NWO is making €1 million available in top-ups to investigate the potential societal impact of fundamental scientific research. Following the success of the previous round, NWO aims to give more researchers the opportunity to apply. This allows researchers with an existing grant to receive a top-up.
Curiosity-driven research can yield unexpected results with societal impact. However, because these results are not included in the project description, it can be challenging for a researcher to explore the opportunity. To investigate potential impact, NWO developed the Impact Explorer call. Due to the popularity of the pilot program in 2024, the pilot is continued in 2025.
Who can apply
Applications can only be submitted by researchers with an ongoing project from a talent program (Veni, Vidi, or Vici) of NWO or ZonMw and/or researchers with an ongoing project from the Open Competition programs of NWO or ZonMw. These include Open Competition SGW-XS, -M, and -L, Open Competition ENW-XS, -M, and -XL, the TTW Open Technology Program, the ZonMw Open Competition, and the Open Competition ENW Small and Large. The application within the Impact Explorer Call stems from this ongoing research project.
For inspiration on projects that can be funded from Impact Explorer, view previous news items on the program page.
Budget
A minimum of €20,000 and a maximum of €30,000 is available per application. The subsidy ceiling of this call is €1 million.
Deadlines
Applications can be submitted continuously until the subsidy ceiling is reached. Proposals are collected for evaluation at different times:
- March 11, 2025, before 14:00:00 CET
- April 22, 2025, before 14:00:00 CEST
- June 24, 2025, before 14:00:00 CEST
- August 14, 2025, before 14:00:00 CEST
- October 7, 2025, before 14:00:00 CEST
- November 12, 2025, before 14:00:00 CET
- December 20, 2025, before 14:00:00 CET
- February 3, 2026, before 14:00:00 CET (final closure of the subsidy round)