EU research grant of 2 million Euros

"This is great acknowledgement for our research group and what we stand for, and for the University of Reykjavík," says Inga Dóra Sigfúsdóttir, professor at the University of Reykjavik in an interview with mbl.is on receiving a research grant amounting to 2 million Euros (300 million ISK) from the EU. The research is for inter-disciplinary research on the effects of stress on the lives of children and teenagers. 

"I've been preparing this for several years," explains Sigfúsdóttir."This is not the first time that I apply for this grant. I've been a finalist four times. There are between 2-3 thousand applicants each time and then twenty percent of applicants are invited for interviews in Brussels." Her project focuses on various effects that stress in the environment of children and teenagers can have on their mental wellbeing and their behaviour. I've been doing the research for the Icelandic Centre for Social Research and Analysis (ICSRA) and many people recognise the research we've been conducting in schools in recent years. We've answered a lot of questions through our research and now our goal is to take the next step using the research we've acquired and has been discussed in over 70 branches of science. 

Asked about what the grant means to continuing research in this field, Sigfúsdóttir says that it will create an incredible amount of opportunities for the research group and for social scicence research in Iceland. "We will be celebrating this weekend and on Monday we'll get to work."