From PFAS in food crops to groundwater protection: eight WUR researchers awarded Vidi grants

The WUR projects receiving funding cover a wide range of topics. For example, some projects investigate how groundwater can be better protected to safeguard food production during droughts, the role of soil fungi in the uptake of PFAS by food crops, and how dietary fats contribute to healthy fat cells. Other researchers are focusing on historical patterns of migration within Africa, the role of hunger in colonial history, and the potential of recycled phosphorus from wastewater to make agriculture more sustainable.

In total, NWO has awarded Vidi grants to 109 researchers from the scientific fields of Domain Science (ENW), Applied and Technical Sciences (AES), Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH), and Healthcare Research and Medical Sciences (ZonMw). The Vidi is an individual research grant that enables researchers to further develop their leadership skills.

The researchers and their research proposals: 

Much of our food depends on groundwater, especially during droughts. But in key farming regions, groundwater levels are falling fast. SAFE-GROUND investigates dr. ir. Inge de Graaf how climate extremes and water use push groundwater, crops, and ecosystems toward critical limits. The project links global and local models to reveal where problems will emerge first and which adaptation strategies can prevent further decline. This knowledge supports sustainable food production in a warming world. 

Fat tissue is incredibly dynamic, changing its size and function based on what we eat. This metabolic flexibility is critical for preventing obesity-related conditions like type 2 diabetes and heart disease. While we know that fat cells use certain fats from our diet to shape their interior, it is a mystery how this process actually improves health. Dr. Marc Tol investigates these fats as ‘molecular switches’ that communicate with proteins to maintain flexibility. By unravelling these networks, the researcher aims to understand why some individuals living with obesity stay healthy while others develop life-threatening illnesses. 

“African” migrants are often discussed in general terms. In reality, many migrants come from specific regions, while from other areas few people migrate. Most migration also takes place within Africa itself. This project shows where migrants from West, Central, and East Africa come from, and how these origin areas have developed since the late 19th century. Using censuses, maps, and (post)colonial archives, the researchers reconstruct migration over time and reveal differences between regions. They examine why migration becomes widespread and persistent in some regions, while remaining limited in others. 

Europe relies on shrinking and non-European phosphate rock reserves to grow food, while valuable phosphorus is still lost through waste. Struvite, a fertilizer made from wastewater, could help close this loop, but its slow dissolution rate leaves farmers unsure how well it works during drought. In this project dr. Alix Vidal investigates to what extent soil life- roots, microbes, and earthworms- can help crops access phosphorus from struvite when water is scarce. By revealing how struvite performs in future climates, with or without soil life, it will guide Europe toward more resilient and circular nutrient use. 

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contaminate the environment globally, bioaccumulating in our bodies with devastating health and economic consequences. Growing food crops in PFAS-contaminated soil results in PFAS transfer from soil to our food. However, we know little about the biological factors that contribute to food crop contamination with PFAS. Specialised soil fungi deliver nutrients to crops via roots, but they can also provide a pathway for PFAS, thus being an overlooked contributor to food contamination. Dr. Stephanie Watts-Fawkes will comprehensively study the contribution of soil fungi to crop PFAS contamination, to enable development of future solutions. 

With this project Dr. Annah Zhu examines China's use of mega-environmental projects as a new frontier of global power. Moving beyond resource competition, it frames sustainability itself—and the environmental worldviews underlying it—as a critical geopolitical arena. Three case studies—large-scale ecological engineering, global renewables diplomacy, and AI-driven environmental governance—capture various dimensions of this new eco-geopolitics. Together, they demonstrate how divergent approaches to governing the Anthropocene are becoming a primary axis of international cooperation and contestation. Findings will reveal how China's distinct techno-ecological vision is reshaping the global order and our prospects for a sustainable future. 

What role did hunger play in colonial history? Based on extensive archival research, dr. Ingrid de Zwarte examines how and why colonial powers reshaped colonized peoples’ access to food and responded to mass hunger. Starting from the assumption that food and hunger could sometimes serve as powerful tools of coercion but that mass hunger simultaneously threatened colonial rule and economic profitability, it hypothesizes that food and hunger were central issues that colonial powers had to navigate. The project’s main aim is to develop a new understanding of the politics of hunger and how it shaped colonial history. 

Heart rhythm disorders and heart failure affect millions of people and are rapidly increasing worldwide. Deli Zhang is now focusing on a surprising cause: tiny communication points inside heart cells that are essential for energy production and heart function. When this internal communication breaks down, the heart can become diseased. This project will uncover how this happens using advanced technologies and innovative models. The findings could open the door to new, targeted treatments, with specific attention to differences between women and men.