Category / EU

Welcome to the EU section of the blog! Emily Cieciura (BU’s Research Facilitator – EU and International), Jo Garrad (Funding Development Manager) and Dianne Goodman (Funding Development Co-ordinator) together try to take the pain out of finding and applying for EU funding by horizon scanning many sources and placing the most important information on this page.

We blog as often as possible on everything from calls for proposals and partner searches, to networking event opportunities, all the latest on Horizon 2020 and international funding. We also use the blog to disseminate information on EUADS (BU’s EU academic training initiative), how to write brilliant proposals, how to find partners and other top tips!

LIFE+ 2012 Call now open!

EU

The sixth LIFE+ call opened recently and closes on the 26th September 2012. LIFE+ funds projects that implement, update and develop Community environmental policy and legislation. There are three strands:

There is a significant change to the application process this year as this must be done using a new eProposal online tool. There are user guides available on the LIFE+ website. In addition applicants submitting a Nature & Biodiversity project or an Information & Communication project related to Forest Fire Prevention will also need to submit an A8 form, signed by the relevant competent authority.

Beta Technology can review your project idea before you start taking time to fill in the application form, simply complete the project concept form and send it to Catherine Holt or Jane Watkins . You can also take a look at the Tips and Advice section of the Beta website for some great hints when completing an application.

There is also an Info Day for this call being held in London on May 29th  -povisional plans for the day include presentations from Stefan Welin, Technical Desk Officer at the EU LIFE Unit, Catherine Holt from BETA Technology and previous project funding recipients. Attendance is free but must be registered in advance, places are limited and will initially be allocated at one per organisation on a first come, first served basis; you can register here.

 

Digital Economy Strategic Partnerships Proposals

EU

At the Strategic Partnership workshop for the Connected Digital Economy Catapult last month the Technology Strategy Board presented the nature of strategic partnerships and other models of engagement, the process to develop strategic partnerships, guidelines and next steps. The presentations can be found on the _connect webpage 

The next step in the process involves interested companies/organisations preparing 2-3 page strategic partnership proposals, which need to be submitted to the Technology Strategy Board by 25th May 2012. You can read more on this, on the _connect website.

Remember, if you aren’t already signed up to _connect, you can read the benefits of creating an account here.

European Innovation Partnerships Updated Website and FAQs

EU

You may remember I recently  published a blog post on Partnering in Research and Innovation which laid out the EC’s plans for how to improve partnering across Europe for research in Horizon 2020. This was particularly relevant for BU as topics included are Active and Healthy Ageing. The EC has recently updated its European Innovation Partnerships website and has added a FAQ section. The website now has a separate section on each of the three EIPs:

  1. Active and Healthy Ageing;
  2. Raw Materials;
  3. Agricultural Productivity and Sustainability.

The EIP on Active and Healthy Ageing was the first Partnership to be set up, and there are several pilot calls currently open under different programmes for projects in support of its Strategic Implementation Plan (please see the “Funding” section of the EIP Active and Healthy Ageing part of the website).

The FAQs contain questions and answers on topics such as:

  • the role of the Strategic Implementation Plan for an EIP;
  • how funding will be provided for Strategic Implementation Plans;
  • the timing for possible new EIPs;
  • the role of the Steering Group and Action Groups for the Active and Healthy Ageing EIP; and
  • the role envisaged for EIPs in implementing Horizon

I would recommend taking 10 mins out of your day to check out oen of the EIP websites if the areas are relevant for you.

Lots of Info Days coming up – register now for a fantastic networking opportunity!

EU

ICT FP7 Info Day:  The European Commission, in collaboration with the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education and the Polish National Contact Point, is organising the ICT Proposers’ Day 2012, to be held in Warsaw on 26 and 27 September 2012. This two day event will provide networking opportunities for researchers interested in submitting proposals to the 2013 Work Programme calls. The event will also offer the chance to present your project ideas, provide first-hand information from European Commission officials, guidance on how to present a successful proposal and much more. The event will be free of charge, but attendees must register in advance. Online networking and registration will open at the end of June.

