DET KONGELIGE NORSKE VIDENSKABERS SELSKABS AKADEMI

What DET KONGELIGE NORSKE VIDENSKABERS SELSKABS AKADEMI does

Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab (DKNVS), founded in 1760 in Trondheim, is Norway's oldest scientific institution and one of the world's longest continuously operating learned societies. The organization is structured as two legal entities under a shared board: the Academy (Akademiet) with up to 435 elected scientific members split between humanities and natural sciences classes, and the Foundation (Stiftelsen) which manages endowments and funds. Under royal patronage since 1767 (currently King Harald V as Protector), DKNVS operates under a non-profit model, funded primarily by returns from I.K. Lykkes fond, DKNVS Stiftelsens forskningsfond, and other endowments, with no disclosed annual revenue.

DKNVS's core offerings consist of five product categories: (1) scientific publications, most notably the Skrifter series in continuous publication since 1761 and now available digitally through Universitetsforlaget's Idunn platform and Scandinavian University Press; (2) prizes and medals, including the biennial NOK 1 million Gunnerus Award in Sustainability Science co-awarded with NTNU, the Gunnerus Medal (since 1927), the Memorial Medal (since 1927), and two annual NOK 75,000 scientific prizes for young researchers; (3) research grants and scholarships totaling approximately NOK 600,000 annually distributed across projects, student stipends, and youth prizes; (4) public academic programming including academy meetings, Gunnerus lectures, and excursions; and (5) merchandise and publications sold through a small online shop.

The society serves three primary constituencies: elected scientific members who govern the organization and present research, Norwegian researchers (particularly those under 30 in Trøndelag) who receive funding and recognition, and the general public in Trøndelag who attend free lectures and events. Distribution occurs through free public events at Elvegata 17 and Litteraturhuset in Trondheim, open-access digital publishing, and a small online shop. The organization runs with a minimal staff of approximately 3-5 people under Secretary General Ellen Alm, and strategic partnerships with NTNU, Trøndelag Sparebank, Nasjonalbiblioteket, and Scandinavian University Press provide operational reach beyond what the small staff could deliver alone.

Name

DET KONGELIGE NORSKE VIDENSKABERS SELSKABS AKADEMI

Legal name

Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab

Website

https://dknvs.no

Company type

Private

Founded year

1760

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab (DKNVS) is Norway's oldest scientific institution, founded in 1760 in Trondheim. It operates as a non-profit learned society with up to 435 elected members, publishing the Skrifter scientific series since 1761 and distributing research grants, scholarships, and prizes.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Academic Learned Society

NAICS

Religious, Grantmaking, Civic, Professional, and Similar Organizations (813), Grantmaking and Giving Services (8132)

akta.pro industry

PRIMARYEDAGAFAK

Scholarly Society & Association Publishing

Education/Educational Publishing & Learning Content/Academic & Scholarly Publishing (Journals, Monographs)

SECONDARYBPAGAKAI

Research & Science Grantmaking Foundations

Business & Public Services/Nonprofit, NGO & Social Services/Philanthropy, Foundations & Grantmaking

SECONDARYMPAJABAK

Scholarly Societies & Conference Proceedings Publishing

Media, Entertainment & Sports/Publishing (Books, News, Magazines)/Educational & Academic Publishing (Textbooks, Scholarly, STM)

Keywords

• Scholarly publications
• Scientific prizes
• Research grants
• Academic lectures
• Learned society

Headquarters

HQ city

Trondheim

HQ country

Norway

HQ region

Europe

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Others, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Foundation endowment and fund management: DKNVS operates as a foundation managing various endowments and funds that generate returns used to finance research grants, prizes, and operational activities. Income from I.K. Lykkes fond and DKNVS Stiftelsens forskningsfond provides approximately 600,000 NOK annually for research support.
2. Membership and publication sales: Revenue from book and publication sales through the online shop (nettbutikk), including Skrifter publications and memorial medals.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Det Kongelige Norske Videnskabers Selskab (DKNVS) is Norway's oldest scientific institution, operating as a nonprofit learned society and academy with up to 435 elected scientific members across humanities and natural sciences. The society publishes scholarly works (including the Skrifter series running since 1761), awards scientific prizes and medals, distributes research grants and scholarships totaling approximately 600,000 NOK annually, and hosts public academic meetings, lectures, and excursions primarily in Trondheim.

