The Academy’s duties are defined by law. Briefly, they are: to serve as a learned society representing the full spectrum of scientific and scholarly disciplines; to act as a management body for national research institutes; to advise the Dutch Government on matters related to scientific pursuit.
In accordance with these statutory duties, the Academy:
The Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) is the forum, the conscience and the voice of science and scholarship in the Netherlands. Its institutes, with their research and collections, are leading in the Netherlands and abroad. Its activities are based on the conviction that knowledge and creativity are the most important raw materials for well-being and prosperity.
As the forum, conscience, and voice of the arts and sciences in the Netherlands, the Academy promotes quality in science and scholarship and strives to ensure that Dutch scholars and scientists contribute to cultural, social and economic progress. As a research organisation, the Academy is responsible for a group of outstanding national research institutes. It promotes innovation and knowledge valorisation within these institutes and encourages them to cooperate with one another and with university research groups.