THE NORWEGIAN ACADEMY OF SCIENCE AND LETTERS

Honorary President HM King Harald V

In 2005 The Norwegian Academy of Sci­ence and Letters signed an agreement with The Kavli Foundation and The Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research to establish the Kavli Prize in Astrophysics, Nanoscience and Neuroscience. The Kavli Prize is awarded every two years in Oslo, Norway; the first time was in 2008.

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters has since 1911 run its activities from this building. Photo: Eirik Furu Baardsen

The Academy The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, founded in 1857, is a non-govern­mental, nationwide, and interdisciplinary body which embraces all fields of learn­ing. The main purpose of the Academy is the advancement of science and scholar­ship in Norway. It provides a national forum of communication within and between the various learned disciplines, and it represents Norwegian science vis-á-vis foreign academies and international organizations.

The Academy fulfills these functions by ini­tiating and supporting research projects, by organizing meetings and seminars on topics of current interest, by publishing scientific and scholarly works, and by par­ticipating in and nominating representa­tives to various national and international scientific bodies.

From left: Vice President Kirsti Strøm Bull, President Nils Chr. Stenseth, and Secretary General Øivind Andersen. Foto: Eirik Furu Baardsen

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters represents Norwegian research internationally in the “International Coun­cil for Science” (ICSU), including its many sub-organizations, and in the “Union Académique Internationalé” (UAI), the “European Science Foundation” (ESF) and “ALLEA” (All European Academies).

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters has since 2003 annually awarded the Abel Prize for outstanding scientific work in mathematics. The prize amount is NOK 6 million (approx. EUR 730,000 or USD 1 million).

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters has both Norwegian and foreign members, as well as honorary members. The members are divided into two sec­tions; Mathematics and Natural Sciences and Humanities and Social Sciences. The Academy had a total of 877 ordinary members by the end of 2010; 473 Norwegian and 404 foreign members.

HM King Har­ald is the Honorary President of the Acad­emy. HM Queen Sonja, HRH Crown Prince Haakon, HRH Crown Princess Mette-Marit and Fred Kavli are honorary members of the Academy.