15 March 2019

Science is a powerful tool to understand and change the world for the better. The national Centre for Learning in Science, Technology and Health in Denmark – Astra* – wants to strengthen and develop science learning to train a new generation of young people with strong science competencies. It is important for the future of Denmark and our role in a globalized world.

One of Astra*’s activities is Unge Forskere (Young Scientists) which is Denmark’s largest talent competition for children from Danish elementary schools and high schools within STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics).

The LEO Foundation has decided to award Astra* with a grant of DKK 6,000,000 to support the competition “Unge Forskere 2019-2021”. In this way, the LEO Foundation wants to contribute to encourage the interest and engagement in natural science and strengthen the pipeline of future expert researchers within STEM.

The Unge Forskere-competition contributes to both talent development through participation in the competition, and it strengthens the work with innovation, idea development and the natural science method in daily teaching. It is a program that focuses both on the most talented young people, and generally strengthens the natural science identity and general science education among children and young people in Denmark.