13 LEO Foundation Annual Report 2020
Grants and awards
Management review
Financial statements
Grants and awards – an extraordinary year for science and research In 2020, the LEO Foundation continued to support international skin research with the aim to improve the understanding and treatment of skin diseases.
In 2020, the LEO Foundation awarded DKK 72 million to research into the skin and its diseases. Grants were distributed across three main groups: • A total of 21 researchers around the world had their application for a research grant approved. DKK 61.1 million was awarded. • Three LEO Foundation Awards were presented to promising young talents – one in each of the regions: Americas, EMEA (Europe, Middle East, Africa) and Asia-Pacific. DKK 1.9 million was awarded.
• One strategic grant was awarded to support the second phase of the Global Psoriasis Atlas, a long-term project in which the Foundation is the lead funder. The Global Psoriasis Atlas seeks to become the go-to evidence-based resource within the understanding of psoriasis and its effects on people and society all over the world. DKK 8 million was awarded.
COVID-19 impact Early in 2020, it became clear that the global COVID-19 pandemic would have a very significant impact on the Foundation’s philanthropic activities. On the lighter side, we were unable to travel and meet with skin researchers around the world. Much more serious was the fact that our grantees’ activities were severely affected by restrictions, and by research laboratories and universities being closed for months. Some of our grantees were also deployed as part of the corona emergency response in hospitals. In March, we reached out directly to our close to 100 grantees with the message that we would stand by them during these difficult times. Our
aim was to keep grantees’ research ambitions intact by helping them complete their projects. By the end of the year, we had received just over 30 change requests for extended timelines, permission to reallocate funds, or additional funding. We have been in close dialogue with these grantees and, as a result, 30 change requests have so far been accommodated, including requests for additional funding for a total amount of DKK 1.4 million. We will continue to stand by our grantees and strengthening our relations with them.
Quality assurance The LEO Foundation evaluated a total of 157 applications distributed across the three main groups: 130 applications for research grants, 25 applications for LEO Foundation Awards and two applications for our strategic grants. The Foundation assesses applications based on accepted international standards. Our two external expert panels – the Scientific Evaluation Committee and the Global Review Panel – comprise international experts from research
institutions around the world, guaranteeing a high level of quality in the evaluation processes. The LEO Foundation Board of Trustees approves all grants and awards, and the Foundation has no intellectual property rights to results from our philanthropic activities. However, we request that the results are published. Compared to 2019, we saw a small decrease in the number of research grant applications in open competition, and the number of award applicants was more than halved. These decreases are mainly due to COVID-19 disruptions, resulting in curtailed basic and clinical research.
Continued focus on data and results Toward the end of the year, we conducted our second round of grantee reporting in Researchfish. We use this online reporting system to collect data and assess the effects of our support and as a helpful tool in our ongoing dialogue with grantees. For 2020, we were pleased to see a continued increase in the number of scientific publications from research projects supported by the LEO Foundation.
Research without borders 2020 was a challenging year for science and research, but the challenges also highlighted the important role of science in mitigating the COVID-19 pandemic. And while countries have closed their borders, scientists have been breaking theirs down, creating a global collaboration. Researchers have identified and shared hundreds of viral genome sequences. Clinical trials have been launched, bringing together hospitals and laboratories around the globe. In less than a year, the first vaccines were rolled out. Great research has no borders, and the LEO Foundation will continue to support the best skin researchers and scientists around the world, who can pave the way for curing skin diseases.
