Independent Research Fund Denmark

Independent Research Fund Denmark (often referred to as DFF, and known as the Danish Council for Independent Research until 2017) is a public fund. The Fund’s secretariat forms part of the Danish Agency for Higher Education and Science and supports the Fund’s activities.

Independent Research Fund Denmark finances research of the highest international quality and strengthens pioneering, curiosity-driven research in Denmark. The Fund makes risk-willing investments in research based on researchers’ own best ideas within and across scientific fields. Furthermore, the Fund aims to promote the internationalisation of research and to support both early-career and established researchers. Each year, the Fund also allocates resources to strategic initiatives within politically determined themes— such as green research, research on children and young people, and clinical research — through its thematic committees, which are appointed for one year at a time.

In addition to its core task of funding research, Independent Research Fund Denmark provides scientific advice to the minister, the Danish Parliament, and the wider Danish and international research landscape. This is grounded in the expertise and disciplinary diversity of the Fund’s board and council members, all of whom are recognised and active researchers.