Press release from the Nobel Foundation
On Wednesday, 4 May, the Nobel Foundation announced that SEK 1.2 billion (more than USD 120 million) has been donated by Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation and the Erling-Persson Foundation to build the Nobel Center − a house for science, culture and dialogue to be located at Slussen in central Stockholm.
This means that funding has been secured and the project will now move forward. At the same time, the Nobel Foundation unveiled its plans for the Center's public activities, which will inspire Stockholm residents, school children and tourists to participate in solving the challenges of the future and helping create a better world.
“We live in a time of war in Europe. Human rights are being violated. Free speech is being attacked, and we are seeing campaigns against facts and science. The Nobel Center will stand for the opposite, there we will tell the stories of pioneering, creative and courageous laureates, who for more than a century have contributed to the greatest benefit to humankind – making solid contributions that have changed the world, that give us hope and also strongly influence our future,” says Vidar Helgesen, Executive Director of the Nobel Foundation.
One of the most important prerequisites for turning the vision of a new house for science, culture and dialogue into a reality is donations totalling SEK 1.2 billion from the Erling-Persson Foundation and Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation. The rest of the funding, SEK 200 million, will be the responsibility of the Nobel Foundation.
“The Nobel Center will offer people both in Sweden and internationally a place for knowledge, inspiration and exciting encounters. The Nobel Prize is well established in the world and shows the importance of science, culture and peace efforts as driving forces for positive global development. The Nobel Center will make all of this accessible to a larger audience. For us at the Erling-Persson Foundation, it thus feels important − together with Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation – to contribute to the implementation of this initiative,” says Stefan Persson, Chairman of the Erling-Persson Foundation.
“For research and education at Swedish institutions of higher education, the Nobel Prize is incredibly important − for the broader image of Sweden as an advanced scientific nation but also for its powerful role in attracting researchers and graduate students to our country. We believe that a Nobel Center that is accessible to everyone, in the heart of the city − filled with inspiring content and providing a place for dialogue across national, disciplinary and societal boundaries − will be highly valuable to our country. We are therefore pleased to join with the Erling-Persson Foundation to make the establishment of a Nobel Center possible,” says Peter Wallenberg Jr, Chair of Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation.
The Nobel Center will be a venue for Nobel Prize laureates, Stockholm residents, tourists, students and their teachers. The goal is for all students in Sweden to visit the Center at some point during their school years. Teachers will be offered lesson materials and continuing education. There will also be extensive programme and exhibition activities at the Nobel Center based on the laureates, their discoveries and their works. A preview can be seen as early as this autumn, when the Nobel Prize Museum opens an exhibition entitled Life Eternal at the Liljevalchs art gallery in Stockholm. The entire area that usually houses the Liljevalchs spring salon will display a mix of science, art and cultural history that demonstrates different approaches to eternity.
“I hope that the establishment of the Nobel Center will increase interest in science and persuade more children and youth to dream of becoming researchers. This will be needed if Swedish research is to continue developing and to help find smart solutions to major societal problems. The Swedish government, together with the City of Stockholm, has a positive view towards contributing to the activities at the future Nobel Center,” says Anna Ekström, Minister for Education.
“Stockholm is the hometown and Sweden is the home country of the Nobel Prize. Located at Slussen, in the heart of Stockholm, the Nobel Center will be easily accessible to both Stockholmers and the millions of tourists who visit our city every year. The Nobel Center will enable more people to become knowledgeable about one of the world's most famous and prestigious academic prizes, and Stockholm will strengthen its position as a top-ranking, innovative city of science,” says Anna König Jerlmyr, Mayor of Stockholm.
At today’s press conference Vidar Helgesen, Executive Director of the Nobel Foundation, also announced that the intention is to hire David Chipperfield Architects Berlin to design the new Nobel Center. This is one of the world's most renowned architectural firms, which also became quite familiar with the public activities surrounding the Nobel Prize during the previous project.
Facts about the Nobel Center
- The Nobel Center will offer a broad range of public activities including exhibitions, school programmes, lectures and conversations about the major issues of the future. The public activities that are already being conducted around the world, digitally and at the Nobel Prize Museum in Stockholm’s Old Town, will be further developed and scaled up for the opening of the Nobel Center.
- The Erling-Persson Foundation and Knut and Alice Wallenberg Foundation are each contributing SEK 600 million. The remainder of the funding, SEK 200 million, will be the responsibility of the Nobel Foundation.
- Construction of the Nobel Center is planned on the property designated as Södermalm 7:87 (Hamnmästaren) along Stadsgårdskajen, just east of Slussen on the northern waterfront of Södermalm island. The property is part of the existing detailed local plan for Slussen, which has gained legal force. The site was originally intended for an office building. The local plan includes clear and binding limits on the building's design, for example in terms of maximum height and width.
- The start of construction is planned for 2026, with a two-year construction period. Inauguration may occur during 2029.
For further information, please contact:
Rebecka Oxelström, Head of Press
[email protected]
+46 734 12 66 75
Illustration of the Nobel Center. Illustration: TMRW.inc