A total of twelve researchers will receive Early Career Awards this year in recognition of their scientific talent – not only visible in their innovative and original research, but also in how they, as scientists, embrace their roles as inspirations, mentors and teachers. All laureates will receive €15,000 for their research. The awards will be presented on Tuesday, 1 December, during a ceremony at the Trippenhuis in Amsterdam.

The UvA laureates

• Ivy Defoe (Forensic Child and Youth Care) studies high-risk behaviour in adolescents, contributing to a better understanding of how it develops. To further this research, she proposes to let teenagers themselves explain their own behaviour. In an article in the journal Nature, she advises scientists to study this phenomenon, which she refers to as ‘teensplaining’. In view of her work as a first-generation academic and her social engagement, the KNAW jury regarded Defoe as a role model for a new generation of researchers.
   
• Bahareh Goodarzi (Amsterdam UMC) focuses on discrimination, equal rights and justice in maternity and neonatal care. Pregnant persons or babies from a non-Western migrant background consistently face a higher risk of illness, death and unnecessary medical interventions than their native Dutch counterparts. Goodarzi wants to change that. The KNAW jury believed Goodarzi’s research to be of immense social significance. Her popular science publications, podcasts and television appearances ensure that her research findings reach a wide audience.
   
• John van de Wetering (Informatics Institute) researches quantum computing software. Quantum computing involves a special type of computer that uses quantum mechanics to perform sophisticated calculations extremely rapidly and efficiently, for example to simulate materials or molecules. A great deal of effort is going into developing the physical technology behind quantum computing. Van de Wetering is studying methods to write quantum computing software that is both efficient and intuitive in its use. His innovations are already in widespread use in the field.