Najim Lahrouchi, Sophie Rose, Max Kerr Winter, Vatsal Sanjay and Willy Sier are the first ever recipients of the Ammodo Science Fellowship. Each fellow receives between 100,000 and 200,000 euros to do innovative research at an international research institute that is ideally suited for their research project. This enables early-career researchers to expand their international network and carve out a clear vision for their future academic career.
On 4 February 2025, for the first time, five Fellows were presented with an Ammodo Science Fellowship: a new initiative from Ammodo to allow early career researchers to dive into an important research question at an international host institute.
Ammodo recognises that international exchange is essential for fostering exceptional research and developing outstanding researchers. It enables reseachers to build their own network, gain exposure to various perspectives and methodologies, and experience cultural differences in how research is conducted. Those who already gained international experience can continue their research in the Netherlands, if a group based there aligns well with their specific research needs.
'These exchange experiences not only enrich researchers as individuals but also benefit host institutions, which gain fresh perspectives and ideas.'
– Juliette de Wijkerslooth, General Director of Ammodo
The Ammodo Science Fellowship is awarded biennially to early-career researchers in four science domains: Biomedical Sciences, Humanities, Natural Sciences and Social Sciences.
The Fellows are:
Najim Lahrouchi
Using big data, Najim Lahrouchi is searching for the genetic causes of congenital heart disease.
Domain
Biomedical Sciences
Host institute
Broad Institute of Harvard and MIT, United States
Sophie Rose
Sophie Rose investigates how mental illness was understood in the Dutch East Indies during the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries.
Domain
Humanities
Host institute
Leiden University, The Netherlands
Max Kerr Winter
Max Kerr Winter uses big data and machine learning to understand economic behaviour in underground fungal networks.
Domain
Natural Sciences
Host institute
Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Vatsal Sanjay
Vatsal Sanjay uses fluid dynamics to understand how substances flow along the ‘highways’ of underground fungal systems.
Domain
Natural Sciences
Host institute
Cambridge University, United Kingdom
Willy Sier
Willy Sier conducts ethnographic research on the changing perspectives on reproduction and motherhood among women from rural China.
Domain
Social Sciences
Host institute
Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong
Published on 3 April 2025.
Photos: Florian Braakman