Health FP7 Info day: The National Physical Laboratory (NPL) will host the UK Open Info Day for the 2013 Health Call on the 16th of May. The event, organised jointly between the NPL, the Healthtech and Medicines KTN and FP7UK, is open to academic researchers, SMEs, Industry, NHS, charities and public bodies, and anyone interested in finding out about the opportunities in this year’s call.Places are free but on a first come first served basis so register quickly if you want to attend!

Environment FP7 Info Day:  booking isn’t yet open but the info day is likely to be 11.06.12 and not 12.06.12 as originally planned.

 

Social Sciences and Humanities FP7 Infoday: This is a training and information day by the UK’s expert advisors (National Contact Points) on FP7- Social Sciences and Humanities, FP7 – Science in Society and HERA (Humanities in the European Research Area).  Each session will include a presentation, case study and Q&A. If you wish to attend the event complete the form below before and return it to Depcoord@soton.ac.uk before 25th May 2012:

Your Name  
Email Address  
University  
Will you be staying for lunch?  
Do you want to arrange a 1:1 with a speaker? If yes please advise details  
Do you have any special dietary requirements?  

 

KBBE (Food, Agriculture, Fisheries & Biotechnology) FP7 Info Day: An open information day and brokerage event will take place on 16 July 2012 in Brussels, Belgium.  The programme will consist of plenary sessions and several parallel workshops on participating in FP7 KBBE. Participants will also be able to exchange information and network at a special session where various service providers will be present.  The conference will bring together research stakeholders, from both the public and private sectors from the EU and Third Countries, together with the Commission, to provide information and to find partners for projects to be funded under the upcoming FP7-KBBE-2013-7 call.

Space FP7 Info Day: COSMOS, the EU Space National Contact Point (NCP) network, will deliver the International Information event on the 2013 FP7 Space Call. This event will take place on 20 and 21 June at the University of Surrey.Participants will be provided with: 

  • first-hand information on the Call content and on future EU Space funding under Horizon 2020;
  • pre-organised as well as spontaneous matchmaking opportunities via face-to-face meetings;
  • short presentations on project ideas and the competencies of potential partners;
  • profile poster session; and
  • spontaneous networking opportunities in a relaxed environment.

It is expected that potential applicants from all over Europe will attend this event. People interested in attending this event are required to register and submit their ‘co-operation profile’ before 10 June.

European Maritime Day 2012: The 2012 edition will be held in Gothenburg, Västra Götaland, Sweden – for the first time in Scandinavia and in the North Sea area. The theme of this year’s conference is “Sustainable growth from the oceans, seas and the coasts: Blue growth”. The purpose is to highlight the importance of the seas and oceans and the challenges facing maritime regions and sectors.

TurKey Enabling Technologies 2012 International Brokerage Event (Istanbul, 25.05.12): This high-level event – which is organised under the scope of TUBITAK’s Turkey in FP7 project – will bring together 300 researchers and organisations involved in: Biotechnology; Advanced Materials; Advanced Manufacturing & Processing; and Space Technologies; with the desire and capability to help overcome a wide range of challenges.

 

Joining _connect could really help you build networks

EU

Why you should join _connect

So the name ‘ _connect’ is a little awkward I admit, but this platform( run by the Technology Strategy Board) can provide an opportunity  for you to collaborate online, network and share knowledge with other innovators.  The site is branded as ‘the UK’s online open innovation network of networks’. Over half a million global visitors a year (from business, academia and government) access the site to fund information, keep updated on events and make new contacts to help them in their careers. Some of our academics are already using the site and find it really useful.

When it comes to EU funding, you cannot network enough so why not spend 5 mins creating a free account and test it out?

Sign up

Click on the Register button on the left hand side of the page. The system will guide you through creating your account. Once you have registered, you will be sent an activation email; follow the link in this email to activate your account then you can begin to build up your profile; letting other _connect members know about you, and you can also find members with similar interests and skills.

 

 

Create a profile

You can choose as much or as little detail as you like to go in your profile. The more you put in, the more people who you connect with on this platform will be able to understand your knowledge and skills. You can also amend what is visible publically, to members of the site and also have all of your details hidden. Click on the ‘My profile’ option on the left hand side menu when you are logged in.

You can list your employment, education, skills and interests, your websites, blogs and contact details.  You can also upload any documents of interest to you or items you have published.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Join relevant networks and groups

Signing up gives you access to join a range of Special Interest groups, KT Networks and other member communities.

