NordForsk

NordForsk, established in 2005, is a Nordic research board operating under the Nordic Council of Ministers and responsible for Nordic cooperation within research and researcher training. Funding is provided by the Nordic Council of Ministers and the national research funding organisations of the Nordic countries.

The Nordic research and innovation area (NORIA) is an integral part of the European Research Area (ERA). As part of NORIA, NordForsk is committed to strengthening and developing Nordic science, research, technology and innovation activity with a view to improving the international competitiveness and well-being of the Nordic countries. NORIA aims to combine national strengths with a view to contributing to the success of the Nordic countries on a global scale. In order to achieve these goals, NordForsk works to identify research fields that benefit from a Nordic approach, provides funding to Nordic research and coordination projects as well as drafts recommendations for the Nordic Council of Ministers.

NordForsk is governed by a board composed of representatives of the national funding organisations. The Academy of Finland is represented by its Vice President, Research. A representative of the Finnish universities, usually a rector, is also a member of the board. The NordForsk secretariat is based in Oslo.

Projects applying for funding from NordForsk shall involve researchers from at least three Nordic countries (Finland, Denmark, Iceland, Norway, Sweden) or autonomous areas (the Faroe Islands, Greenland and the Aland Islands). Many NordForsk activities are open to all countries in the Nordic region, which in addition to the Nordic countries includes the adjacent areas: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and North-Western Russia. Researcher training environments in these adjacent areas are offered the opportunity to take part in NordForsk activities both at the institutional and individual level.