The Young Academy, part of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW), develops activities focussing on interdisciplinarity, science policy, the interface between science and society, and internationalisation. There are currently fifty members.
About Helmer Helmers
Helmer Helmers (1977) studies the history of media and politics. He has written about English-Dutch literary relations in the seventeenth century. Also, he established various national and international partnerships. His current research focusses on the relation between media and diplomacy (public diplomacy) in Europe in the seventeenth century. In addition, he was in charge of a research project that focussed on the recently discovered shipwreck near Texel, which received a lot of media attention. Within The Young Academy, Helmers wants to invest in the position of the Humanities and wants to advocate for a more transparent policy when it comes to assigning research grants, with special attention for the debate about excellence and the Matthew effect, which refers to the fact that people who have already won a grant in the past have a greater chance of receiving another grant in the future.