With this Vici grant, researchers can conduct research and set up their own research group for the next five years. In total, the NWO is awarding 39 Vici grants this year. They will receive an amount of up to one and a half million euros. Radboud University's recipients are:
How the gut talks to the brain in overeating and obesity
Esther Aarts, Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition and Behaviour
Our gut sends signals to the brain that tell us when we are hungry or full. But in overeating, factors such as reward, emotions, and loss of control also play a role. This project will study two ways the gut may influence the brain: gut hormones like GLP-1, and gut bacteria that produce short-chain fatty acids (SCFAs) from dietary fibre. Using brain scans, we will examine how these signals affect reward, emotion, attention, and body awareness, especially in people with both obesity and ADHD.
Political Intersectionality as Practice: Rethinking local Responses to Gender Based Violence
Marieke van den Brink, Faculty of Social Sciences
This project examines how institutions such as municipalities, public health services, youth work, and local police address gender-based violence (GBV), and whether their approaches consider the intersecting inequalities of gender, ethnicity, class, disability, and sexual identity. Using the lens of political intersectionality, it shows how institutional responses can either reproduce or challenge these inequalities. In collaboration with professionals and grassroots organisations, the project develops new ways to recognise, discuss, and prevent harmful practices. Through creative and participatory methods, it contributes to structural change within organisations and to more just and inclusive policies.
DigiPub: Safeguarding the autonomy and integrity of public sectors in the digital transition
Faculty of Philosophy, Theology and Religious Studies
The digitalization of public sectors, such as healthcare and education, is expected to solve many challenges these sectors face, but it also raises important risks. First, increased reliance on infrastructure provided by Big Tech can lead to a loss of autonomy of public sectors. Second, the values that digitalization promotes, e.g. efficiency and personalization, often conflict with core sectoral values. This can lead to a loss of integrity of public sectors. Current approaches, such as “digital sovereignty” and a focus on “public values”, are limited. This project develops a framework for enhancing sectoral autonomy and integrity in the digital transition.