Schmidt Futures—founded by former Google CEO Eric Schmidt and his wife, Wendy—has announced its 2022 cohort of Schmidt Science Fellows.

The 29 early-career scientists from around the world will receive at least one and up to two years of support, including a $100,000 annual stipend as well as individualized mentoring and leadership development, as they pursue their interdisciplinary scientific research. In addition, fellows will participate in international meetings designed to engage leaders in the fields of science, business, and public policy. The 15 women and 14 men—representing 12 nationalities—are the program’s fifth cohort of science fellows, which now number 113 active fellows and alumni.

Established in 2017 in partnership with the Rhodes Trust, the program helps fellows solve problems faster, build a community that supports interdisciplinary scientific collaboration, and leverage that network to drive global change. Previous fellows have combined biology and computer science to revolutionize drug discovery, introduced artificial intelligence to biomedical engineering to bring cancer screening to underserved communities, and worked across the fields of optics, atomic physics, astrophysics, and ocean science to identify new ways to reverse climate destruction.

“We need scientists to have the freedom to take risks with their science, to be ambitious without fear of the consequences of failure, and to draw on whatever discipline they need for the problem at hand,” said Schmidt Science Fellows executive director Megan Kenna. “The clock is ticking on the world’s big challenges, and we need science to play its part in finding solutions.”

For a complete list of fellows, see the Schmidt Science Fellows website.

(Photo credit: Ben Gibbs/Yale University)