biology: Functional tracking of clonal fate through targeted therapy in cancer
• Pekka Varmanen, agronomy: Mechanistic and Systems-Level Understanding of Vitamin B12 Fortification in Plant-Based Fermentations
• Anne Vatén, plant biology, microbiology, virology: Diving Under the Surface: Regulation of Sunken Stomata Maturation (DiverS)
• Marko Vehkamäki, materials engineering: Low-temperature atomic layer deposition of metal oxides for radiofrequency-compatible back-end-of-line and flexible applications
• Anna Villnäs, ecology, evolutionary biology: Functioning of coastal lagoons under increasing marine heatwaves
• Anna Vähärautio, biomedicine: Precision elimination of subsister cells in ovarian cancer (SUBSISTER)
• Ulla Wartiovaara-Kautto, clinical medicine: Deciphering TP53-driven myeloid leukemogenesis - ERCC6L2 Disease as a model
• Susanne Wiedmer, chemical sciences: Green by Design: A Biomimetic and AI-Driven Strategy for Next-Generation Biopesticides
• Petri Ylikoski, philosophy: Models in Argumentation and Policy (MAP)
• Pamela Österlund, plant biology, microbiology, virology: Pandemic influenza and beyond: decoding the pathways of virus emergence

See all the and fundings in natural sciences and engineering.

See all the and fundings in biosciences, health and environmental research.

See all the and fundings in social sciences and humanities research.