Working groups and committees

• Professor Anja Boisen, Department of Health Technology, DTU, board member, Villum Foundation.
• Professor Christian S. Jensen, Department of Computer Science, Aalborg University, board member, Villum Foundation
• Professor Susana F. Huelga, Institute of Theoretical Physics, University of Ulm, Germany
• Professor Bo Wahlberg, Division of Decision and Control Systems, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden
• Professor Bert Meijer, Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands
• Professor Andreas Mayer, Department of Biochemistry, University of Lausanne, CH

• Eva Zeuthen Bentsen, hospital director, Mental health Services, The Capital Region of Denmark, PhD, MSc in Economics and Business administration, board member, Villum Foundation
• Connie Hedegaard, former Danish Minister for the Environment, Minister for Climate and Energy, EU Commissioner, etc., board member, Villum Foundation

• Jens Kann-Rasmussen, MSc (Eng), former department head at VELUX A/S, chair of Villum Foundation
• Jørgen Tang-Jensen, former CEO of VELUX A/S, board member, Villum Foundation

Villum Young Investigator Programme has a special committee for selecting nominating the most suitable candidates. The members are: 

• Chair Klaus Mølmer, Professor, Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen  
• Philip John Withers, Professor of Materials Science, The University of Manchester
• Søren Fournais, Professor, Department of Mathematics, Aarhus University
• Stine Helene Falsig Pedersen, Professor, Department of Biology, University of Copenhagen
• Catherine Heppell, Professor of Physical Geography, Queen Mary University of London
• Owen Lewis, Professor of Ecology, Department of Zoology, University of Oxford
• Mikael Käll, Professor, Department of Physics, Chalmers University of Technology
• Mårten Ahlquist, Professor, Theoretical Chemistry & Biology, KTH Royal Institute of Technology 
• Rüdiger Urbanke, Professor, Department of Computer Science and Communications, The Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Lausanne

The Synergy programme’s scientific committee consists of the members of the working group for technical and natural sciences and three external members who complement the working group with their professional expertise. The three complementary members are: 

• Professor Michael Böhlen, Department of Informatics Database Technology, University of Zurich, Switzerland
• Professor Mathias Drton, Department of Mathematical Statistics, Technical University of Munich, Germany
• Professor Stine Lomborg, Department of Communication, University of Copenhagen, Denmark

Internal committee members of the Synergy programme:

• Professor Anja Boisen, chair, Department of Health Technology, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), board member, Villum Foundation
• Professor Christian S. Jensen, Department of Computer Science, Aalborg University, board member, Villum Foundation
• Professor Susana F. Huelga, Institute of Theoretical Physics, University of Ulm, Germany
• Professor Bo Wahlberg, Division of Decision and Control Systems, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden 
• Professor Bert Meijer, Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven University of Technology, Netherlands
• Professor Michael Böhlen, Department of Informatics Database Technology, University of Zurich, Switzerland
• Professor Mathias Drton, Department of Mathematical Statistics, Technical University of Munich, Germany
• Professor Stine Lomborg, Department of Communication, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
• Professor Andreas Mayer, Department of Biochemistry, University of Lausanne, CH

The Villum Kann Rasmussen Annual Award in Science and Technology is awarded by the foundation’s board on the recommendation of an external expert committee. The members are:

• Professor Anja Boisen, Department of Health Technology, Technical University of Denmark (DTU), board member, Villum Foundation.
• Professor Bo Wahlberg, Division of Decision and Control Systems, KTH Royal Institute of Technology, Sweden
• Professor Bert Meijer, Department of Chemical Engineering and Chemistry, Eindhoven, Netherlands

Applications for the Villum Experiment programme are assessed by a panel consisting of approximately 20 internationally renowned researchers with no connection to Denmark. In accordance with the programme’s use of double-blind assessment, members are anonymous to the applicants.

