Denmark Independent Philanthropic Foundation Novo Nordisk Foundation Awarded $1.4 Billion in 2024 to Support Around 1,800 New Projects to Improve Health & Sustainability (Society & Planet), Founded in 1924 with Philanthropic Objectives
5th February 2025 | Hong Kong
Denmark philanthropic foundation Novo Nordisk Foundation has awarded $1.4 billion in 2024 to support around 1,800 new projects to improve health & sustainability (in society & the planet). Novo Nordisk Foundation was founded in 1924 in Denmark with philanthropic objectives. Announcement (31/1/25): “In 2024, on its 100th anniversary, the Novo Nordisk Foundation reached a new milestone, awarding close to DKK 10.1 billion (€1.35 billion) to support nearly 1,800 new projects aimed at improving people’s health and the sustainability of society and the planet. The Foundation’s support spanned a diverse array of initiatives, both within Denmark and globally, including projects focused on the green transition, advancement of new technologies, cardiometabolic diseases, and antimicrobial resistance. It is the first time the Foundation has awarded more than DKK 10 billion in philanthropic grants and investments in a year, surpassing the DKK 9.1 billion (€1.21 billion) awarded in 2023.” Novo Nordisk Foundation – Established in Denmark in 1924, the Novo Nordisk Foundation is an enterprise foundation with philanthropic objectives. The vision of the Foundation is to improve people’s health and the sustainability of society and the planet. The Foundation’s mission is to progress research and innovation in the prevention and treatment of cardiometabolic and infectious diseases as well as to advance knowledge and solutions to support a green transformation of society. More info below:
“ Denmark Independent Philanthropic Foundation Novo Nordisk Foundation Awarded $1.4 Billion in 2024 to Support Around 1,800 New Projects to Improve Health & Sustainability (Society & Planet), Founded in 1924 with Philanthropic Objectives “
Major 2024 Novo Nordisk Foundation initiatives and grants include:
- The first Novo Nordisk Foundation Global Science Summit held north of Copenhagen, which gathered 150 international experts to discuss the interplay of major health and sustainability challenges.
- A global partnership with the Gates Foundation and Wellcome to address a series of global health challenges.
- The launch of Denmark’s first AI supercomputer, Gefion, powered by NVIDIA technology, to accelerate research in academia and industry in areas including healthcare, quantum computing, and the green transition.
- The launch of the Partnership for Education of Health Professionals (PEP) in Kenya, in partnership with the Ministry of Health in Kenya and six African-based institutions. This initiative aims to strengthen the education of health professionals in cardiometabolic diseases.
- A new office in Nairobi, Kenya, as part of the Novo Nordisk Foundation’s internationalisation efforts and increased engagement in East Africa.
- Regenerative medicine, with a focus on advancing and applying stem-cell based therapies, was made an explicit part of the Novo Nordisk Foundation’s strategy.
- More than DKK 2.8 billion (€375 million) awarded through grants in open competition. This included:
- Funding for six projects across three themes through the Challenge Programme, with two projects seeking to advance nuclear energy research.
- Funding for 41 exceptional researchers across various scientific disciplines in grants through the 2024 Research Leader Programme
- A grant of DKK 500 million (€67 million) for the Ancient Environmental Genomics Initiative for Sustainability (AEGIS) project, which aims to enhance crop resilience and agroecosystem sustainability. This project was also funded by Wellcome.
- Launch of a partnership with CARB-X to support the early-stage development of tools to prevent, diagnose and treat the most dangerous drug-resistant bacterial infections.
- A contribution of DKK 1 billion (£134 million) to the BRIGHT initiative at the Technical University of Denmark, which aims to accelerate the development of biosolutions and strengthen the bio-based economy.
- The Foundation’s first major grant in the mental health space, an award of DKK 150 million (€20.1 million) for “Best for Us“, a project aiming to help children and adolescents affected by mental distress or mental illness. This project was also funded by the Obel Family Foundation.
- A DKK 202 million (€27.1 million) grant for Campus Kalundborg, aiming to create a unique educational environment for students within the biomanufacturing and biosolutions sphere.
Novo Nordisk Foundation – Established in Denmark in 1924, the Novo Nordisk Foundation is an enterprise foundation with philanthropic objectives. The vision of the Foundation is to improve people’s health and the sustainability of society and the planet. The Foundation’s mission is to progress research and innovation in the prevention and treatment of cardiometabolic and infectious diseases as well as to advance knowledge and solutions to support a green transformation of society.
Setup – The Novo Nordisk Foundation is an independent Danish enterprise foundation. It supports philanthropic purposes using funds deriving from its ownership of and investment in companies and other financial assets. It operates independently of any other interests than those described in the Foundation’s objects. The Foundation is governed by the Danish Foundation Act, and the Danish Business Authority therefore supervises the Foundation. In addition, the Novo Nordisk Foundation is covered by the Recommendations on Foundation Governance of the Committee on Good Foundation Governance.
History – In 1922, August Krogh, a professor at the University of Copenhagen, went on a lecture tour of universities on the east coast of the United States after receiving the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1920. During this tour, his wife, Marie Krogh, persuaded the renowned Danish scientist to take a detour to Toronto, Canada, where the scientists Frederick Banting, Charles Best and John Macleod had just succeeded in manufacturing active insulin. The outcome was that August Krogh received permission to manufacture insulin in the Nordic countries. This not only changed the lives of August and Marie Krogh but also became the starting-point for a unique scientific odyssey and Danish business adventure. August Krogh returned to Copenhagen in December 1922 with permission to manufacture insulin and instinctively knew that he had a historic opportunity and responsibility to change the lives of thousands of incurably sick people with diabetes in Denmark and the other Nordic countries. In a commemorative publication from 1924, Krogh gave a comprehensive account of his role in securing the permission and his own journey to Canada: ”I was soon convinced that it would be invaluable to bring the benefits of insulin to Denmark …” In 1922, August Krogh joined forces with H.C. Hagedorn, a physician specialising in diabetes, and pharmacist August Kongsted to start the production and sale of insulin in Scandinavia. This led to the establishment in 1923 of the company Nordisk Insulinlaboratorium. From the start, the founders placed the company and its responsibilities in a foundation structure. Hagedorn, August Krogh and Kongsted comprised the formal Nordisk leadership in both the company and the foundation and, although all three were very diverse and charismatic men, they agreed on one thing: the profit from the sale of diabetes medicine would be used for scientific and humanitarian purposes. This was fully in accordance with the agreement that August Krogh made with the Insulin Committee of the University of Toronto.
Denmark Independent Philanthropic Foundation Novo Nordisk Foundation Awarded $1.4 Billion in 2024 to Support Around 1,800 New Projects to Improve Health & Sustainability (Society & Planet), Founded in 1924 with Philanthropic Objectives
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