Category / Funding opportunities

Eggs-citing new research engine and funding competition launched – CRACK-IT

Funding opportunities, Research news

 CRACK-IT®, is a new research engine and funding competition being launched by the NC3Rs  this year to connect academic and industrial researchers in solving global scientific challenges associated with animal models in the biosciences – focusing on improving efficiency and translation and minimising reliance on in vivo research.

A number of regional roadshows to launch CRACK-IT® and highlight the range of funding opportunities . A range of industry speakers  will discuss the current challenges in pharmaceutical and chemical development and the move towards open innovation and new mechanisms for collaboration. See CRACK-IT® for further details .

New funding for research into extracting chemicals from the co-products of grain brewing

Funding opportunities

A collaboration between the BBSRC, EPSRC and industry has announced new funding for research into ways of extracting valuable chemicals from the co-products of grain brewing. The refining of both alcohol and biofuels produces low-value derivatives that are often sold as animal feed. This new funding call will challenge researchers to find ways of processing these by-products to yield chemicals sustainably that would otherwise have to be produced from fossil fuels. Read more on the BBSRC webpage.

Drive knowledge flow, influence, network and get insider information with Knowledge Transfer Networks

Funding opportunities, Research news

Knowledge Transfer Networks (KTNs) act as a single national network in a specific field, bringing together businesses and academics to stimulate innovation through knowledge transfer. By joining a Technology Strategy Board’s KTN you can help drive the flow of knowledge both within and in-and-out of specific communities and improve your ability to network, keep up to date with the very latest information and news, funding opportunities, policy, regulation and strategy. KTNs exist in many different areas so why not join one today?  Aerospace, Aviation and Defence, Biosciences, Creative Industries, Digital, Electronics, Sensors, Photonics, Energy Generation and Supply, Environmental Sustainability, Financial Services, FP7UK, HealthTech and Medicines, ICT, Industrial Biotechnology, Materials

Further £12 million investment in new R&D will accelerate innovation and support growth

Funding opportunities

The Technology Strategy Board is to invest up to £12 million through three new research and development competitions that will stimulate innovation and support growth across the UK.

Scheduled to open in May and June, the three competitions are designed to accelerate the development of innovative new technologies in different areas – materials technologies for use in energy generation, transmission, distribution & storage, strategies to improve the resistance of buildings to climate change and ICTs for the manufacturing and construction sectors.

The investments will build on the Technology Strategy Board’s ongoing programme of activity to stimulate and support business-led innovation across the UK, through funding to aid the development of new technologies and a range of activity that fosters and encourages collaboration and knowledge sharing in a wide range of technology areas and business sectors across the UK.

The three new competitions are Energy Materials (£3m), Design for Future Climate (£2.4m) and ICT for high value manufacturing and construction (£7m). In addition to the new competitions, the Department for Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has offered to support a recently-launched funding competition by providing an additional £500,000 for innovative research and development projects.

The three new competitions, which will open in May and June, are:

  • Energy Materials: Up to £3m will be invested in collaborative research and development projects that address the application and demonstration of materials technologies for use in energy generation, transmission, distribution and storage. The focus of the competition will be on projects which address challenges in scaling up technologies, from initial laboratory proof of concept to small-scale technology demonstrations and pilots in a representative environment. The competition will open in May 2011.
  • Design for Future Climate: The new £2.4m investment will assist design teams in developing adaptation strategies to improve resistance to climate change of specific buildings they are already working on. The focus will be on improving building resilience and adaptation to climate change, thus extending the commercial viability of buildings. Projects must be on a specific building / refurbishment project with a client and design team both applying together for the funding. The funding covers all building projects >£5m spend. This is the second part of the competition. The first ran in 2010 and provided funding totalling £2.5m for 26 building projects worth £2.7bn. The second part will open on 31 May 2011 and funding of up to £2.4m will be available.
  • ICT for competitive high value manufacturing and construction: The £7m investment will stimulate the use of innovative ICTs in the manufacturing and construction sectors in which there are major opportunities to increase productivity and competitiveness. ICT has a major role to play in many critical capabilities in manufacturing and construction including and not limited to: automation; customisation; knowledge sharing across supply chains; and simulation and modelling. The focus of the competition will be on applying recent developments in ICTs to significant challenges in manufacturing and/or construction and on encouraging new and sustainable partnerships between businesses

The Nutrition for Life funding competition, which opens on 9 May, is intended to encourage the development of innovative processes and technologies with an emphasis on providing “healthy” and “safe” food and drink, and will support both feasibility studies and collaborative research & development projects.