The task of the technical committee is to assess the professional quality of applications and, on this basis, recommend applications for grants. The members are appointed for two years and together cover the following areas of professional competence:

• Science didactic research
• Knowledge of IT didactics and understanding of technology
• Project management and project maker experience
• School development at primary school level
• Educational development at upper secondary school level
• Competency development and higher education levels in science education
• After-school and NGO sector
• Experience in natural sciences education
• Experience in school management
• Diversity in didactics

Members

• Per Bonvig Christensen (chair), board positions within the field of education, including chair of VIA University College, HF & VUC København Syd and the Danish SOSU schools
  Katja Munch Thorsen, MSc in Social Science, Director of Education at the Copenhagen Business Academy KEA
• Thomas Færgeman, executive director of Fugleværnsfonden (the Danish Bird Protection Foundation) and chair of Haver til Maver
• Rikke Søgren Raisa, Master of Public Management, Head of Vocational Training at Svendborg Vocational College and upper secondary schools
• Thomas Kjærgaard, PhD and associate professor at the teacher education programme in Aalborg
• Lene Møller Madsen, Associate Professor in Science Education at the Department of Science Education at the University of Copenhagen

• Kasper Ottosson Kanstrup, Chair, founder of UNLEASH GLOBAL, works as a consultant with a focus on leadership, strategy, and partnerships.
• Isabelle Le Mouillour, Director of VET in international comparison, research, and monitoring at BIBB.
• Jan Reitz Jørgensen, private consultant, former senior advisor at the Ministry of Education with a focus on internationalisation in vocational education.
• Lidia Mikolajczyk-Gmur, former CEO and chairperson of board of VELUX Polska with 10 years of experience as an external consultant, focusing on project monitoring in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, and Poland.
• Marloes DeVries, Director and Chair, Zadkine Vocational Education College, Rotterdam, former member of the board for the vocational education school Da Vinci, Dordrecht.

Daylight Prize – jury:

• Anne Lacaton, founder of Lacaton & Vassal Architectes, Paris, recipient of The Daylight Award in 2011, winner of the EU Mies Award 2019 and Pritzker Prize Laureate 2021, associate professor of architecture and design at ETH Zurich.
• Dorte Mandrup, founder of Dorte Mandrup A/S, Copenhagen, chair of the Mies van der Rohe Award 2019, adjunct professor at the Royal Danish Academy.
• Marilyne Andersen, professor of sustainable building technologies and dean of the Royal Danish Academy, the School of Architecture, Civil and Environmental Engineering at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, and recipient of the Daylight Prize in 2016.
• Gerd Folkers, professor of Pharmaceutical Chemistry at ETH Zurich. Former employee of the Swiss National Science Foundation and since 2012 Director of Collegium Helveticum since 2012. Member of the Swiss Science Council (SSC) and president until 2019.
• Russell Foster, Director of the Nuffield Laboratory of Ophthalmology and Head of the Sleep and Circadian Neuroscience Institute at the University of Oxford. In 2020, Russell Foster was awarded the Daylight Prize for Research.
• Juhani Pallasmaa, Finnish architect, writer, educator and practicing architect. Member of the jury of the Pritzker Architecture Prize from 2009-2014.
• Koen Steemers, (chair), professor of sustainable design, Martin Centre for Architectural and Urban Studies, Department of Architecture, University of Cambridge, UK.

Building Component Award – jury:

• Anna Mette Exner, owner of Anna Mette Exner Arkitektur
• Claus Juul Nielsen, CEO, Gamle Mursten
• Frank Jensen, CEO, Søren Jensen Rådgivende Ingeniørfirma (consulting engineers)
• Jacob Steen Møller, former Director of Facilities, DTU
• Mette Tony, partner, Praksis Arkitekter, chair for the jury 
• Torben Sørensen, vice president, VKR Holding A/S 

The committee monitors and evaluates ongoing asset management and ensures it follows the investment strategy and practices adopted by the boards. The committee also serves as a sounding board for the foundations’ investment teams when adjusting the strategy and making new investments in emerging areas.

The boards and the daily management are represented on the investment committee, which also includes external and independent experts.

Members:

• Jens Kann-Rasmussen, MSc (Eng), former department head at VELUX A/S, chairman of Villum Foundation
• Lykke Kann Ogstrup Lunde, journalist, chair of VELUX FOUNDATION 
• Jørgen Tang-Jensen, former CEO of VELUX A/S, board member of Villum Foundation
• ​Pernille Jessen, CIO at AP Pension, external member
• ​Michael Nellemann Pedersen, MSc in Political Science, Chief Investment Officer at PKA, external member