Assoc. Prof. Michal Smetana from FSV UK received the Neuron Award for Young Promising Scientists 2025
Associate Professor Michal Smetana from the Institute of International Studies FSV UK has won the Neuron Award for Young Promising Scientists 2025 in the field of social sciences. The committee appreciated his innovative way of connecting the fields of international relations, security studies and political psychology, to which he has even introduced experimental methods from the natural sciences.
“It is a great joy and a huge award not only for me, but for our entire research team. We have a very ambitious research agenda planned for this year, so it is also a great encouragement for further work,” says Assoc. Prof. Smetana, who has been researching international security, war and peace for a long time. As director of the Prague Peace Research Center (PRCP) and head of the Experimental Lab for International Security Studies (ELISS), he examines how people and societies react to threats, what creates trust between states and why conflicts escalate. Since September 2024, he has been the holder of the prestigious ERC Starting Grant, within which he focuses on the stability of military alliances. He presents his research at leading world universities such as Harvard, Stanford and Cambridge, and is one of the Czech scientists who significantly shape the international debate on security issues.
“Winning the Neuron Award is an extraordinary recognition of Michal Smetana’s top-notch and internationally recognized scientific work. His research not only pushes the boundaries of the field, but also brings socially relevant knowledge. It is also proof that the Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University is able to create an environment in which excellent science systematically develops and personalities with international renown grow,” adds Professor Arnošt Veselý, Vice-Dean for Science and Research at FSV UK.
This year, the award is being given to a total of seven young scientists who have achieved significant global success in their fields and, in addition to search for knowledge, are also united by experience from elite global workplaces. The laureates receive a bonus of 500,000 crowns to support their further scientific work.
From the Faculty of Social Sciences, Charles University, the award was received in 2011 by Assoc. Prof. Julie Chytilová from the Institute of Economic Studies and in 2022 by Dr. Anežka Kuzmičová from the Institute of Communication Studies and Journalism.
The Neuron Foundation has been recognizing excellent scientists in the Czech Republic for over fifteen years and supporting their work. The Neuron Award laureates are decided by a scientific council, which annually proposes and gives awards in seven fields (mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, medicine, computer science and social sciences). The Neuron Foundation has so far spent over 150 million crowns on supporting and popularizing Czech science, awarded 130+ awards and supported 13 scientific expeditions worth six million crowns.
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