Over €9 Million From the Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation for Science and Culture

Johanna Sippo

17.12.2025

The Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation has awarded €9.2 million in grants to ten projects in technology, other scientific fields, and culture. This brings the Foundation’s total grants awarded in 2025 to €38.4 million.

The applications were high quality, and this round saw a particular emphasis on chemistry and medical engineering in the applications. The largest grant—€1.57 million—was awarded to the research group led by Associate Professor Isaac Afara at the University of Eastern Finland. The group aims to grow personalized cartilage tissue in the laboratory to improve treatment for osteoarthritis.

Biodegradable, Gram-Weight Drones Navigate Without Motors

The goal of Associate Professor Hao Zeng’s (Tampere University) and Associate Professor Yinyin Bao’s (University of Helsinki) research group is to develop a completely new type of biodegradable drone powered by wind energy. Only about a centimeter long and weighing less than a gram, these drones are made from a material that helps them hover even in a light breeze and respond to environmental changes, such as shifts in light or humidity. They do not require a power source. Instead, they can independently take off and land, fly, and navigate—for example, by orienting toward the sun. The drones can carry a five-gram payload, and in the future, they could be equipped with different sensors and used, for instance, to monitor environmental conditions. The internationally ambitious project is expected to generate new knowledge by combining soft robotics with biodegradable materials.

What Can Tree Rings Reveal About Forest Water Use?

A project led by Senior Researcher Katja Rinne-Garmston at the Natural Resources Institute Finland examines how forests have used water over different periods of time. The aim is to develop a new method for analyzing tree rings. This method will make it possible to assess both water uptake by roots and water loss through leaves via transpiration. For the first time, this will provide precise information on how drought and other climate factors have affected tree growth in Finnish forests. The results can be used to improve climate models, support sustainable land-use planning, and strengthen the protection of natural resources. The method could also be applied to other scientific fields in the future.

A New Method for Monitoring Plant Photosynthesis

Plants may appear passive because their essential functions happen out of sight, but they are highly active and continuously adapt to environmental changes. Professor Albert Porcar Castell, Academy  Research Fellow Jon Atherton, and their research group at the University of Helsinki are developing new optical remote-sensing technology to accurately monitor plant photosynthesis and its changes—from individual leaves to entire forests and agricultural fields. The measurements rely on faint optical signals produced by plants’ use of light. These signals can be detected using sensors installed on towers and satellites, for example. This makes it possible to combine small- and large-scale data on how plants respond to different climate factors. The results will help track how much carbon nature absorbs and how much is released into the atmosphere. They will also support climate-change adaptation and help safeguard the benefits people derive from nature.

Further information:

Hanna-Mari Peltomäki, Secretary General
Jane and Aatos Erkko Foundation
hanna-mari.peltomaki@jaes.fi +358 44 513 1069
www.jaes.fi

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