Launching a Bold Climate Research Journey
The SDU Climate Cluster (SCC) at the University of Southern Denmark (SDU) proudly welcomes the inaugural Gaia MSCA Fellowship Cohort, consisting of nine exceptional international postdoctoral researchers who have each been awarded a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Postdoctoral Fellowship.
This marks a major milestone for Gaia, SDU’s strategic MSCA COFUND programme, and reflects the university’s deep commitment to advancing interdisciplinary, internationally relevant research that addresses the pressing challenges of climate adaptation, mitigation, and social transformation.
The selected fellows span four faculties across SDU and will engage in research areas ranging from environmental humanities and microbial energy systems to circular welfare, wastewater remediation, mental health, green hydrogen, and next-gen energy storage.
These two-year fellowships are embedded within GAIA’s unique framework - combining academic excellence with secondments and innovation-oriented training. Fellows will work in close collaboration with host departments and non-academic partners to ensure their research has real-world impact.
Meet the Gaia MSCA Fellows 2025:
Anoosh Soltani
Exploring Post-Anthropocene Worldviews: Relational Well-Being and Sustainable Consumption in Danish Ecovillages
Supervisor: Prof. Patricia Wolf (Department of Business & Management)Anusha Rai
Baiting Beneficial Microorganisms for Efficient Anaerobic Digestion with Tunable Metal-Organic Frameworks
Supervisor: Prof. Amelia-Elena Rotaru (Department of Biology)Bue Rübner Hansen
Narrating Science: Cultural Bridges in the Green Transition of Labour
Supervisor: Prof. Klaus Petersen (Department of Culture and Language)David Palomera
Transitioning to a post-growth welfare state
Supervisor: Prof. Peter Starke (Department of Political Science and Public Management)Ebrahim Sadeghi
Scalable high-performance OER catalyst for water Electrolysis deep Diving
Supervisor: Assoc. Prof. Shuang Ma Andersen (Department of Green Technology)Gabriel Libanio Silva Rodrigues
From Natural to Artificial Photosynthesis: Breaking Down the Sun Mountain on the Shoulders of Computational Chemistry
Supervisor: Prof. Erik D. Hedegård (Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy)Hassan Ghermezcheshme
Design of Novel Peptide-Functionalized Polymeric Networks for Nanoplastic Filtrationt
Supervisor: Prof. Himanshu Khandelia (Department of Physics, Chemistry and Pharmacy)Paulina Alejandra Pontifes Cortes
Climate-driven invasions: Managing Marine Ecosystems Risks in the Arctic
Supervisor: Prof. Jamileh Javidpour (Department of Biology)Reza Shirmohammadi
The Role of CO2 Backbone in Carbon Neutral Energy Systems
Supervisor: Prof. Henrik Wenzel (Department of Green Technology)
About the Gaia Programme
Gaia is an MSCA COFUND programme coordinated by the University of Southern Denmark and co-funded by the European Research Executive Agency. Launched in 2025, the programme supports up to 15 two-year postdoctoral fellowships designed to advance climate research while bridging innovation, policy, and societal engagement.
Firmly anchored in SCC, Gaia offers a comprehensive and impactful framework for researcher development. Fellows receive structured training in open science, research ethics, and stakeholder engagement. Their projects are further enriched through tailored secondment opportunities with a network of 24 academic and non-academic partners across Europe. Each fellow benefits from close mentorship by leading SDU scholars and works within an environment that places strong emphasis on interdisciplinary collaboration and research with tangible societal relevance.
Through Gaia, SDU strengthens its role as a catalyst for solution-oriented, international climate research.