You will get relevant industry events, new sand funding opportunities delivered by emails by signing up for one of the groups and you can  amend your options for notifications of activity to suit you.

Take a look at the list of networks under ‘Find Networks and select ‘join this network’. If you stuill aren’t convinced about setting up a profile, have a look at the list below of the availbel networks and see if any take your fancy. You can also set up your own network – perfect

The type of information and frequency depends on the groups themselves; some are more active than others, some more funding focused than others and some more network focused than others. Why not join all those you could be interested in, and leave at a later date if you feel they aren’t helpful…

 

Find organisations

It’s really simple to find organisations on the site, there is a tab with an entire list of them and also a search function. You can choose to follow them to see their activity, or get in direct contact with them.

 

 

 

 

Notifications

There is a handy function which allows you to receive info when activity in your network has taken place on a daily or weekly basis and also an option to have all notifications disabled. This can be found under ‘Account Settings’.

Can’t make forthcoming EU Environment events? Don’t worry, you can watch them on ESKTN TV!

EU

The Environmental Sustainability Knowledge Transfer Network’s (KTN) live webstreaming service ESKTN TV is bringing 2 events to you in May to help with your EU activity. And the good news is you don’t have to leave your desk!

On the 11th, they will be in London at the 2012 CIP Eco-innovation funding call UK National Information Day where National Contact Point Ewa Bloch and Astrid Geiger, Deputy Head of Eco-innovation at the Executive Agency for Competitiveness & Innovation (EACI) will tell you everything you need to know about this important funding opportunity for collaborative eco-innovation projects.

On the 16th they will be webcasting from Dublin, where the KARIM IWA WCE 2012 Open Forum is taking place at the World Congress on Water, Climate and Energy. This event will showcase knowledge and emerging technologies for environmental solutions in water and agriculture from Lancaster University, University College Dublin and organizations from across North West Europe, including rapid fire pitches from SMEs with business and research project ideas.

Both events will be covered LIVE on ESKTN TV. You can see preview trailers for both events there now, and on our YouTube channel where you can also catch up on past ESKTN TV recordings.

Winning EU R&D Funding – Framework Programme 7 (FP7) Forming a Team and Writing a Proposal Masterclass….

EU

A free one day masterclass on FP7 has been organised by Enterprise Europe Network South West, the ICT Knowledge Transfer Network and Bishop Fleming . The session includes:

  • Taking the right approach to minimise the cost of participation
  • Working with the EU Commission on your proposal
  • Available support
  • Building a team
  • Work integration
  • Matching roles to partners
  • Consortium organisation
  • Partner search methods
  • Building a proposal
  • Proposal section by section view
     

This event will offer an opportunity for in depth examination of the task of putting together a winning proposal under FP7 and provide you with all the information you require to make strategic decisions about participation.

The Master Class will be delivered by Eddie Townsend, our collaboration domain expert. Eddie has based the material for the workshop on his experience of successful proposal submissions and management in FP6 and FP7.

Places are limited so book your place online now!

New management process for Erasmus Mundus at BU

EU

I am delighted so many of you have been inspired to apply for Erasmus Mundus after Rudy Gozlan’s recent success with the TECHNO project (presentation available at I:\R&KEO\Public\RDU\Erasmus Mundus). With this in mind, RKE Operations will now manage both the pre- and post- award process for all Erasmus Mundus applications with immediate effect. The process will therefore be just like any research bid you wish to submit at BU, and the key person to contact if you wish to apply is Paul Lynch.

For anyone unfamiliar with it, the Erasmus Mundus is a European Commission funding programme which provides organisations such as BU in order to establish partnerships and to individual researchers, students or professional support staff in order to study/ research/ teach. There are 3 ‘actions’ of support which you can read in more detail in this blogpost. It’s a great scheme and a fantastic way to create networks across the world.

Erasmus Mundus is not to be confused with its sister ‘Erasmus’ programme which supports study exchanges and work placements in Europe for students for a minimum of 3 months and funding to help support staff teaching or training visits to partner universities or enterprises in Europe. This will still be managed by Deborah Velay in Student & Academic Services as it is heavily student focused, has different pre- and post- award management requirements to Erasmus Mundus.