Product overview

DET KONGELIGE NORSKE VIDENSKABERS SELSKAB (DKNVS) is Norway's oldest scientific institution, founded in 1760, functioning as an academy with approximately 435 members across humanities and natural sciences classes. The organization offers a portfolio of scholarly publications (including the world-renowned Skrifter series published since 1761, now digitally with open access via Scandinavian University Press), prestigious prizes (the NOK 1 million Gunnerus Sustainability Award, scientific prizes for young researchers, Gunnerus Medal, and Memorial Medal), annual research grants totaling approximately NOK 600,000, and regular academic programming including academy meetings, Gunnerus lectures, and excursions. The society operates under royal patronage and aims to promote and disseminate science.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• DKNVS Skrifter
• DKNVS Årbok (Yearbook)
• Gunnerus Award in Sustainability Science
• Scientific Prizes for Young Researchers
• Gunnerus Medal
• Memorial Medal (Minnemedaljen)
• Research Grants and Scholarships
• Academy Meetings (Akademimøter)
• Gunnerus Lectures
• Excursion Programs
• DKNVS Bærekraftspris for ungdom (Sustainability Prize for Youth)

Quantifiable outcome

• One of world's oldest scientific publication series with open access since 2024

Named customers2 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• NTNU (Norwegian University of Science and Technology)coreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 January 2017Joint awarding of the Gunnerus Award in Sustainability Science (NOK 1 million) every two years since 2017. Collaborative events including the annual Høytidsdag ceremony held at Erkebispegården. Research excursions to Sølendet with NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet.
• Trøndelag SparebankminorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-sponsorship of DKNVS Bærekraftspris for ungdom (Youth Sustainability Prize) worth NOK 100,000, launched June 2026 to recognize young people contributing to sustainable solutions in Trøndelag.
• Scandinavian University Press (ScUP)Technology or IntegrationEnglish-language editions of DKNVS Skrifter publications are published through Scandinavian University Press, a Norwegian academic publisher specializing in international publications.
• Nasjonalbiblioteket (National Library of Norway)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerAgreement to remove access barriers for publications older than 2015, making historical Skrifter (1761-1973) freely available online through the National Library's digital archive.
• Statens naturoppsyn (SNO)minorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration partner in Sølendet naturreservat open days, co-organized with DKNVS, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet, and Røros municipality.
• Røros kommuneminorStrategic or Co-development PartnerCollaboration partner in Sølendet naturreservat open days, co-organized with DKNVS, NTNU Vitenskapsmuseet, and Statens naturoppsyn.
• Hyfer (NTNU Futures Festival)minorGTM or Marketing PartnerCo-organized the sofa chat event with Gunnerus Award winner Jianguo Liu and youth participants, combining Gunnerus Award activities with NTNU's futures festival.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Deutsche Akademie der Naturforscher Leopoldina: Germany's National Academy of Sciences, founded 1652. Closely comparable as a long-established European learned society with elected membership, publications, prizes, and policy advisory functions.
• Kungliga Vetenskapsakademien: Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences, founded 1739. Comparable as a Nordic royal learned society awarding the Nobel Prizes in Physics and Chemistry, with elected membership and longstanding scholarly publication activities.
• Det Norske Videnskaps-Akademi: Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, the country's larger learned society for natural sciences, humanities, and social sciences. Directly comparable as a Norwegian scholarly society publishing journals and awarding prizes to elected members.
• American Philosophical Society: US learned society founded 1743 by Benjamin Franklin. Comparable as one of the oldest scholarly societies in the Americas with elected membership, prize-giving (Magellanic Fund), and continuous scholarly publication.
• Det Kongelige Danske Videnskabernes Selskab: The Royal Danish Academy of Sciences and Letters, founded 1742. Closely analogous Nordic learned society with royal patronage, elected membership, publication series, and prize-giving activities.

Broad incumbents

• The Royal Society: UK's national academy, founded 1660. Comparable as a large royal chartered learned society publishing journals (Philosophical Transactions), awarding medals, and electing fellows, though vastly larger in scale and budget than DKNVS.
• Académie des sciences (Institut de France): French Academy of Sciences, founded 1666. Comparable as a historic royal learned society awarding prizes and publishing scholarly works, but operates with much larger national scope and resources.

Emerging players

• ALLEA (All European Academies): European federation of academies including DKNVS. Comparable as the umbrella network coordinating European learned societies on research policy, publishing, and ethics, with overlapping member rosters.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/dknvs
• Instagraminstagram.com/dknvs1760
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/det-kongelige-norske-videnskabers-selskabs-akademi

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about DET KONGELIGE NORSKE VIDENSKABERS SELSKABS AKADEMI