The Bevica Foundation is awarding 10 million DKK for research into a more inclusive society

The Bevica Foundation is awarding 10 million DKK for research into universal design as a means to creating a more inclusive and equitable society for everyone. The grants are awarded following a PhD call that the foundation announced last autumn.

The projects cover a wide range of applications for universal design as a research lens, and this is exactly what pleases Thomas Sinkjær, Chair of the Bevica Foundation’s Board and head of the assessment committee.

"The high number of applications we received shows us that more people are beginning to realise how universal design can be used as a prism to approach perhaps familiar issues in a new way, moving society as a whole in a more inclusive direction across many different areas."

The funds are distributed to PhD projects at VIA University College, the Royal Danish Academy, DTU, and the IT University of Copenhagen, covering fields such as fashion, architecture, health, play and pedagogy, and land conversion for nature.

"We are pleased to see the academic breadth that the applicants have brought. It helps to push the research field of universal design forward in a positive way and challenges us all to look at society from a new perspective. This is absolutely necessary and in line with our goals as a foundation," says Thomas Sinkjær.

Equality requires strategic anchoring

The grants from the Bevica Foundation are supported by an assessment committee consisting of the Chair of the Bevica Foundation and Professor of Neuroscience and Technology at Aalborg University, Thomas Sinkjær; researcher at the Royal Danish Academy and Adjunct Professor at the University of Copenhagen, Ulrika K. Stigsdotter; Professor of Design at Mid Sweden University, Per-Olof Hedvall; Senior Researcher at VIVE, Leif Olsen; and VP at Novo and former Chair of the Danish Disability Council, Liselotte Hyveled.

The latter, Liselotte Hyveled, agrees and is pleased to see how widely the grants have reached, as she believes this is a prerequisite for society to have the knowledge required to actually develop in a more socially sustainable and equitable direction.

"If we want a society with room for everyone, we must stop treating symptoms. Through this massive research effort, we are using universal design as a strategic tool to understand what creates inequality in our shared everyday life. So that we can focus our efforts in the right places to break them down," she says, and continues.

"Equality is not something we can just hope for – it must be designed. By linking solid research with universal design, we gain the tools needed to systematically identify and break down the barriers that currently exclude far too many people from the community."

On the Bevica Foundation's website, we have compiled the research projects that have received funding. You can follow them under PhD call 2026 recipients via this page.

Additionally, read more about the PhD call and the original mandate here.