Further information about the three new competitions will be available shortly on the competitions page of the Technology Strategy Board website – www.innovateuk.org

Latest EU funding opportunities in media, sport and GKE

Funding opportunities, Research news

Media Funding
Promoting EU Audiovisual Works
Implementation of Media Pilot Projects

Sport Funding
Preparatory Actions in Sport

Green Knowledge Economy  Funding
Assessment of EU Climate Policies
Impact of ICT R&D in Large-Scale Deployment of Electric Vehicles
Communication Campaign on Climate Action & Low-Carbon Society
Competitiveness Eco-Innovation initiative
Clean Sky 9th Call
FP7 Fuel Cells & Hydrogen Joint Undertaking Proposals

Green Knowledge Economy  Events
Euroscience Open Forum
Eco-Innovation UK Info Day
FP7 Environment Info Day

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This week’s large funding pots

Funding opportunities

New £550m Green Equipment Funding Scheme Launched by Carbon Trust
Worth up to £550 million over the next three years, the dedicated low carbon finance scheme is the first of its kind and will enable UK organisations to invest in cost effective energy efficiency equipment and other low carbon technologies, such as new efficient lighting and biomass heating.

Comic Relief International Grants Programme
Applications can be for up to £1 million and thedeadline for applications is 01.09.11

Bupa Foundation Awards
Now open to entries from clinicians, researchers and health care professionals, recognising excellence. £60,000 will be allocated for completed research and/or development that has been conducted over the past three years. Deadline is 01.07.11

Heritage Grants over £1 Million
The next closing date for applications under the Heritage Lottery Fund’s Heritage Grants Scheme for projects over £1million and under £5million is the 19.06.11

EDF Energy’s Green Fund
The Fund offers grants of up to £30,000 to help cover the cost of renewable energy technology that can be used to produce green energy from renewable sources. The deadline is 31.08.11

International funding opportunities released this week

Funding opportunities

EC Funding to Improve the Energy Efficiency of Public Buildings
The 5th Call for Proposals under its ITC-PSP programme is now open for applications; it aims to stimulate innovation and competitiveness through wider uptake and best use of ICT by citizens, governments and businesses. Deadline 01.06.11

Funding to Find European Project Partners
Grundtvig funds training opportunities for training, or to meet partners prior to submitting a Grundtvig Partnership or Senior Volunteering application, or to attend a Contact Seminar to find new partners can now apply for preparatory visits funding which will allow one person to visit prospective partners.  Applications are accepted throughout the year on a rolling basis.  You will need to submit your application no later than 8 weeks before a planned visit.

DEFRA Funding for International Biodiversity Projects
Funding applications are currently being invited under round 18 of the Darwin initiative which offers funds to encourage the sharing of UK biodiversity expertise with local partners in countries with a wealth of biodiversity, but who lack the means to protect these resources and to assist in meeting their international biodiversity commitments. Deadline 20.06.11

ESRC knowledge exchange opportunities

Funding opportunities

ESRC logoThe ESRC has announced that the next Knowledge Exchange call will go live on the 26 April 2011 will will be open until the 14 June 2011.

There will be two schemes – the Follow on Fund scheme and the new Knowledge Exchange Opportunities scheme which is an amalgamation of all of the previous KE scheme, i.e. placements and KE small grants. The new scheme allows applicants to apply for a number of activities in one proposal, up to £100k, and it is hoped this will encourage applicants to think creatively about KE/impact and the best mechanisms for achieving these. The scheme is intended as a complement to the Pathways to Impact.

The call is aimed at social science researchers at all stages of their career and at organisations in the business, public and civil society sectors, with the intention of encouraging dialogue and collaboration between these groups.

Knowledge Exchange Opportunities Scheme

This is a new flexible scheme that provides funding for knowledge exchange activities at all stages of the research life-cycle and is intended as a complement to Pathways to Impact.

The scheme provides the opportunity to apply for funding for knowledge exchange activities at any stage of the research lifecycle, and is aimed  at maximising the impact of social science research outside  academia.    The scheme replaces the ESRC Placement Fellowships (all sectors) and Knowledge Exchange Small Grants schemes.

The flexibility built into the scheme is intended to encourage applicants to think creatively about knowledge exchange, and applications are welcomed for either a single activity or a combination of activities; be it setting up a network to help inform the development of a  research proposal, arranging an academic placement with a voluntary or business organisation, or developing  tools such as podcasts and videos aimed at communicating the results of research to non-academic audiences. Some examples of knowledge exchange activities can be found below.

The Follow on Fund Scheme

The aim of this scheme is to provide funding for additional knowledge exchange and impact generating activities to follow on from a specific piece of substantial research that is drawing to an end or has recently finished.

