The Daniel Carasso Fellowship closes its second call with an increase in the variety of scientific disciplines from which projects for change are proposed

The second call for the Daniel Carasso Fellowship, a grant program for the recruitment of postdoctoral researchers committed to sustainable food systems and diets, has closed with a large number of applications from different scientific disciplines, demonstrating the diversity of approaches and knowledge from which it is possible to promote the food transition that we are committed to every day.

From the Daniel and Nina Carasso Foundation we are very happy with the reception that this second call has had through which we grant two grants, of 160,000 euros each, to finance the hiring and development of research activities of the selected people in a Spanish university or research center.

In addition to supporting scientific careers, the ultimate goal of the program is to build a community of researchers who are committed to joining their efforts to guide the transition to sustainable food systems.

Quality and diversity of approaches

Although 78% of the applications received come from Spain, this edition stands out for the applications that have come from countries such as Albania, Switzerland, Italy, Egypt, Iran, China, Argentina and Mexico. In addition, the quality of the proposals is another point to highlight as well as the variety of disciplines from which they address the generation of knowledge necessary for the transition to sustainable food, such as food engineering, nutrition and health, social sciences, marine sciences or agronomy.

All these proposals and the ideas they present give us a very broad vision of the dimension of sustainable food and show us that the transition towards fairer, greener and more resilient systems must be worked on from different angles to have a complete vision of the system.

It should also be noted that 39% of the applications come from research centres while 61% come from universities and that 70% of the candidates for the Daniel Carasso Fellowship are women compared to 30% of men who have submitted their proposal.

Since the deadline for receiving applications closed on March 10, a committee made up of researchers from different disciplines analyzes each of them to pre-select the six candidacies that will go on to the next phase, in which a professional and independent jury will select the two beneficiaries in this second edition of the Daniel Carasso Fellowship.

The period during which this financial aid will be accompanied will be two years and this aid is divided into 120,000 euros for recruitment and 40,000 euros for research activities.

The need to support projects that promote sustainable food

At the Daniel and Nina Carasso Foundation we believe that science is one of the pillars for building fairer, greener and more resilient societies. In the context of the climate and socio-economic crisis we are experiencing, it is necessary to generate knowledge and identify viable solutions that ensure universal access to food and, at the same time, preserve natural resources. We are convinced that guiding this transition requires understanding the challenges and complexities of the ecological, socio-economic and nutritional mechanisms of food and agriculture, as well as the links that bind them together.

With this in mind, the Daniel Carasso Fellowship, aimed at promoting sustainable food systems and diets from interdisciplinary and multidimensional approaches, has a double intention: on the one hand, to promote research on sustainable food in Spain and, on the other, to consolidate scientific talent in our country.

Recognizing that change requires a systemic approach that targets the entire food value chain, our vision of food systems encompasses the interactions between all elements (environment, people, inputs, processes, infrastructures and institutions) and activities involved in the production, extraction, processing, distribution, processing and consumption of food, as well as the results of these activities.

From the Daniel and Nina Carasso Foundation we want to support those projects that promote the transition to sustainable food systems from a global vision and that generate knowledge around decision-making based on scientific evidence. At the same time, we want to create a network of researchers who will help us achieve these goals that affect us all. Through the Daniel Carasso Fellowship we want to contribute to addressing these challenges that are key to our work as a foundation.

Photos: Zoe Schaeffer / Duong Tri