Any confusion between the two schemes should be eliminated with the Erasmus for All programme which will see the merger of 7 huge Lifelong Learning Programmes funded by the Commission, including Erasmus, Erasmus Mundus, Leonardo, Grundtvig, etc. I will keep you posted with details as I get them!

FP7 NMP Tailored Exploitation Services Available for Project Partners

EU

A new service helping NMP project partners take their research to market has been launched by the EC. 

Partners in Nanosciences, Nanotechnologies, Materials and new Production Technologies (NMP) projects can now make use of a new service offering help in to bridging the gap between research outcomes and exploitation. A range of tailored services, provided by Commission-approved consultants, is available. The services are:

  • Project Risk Analysis (PRA) to identify the risks and potential obstacles to the future exploitation of project results;
  • Exploitation Strategy Seminars (ESS) to brainstorm on how a consortium can address the risks and potential obstacles identified in the PRA;
  • Business plan development service to assist partners with this crucial step towards exploitation;
  • Assistance for patenting to support the partners with the writing, filing and legal follow-up of patents; and
  • Assistance for standardisation to help partners to exploit project results that can benefit from the development of standards.

NMP project partners can request the services listed above. If the request is validated by the Commission, these services are provided by exploitation strategy and innovation consultants for free and under confidentiality agreement.

FP7 FAFB Registration Open for Information Day on 2013 Call

EU

The European Commission is organising an Information Day and Brokerage Event on the 2013 FAFB call (also often referred to as KBBE, or Knowledge-Based Bio-Economy). As stated in the leaflet enclosed below, the call is foreseen to be published on around 10 July 2012, although this date is still provisional.

The morning session will consist of presentations of the topics in the 2013 call, divided into the three “activity areas” of the FAFB theme. The afternoon will consist of parallel sessions with group discussions by thematic areas, in order to help bring together consortia, and pre-arranged face-to-face meetings to discuss potential partnerships for proposals. Participants can sign up for both when registering for the Information Day. There will also be a focus on opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the 2013 FAFB call, which is foreseen to be a particular priority. 

This is a great opportunity to network!

Update on the Culture and MEDIA programme replacement ‘Creative Europe’

EU

The EC has released five short videos where questions on the Creative Europe (the successor to the current Culture and Media programmes, starting in 2014) are answered.  The videos cover questions such as why the proposal for the new programme combines the current Culture and Media programmes, the planned budget increase, the new focus on audience development, the new finance facility and the new programme objectives and are answered by Ann Branch, Head of the Culture Programme and Actions Unit from the Directorate General for Education and Culture (DG EAC).

These videos give you a great insight into what may come under this Programme and will allow you to really make plans for applying. You can also read this very helpful UKRO article on the Creative Europe Info Day to get even more insight.

 

FP7 FAFB and Environment UK Information Day for 2013 Calls open for bookings!

EU

DEFRA, BBSRC, NERC and the Food Standards Agency are co-hosting a UK Info Day the 2013 FP7 Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Biotechnologies (FAFB) and Environment (including climate change) calls on Friday 6 July. The venue is the Royal Pharmaceutical Society in London.  Registration for the event is now open, simply complete and return this Registration Form. There is no charge for this event, and places are limited and will be on a first-come first-served basis.

The information day is designed for everyone interested in these two FP7 thematic areas, in particular those considering submitting a proposal for the 2013 work programme calls. These are scheduled to be published on around 10 July, and will be the last such calls under FP7. The information day will feature:

  • Presentations from the European Commission’s DG Research and Innovation on the 2013 work programmes for the FAFB and Environment themes;
  • Information on the opportunities available in other FP7 schemes, including the “Ideas” (the European Research Council) and “People” (the Marie Curie Actions) programmes;
  • Presentations by FP7 project participants in the FAFB and Environment areas, along with lessons learned about participating in the programme; and
  • An update on Horizon 2020.

The UK National Contact Point for the FAFB and Environment themes will be available all day to provide information and advice on participation in FP7. The event will also provide an opportunity to network with others interested in EU collaborative research.