This scheme provides the same flexibility as the Knowledge Exchange Opportunities scheme, and applications for either a single activity, or a combination of activities are welcomed. Follow on funding should be thought of as an extension and complement to the Pathways to Impact section of a research grant.  Applicants are encouraged to think creatively about the format of the knowledge exchange, and to involve research users from the earliest stages of developing the proposal.

Further information is available from the ESRC website: http://www.esrc.ac.uk/funding-and-guidance/collaboration/knowledge-exchange/opportunities/index.aspx

If you are interested in applying to one of these schemes, please contact CRE Operations who will happy to support your application.

EU Call for Tenders: climate, food, computing

Funding opportunities

EU Economy-Wide Climate Change Mitigation Modelling Capacity
The European Commission, Directorate-General for Climate Action, has published a call for tenders for the development and application of EU economy-wide climate change mitigation modelling capacity (all greenhouse gas emissions and removals).

Re-Evaluation of Food Additives Permitted in the European Union
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has published a call for tenders for the provision of draft preparatory documents, including toxicological and non-toxicological data, to support the preparatory work for the re-evaluation of food additives permitted in the European Union.
The aim is to draw up a list of framework contractors who will be invited to enter specific competitions in the future which will entail drafting preparatory documents, including toxicological and non-toxicological data, to support the preparatory work for the re-evaluation of food additives permitted in the European Union.

Quantitative Estimates of the Demand for Cloud Computing in Europe
The European Commission, Information Society and Media DG, has published a call for tenders for the provision of quantitative estimates of the demand for cloud computing in Europe and the likely barriers to take-up.
The aim of this call for tender is to provide a quantitative assessment of the sectors which are potentially the most likely to adopt cloud computing and a qualitative assessment of the factors they are likely to perceive as the most significant policy or technical barriers.

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A selection of EU Funding opportunities…

Funding opportunities

European Refugee Fund 2011
The UK Borders Agency has announced that it is seeking applications through the European Refugee Fund – which relates to resettlement under the Gateway Protection Programme.  The minimum amount that can be applied for is £75,000 per year per project, and the maximum is £350,000 per year per project for up to three years to fund the management and delivery of activities. Deadline: 21.04.11

European Network of Mentors for Women Entrepreneurs
The EC has launched a new call for proposal to create a European network of mentors for women entrepreneurs. Grants of up to €75,000 will be available to each network. Deadline: 20.04.11

Support for European Cooperation in Education and Training – LLP
The EC has issued a call for proposals under its Lifelong Learning Programme to support European cooperation in education and training.  Grants of up to €300,000 per project are available. Deadline: 30.06.11

Support for Television Broadcasting of European Audiovisual Works
MEDIA 2007 funding is available to cover up to 12,5% of an organisation’s eligible production budget (with a maximum amount per work of 500.000 €) for fiction and animation, and 20% of the organisation’s eligible budget (with a maximum of 300.000 € per work) for documentaries. Deadline: 20.06.11

Collaborate with SMEs through a new Grant Research and Development Scheme

Funding opportunities

A new Grant for Research and Development (GRD) scheme aimed at supporting small and medium-sized companies across the UK, enabling them to research and develop new products, processes and services is open for applications and will be managed by the Technology Strategy Board. The maximum funding available will be £25,000 for proof-of-market grants, £100,000 for proof-of-concept grants and £250,000 for development of prototype grants.

2 health related funding opportunities

Funding opportunities

Nuffield Foundation – Research and Innovation Grants
The Nuffield Foundation is inviting applications through its Research and Innovation Grants programme. Grants normally range between £5,000 and £150,000.  Deadline: 08.07.11

SUBWAY Heart Research UK Healthy Heart Grants
HRUK is inviting applications for up to £10,000 to support projects that strongly promote heart health, not just healthy lifestyles.

Funding for Links with Japan

Funding opportunities

The Daiwa Foundation which supports closer links between Britain and Japan is seeking applications under its small grants programme. Grants of £3,000-£7,000 are available to individuals, societies, associations or other bodies in the UK or Japan to promote and support interaction (any type of activity) between the two countries. Deadline: 30.09.11

EuropeAid: Funding for EU policy development, governance, human rights, human development, food, natural resources, economy or trade

Funding opportunities

EuropeAid is responsible for designing EU development policies and delivering aid through programmes and projects across the world, providing a single contact point for stakeholders inside and outside the EU to deal with. EuropeAid offers funding through grant calls and contract calls; to learn more about how to get funded visit the BU EuropeAid webpage.