The International Joint Initiative for Research Harnessing Disruptive Technologies to Address Global Challenges is administrated by New Frontiers in Research Fund (NFRF), Canada. Full information about the call is available on their website.
The Nordic partners of a project proposal can apply for a maximum of 17,1 MNOK in total. The intention is to fund Nordic participation in 12 research projects under this call.
Launching in January 2026, this initiative aims to harness the potential of disruptive technology to offer novel solutions to global challenges and accelerate progress towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). More research is needed on how disruptive technologies can be used in contextually appropriate interventions to have transformative economic or societal impacts to improve the lives of people and the planet.
In this call, Disruptive Technology is defined as “an innovation whose application replaces or radically alters systems, processes and/or behaviours to have transformative economic or societal impacts. The impact may be localized or far-reaching. Disruptive technology may include cutting-edge and novel innovations, or the application of an existing innovation in a new context, bringing about substantial change or paradigm shifts.”
This call is announced as a collaboration between NordForsk, the Dutch Research Council, International Development Research Centre in Canada, New Frontiers in Research Fund in Canada, Research Ireland, Sao Paulo Research Foundation in Brazil, Spanish State Research Agency, Swiss National Science Foundation, National Science and Technology Council in Taiwan, and UK Research and Innovation.
The Nordic participation is managed by NordForsk in partnership with the Research Council of Norway, the Research Council of Finland, the Swedish Research Council, the Independent Research Fund Denmark, Innovation Fund Denmark and Rannís – Iceland who are co-financing the call.
Eligibility
Each project team must be international and eligible to receive funds from at least three participating funding organizations, one of which must be Canadian. Projects that apply for funding from NordForsk must include research partners from at least two different Nordic countries. Nordic countries are defined here as Åland Islands, Denmark, Finland, the Faroe Islands, Greenland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden. One of the Nordic team members must have the role of Co-Principal Investigator in the international project team.
Webinar for Nordic researchers
NordForsk will host a webinar on 03.12 at 10:00 CET for researchers from the Nordic countries interested in the call.
Contact list
If you would like to connect with other researchers interested in this call, we invite you to join New Frontiers in Research Fund’s contact list. Complete this survey before February 9, 2026.