EC Launches Initiative on Sustainable Energy for All Initiative

EU

The EC announced at the high-level EU Sustainable Energy for All summit a new EU energy initiative which will provide access to sustainable energy for an additional 500 million people in developing countries by 2030.
The proposed EU Technical Assistance Facility will provide EU expertise in the sustainable energy field. This will promote sustainable development and inclusive growth and will include a new EU Technical Assistance Facility, worth EUR 50 million over the next two years.

The future of EU Energy funding

EU

Two exciting developments related to EU Energy funding are now in the public domain.
 
The European Commission has recently published an illustrated brochure on its “Energy Roadmap 2050” which is intended to be the basis for developing a long-term EU framework for energy policy.
 
The Smart Grids European Technology Platform, a stakeholder platform relating to smart grids, had published an updated version of its Strategic Research Agenda (SRA) entitled “SmartGrids SRA 2035”. This updates their previous research agenda from 2007. The presentations and conference summary from the Smart Grids 4th General Assembly, in March 2012, are also now available. The SRA of European Technology Platforms, such as the Smart Grids Technology Platform, are likely to influence future European Commission research calls.  This is because they represent the views of a large stakeholder group on what future research priorities should be. The updated SRA should therefore be of interest to researchers interested in applying to European research funding in this area.

Thinking of applying for a FP7 Health call? UKRO has some good advice…

EU

The final version of the FP7 2013 Health Work Programme will be published in early July 2012, and at the same time two calls for proposals (INNOVATION 1 and 2) are expected to be launched with deadlines in late September and early October 2012. These calls will mark the last opportunity to bid for FP7 funding under the Health theme and no further calls are expected to be issued until the start of Horizon 2020 in 2014.

UKRO have provided some excellent tips for  those interested in taking up this last opportunity under FP7 with some hints and tips for preparing for their submissions on their website.

 

FP7 Security Partner Brokerage Event

EU

Potential applicants to the 2013 FP7 Security call are invited to attend a brokerage event organized by the Security Mission Information & Innovation Group (SMI2G) on 22-23 May in Brussels.

 The meeting will be an opportunity to exchange information on the 2013 call of the FP7 Security programme and to stimulate networking for the creation of potential ideas and consortia. All stakeholders interested in the participation in a topic for this call as co-ordinator or partner are invited to this meeting.

The goals of the  meetings are to:

  • provide information on the 2013 Security call (6th call) and provide potential partners with information on what is expected by the European Commission;
  • exchange information on specific contributions to proposals as partners or co-ordinator; and
  • provide a networking opportunity to find partners in proposals.

Forthcoming info days and key networking conferences…

EU

FP7 Information Day on The Ocean of Tomorrow 
Brussels, 6th June
The European Commission will be holding an information day on “The Ocean of Tomorrow 2013” call on 6 June 2012 in Brussels. The information day will be aimed at those interested in the applying to “The Ocean of Tomorrow 2013” cross-thematic call. The event is the day before the information day for the 2013 Environment calls, which will allow people to attend both information days, if desired.
Registration is not open yet; more information is available on this leaflet.

2012 European Industrial Bioenergy Initiative Conference
Brussels, 5th June
The aim of the conference is to make the EIBI better known to the various biofuels stakeholders. Stakeholders along the whole biofuels value chains will be invited to attend the conference. Details will be published on the EBTP website as soon as they are available. Registration will begin in early May.

Conference on Energy Efficient Buildings and Districts: Research to Accelerate Innovation
Brussels, 15th May
The Energy Efficient Buildings Association (E2BA) is promoting an industry driven research, demonstration and innovation (RDI) programme for energy-efficient buildings and districts, with the ambitious vision that all European buildings and districts will be designed, built or renovated to high energy efficiency standards by 2050. Its 150 members come from industry, research organisations, SMEs, public promoters and agencies. E2BA is currently developing a new Roadmap for RDI priorities in the energy efficient built environment field for the period 2014-2020 and beyond.

Seventh European Photovoltaic Technology Platform 
Amsterdam, 19th June
The conference will zoom into the challenges and opportunities of the European photovoltaic (PV) industry sector related to manufacturing as well as large-scale deployment. It will show how PV can continue to contribute to innovation and economic development in Europe when supported by adequate policies and measures.Innovation approaches, transition from incentive-driven to self-sustained markets for PV as well as long term scenarios will be analysed by selected representatives of the European Parliament, the Dutch government and world leading players of the PV industry.