IVA’s Gold Medal 2026: Astrid Söderbergh Widding

Astrid Söderbergh Widding was born in Stockholm in 1963. She read cinema studies, aesthetics and the history of religions at Stockholm University and Uppsala University, and received her PhD in cinema studies at Stockholm University in 1992 with the thesis Gränsbilder – det dolda rummet hos Tarkovskij ("Border images: the hidden space in Tarkovsky"). Since 2000 she has been Professor of Cinema Studies at Stockholm University. 

In 2013, Söderbergh Widding became President of Stockholm University, one of Sweden's largest higher education institutions. She held the post until 2025, which makes her the longest-serving President since the institution was reconstituted from a university college into a university in 1960. With strong integrity, deep knowledge and collegial leadership, she led the university towards financial balance, a stronger research profile and carefully developed forms of internal governance. She has been a highly valued leader, always well informed and well prepared. Under her leadership, the university alliance Stockholm trio – Stockholm University, KTH Royal Institute of Technology and Karolinska Institutet – developed into a strong platform for research and education across institutional boundaries. 

Söderbergh Widding has been an active voice in the debate on the independence, governance and mission of higher education institutions, not least as Chair of the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institutions (SUHF). 

Since 2023, Söderbergh Widding has been Chair of the Nobel Foundation, the first woman to hold the position. The Foundation manages Alfred Nobel's fortune and is responsible for the arrangements surrounding the Nobel Prizes. Since 2025 she has been Executive Director of the Marcus and Amalia Wallenberg Foundation and the Marianne and Marcus Wallenberg Foundation. 

Söderbergh Widding is a member of the Royal Swedish Academy of Letters, History and Antiquities, the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and Academia Europaea, and has received a number of distinctions. In 2015 she was appointed a Knight of the French Legion of Honour, and in 2018 she was awarded H.M. The King's Medal, 12th size, with the ribbon of the Order of the Seraphim. 

Citation for IVA's Gold Medal 

Professor Astrid Söderbergh Widding is awarded IVA's Gold Medal for her tireless defence of the freedom of research and the independence of universities, and for her clear support for research and knowledge production that cross boundaries at a time of far-reaching societal change. Her collegial leadership, strong integrity and deep knowledge have been, and remain, a model and an inspiration for academic leaders in Sweden and internationally.