Event Reminder
Introduction to EU Research Funding (FP7) for Newcomers   

These workshops provide an ideal introduction to the 7th Framework Programme (FP7) and other European Union funding opportunities. They are targeted at newcomers with no or very limited experience of FP7. The workshops are free of charge but registration is compulsory.

Date: 22 June 2011
Time: 14:15 - 17:30 hrs
Location: Euresearch Head Office, Effingerstrasse 19, Berne
Organizer: Head Office, Berne

Further Information & Registration

Event Pre-announcement
Go4Cleantech!

On 7 - 8 September 2011 Euresearch and Cleantech Switzerland organise the international B2B event Go4Cleantech in Zurich in the frame of Umwelt 11 fair. Representatives of companies and research institutes from all over Europe and beyond will have the opportunity to initiate commercial and technological cooperation as well as European R&D projects in the field of clean technologies.

The programme includes:
•  Export Event
•  Pre-arranged B2B Meetings for international business,
    technology and R&D partnering
•  Visits of Swiss companies

Further Information

General Information

Overview Calls

Overview Events

Success Stories

New Initiative for Neurodegenerative Diseases
Launch of 1st Call

The Joint Programme for Neurodegenerative Diseases (JPND) is currently preparing its first joint transnational funding initiative and will launch its first call in the next few weeks. 

It will focus on the optimisation of biomarkers and harmonisation of their use between clinical centres. Switzerland is represented on the management board by Mrs. Aysim Yilmaz of the Swiss National Science Foundation.

Further Information 

Open Info Day and Partnering Event for upcoming Health Call
on 10 - 11 May 2011 in Brussels

Register now - places are filling up fast for two events that you won't want to miss if you are planning to participate in or lead a proposal submission for the upcoming Health Call.

On 10 May, the EC will organise an Open Info Day to provide first-hand information on the content of the upcoming call. On 11 May, the Projects "Fit for Health" and "Health-NCP-Net" are offering a FP7 Partnering Event, dedicated to building consortia for the upcoming Health Call. Both events are free of charge.

Further Information (page 3)

Draft of revised Strategic Research Agenda available

The IMI Strategic Research Agenda defines the research priorities of IMI and is the basis for individual call topics. The Agenda is currently being revised based on experience from previous calls for proposals and the new framework conditions.

The revised Agenda is expected to be finalised by the end of May. A draft document is available now. It explains the new areas on which future calls will focus. They are grouped into key research priorities:

• Safety sciences
• Increasing practicability of biomarkers and biobanks
• Coping with regulatory and legal hurdles
• Knowledge management
• Science communication
• Neuro-psychiatric disorders/brain diseases
• Inflammatory diseases
• Cancer
• Metabolic diseases including cardiovascular diseases
• Infectious diseases
• Pharmacogenetics and taxonomy of human diseases
• Rare diseases and stratified therapies
• Systems approaches in drug research
• Beyond high throughput screening - pharmacological interactions at the molecular level
• Drug compound development
• Advanced formulations
• Stem cells for drug development and toxicity screening
• Integration of imaging techniques into drug research

Indicative Topics for upcoming 4th IMI Call

IMI has recently named 7 indicative topics for its 4th Call. The Call is expected to be launched in June 2011.

The deadline for the submission of expression of interests is expected to be October. If you wish to follow developments at IMI, we recommend that you subscribe to the newsletter.

IMI Stakeholder Forum on 12 May 2011 in Budapest

The Stakeholder Forum represents an excellent opportunity to obtain the latest news from IMI and meet leading scientists from industry and academia as well as representatives from key regulatory authorities and government agencies.

This year, the IMI Stakeholder Forum will take place on 12 May in Budapest as part of the World of Health IT (WoHIT) eHealth week. For further information, please see the invitation and agenda. Registration is open on the IMI website.

1st Digital Agenda Assembly on 16 - 17 June 2011 in Brussels

Join the stakeholders or follow them at #daa11eu to keep abreast of developments in the key actions proposed by the Digital Agenda 2020.

If you want to know more about progress with the European Digital Agenda 2020, seek ways to improve its delivery, identify the challenges ahead for implementation, in particular in ICT R&D (it's a key action and will have its own dedicated workshop), then you need to attend this first assembly!

Further Information & Registration

Swiss NanoConvention 2011 on 18 - 19 May 2011 in Baden

The platform for new developments and visionary concepts:

Switzerland is unifying its strengths in nanotechnologies and bringing them together at the Kultur- und Kongresszentrum TRAFO in Baden. Experts will discuss future trends as well as possible solutions for the sustainable development of these new technologies.

The event will bring together researchers, investors and authorities and is designed to facilitate the effective planning, financing and regulation of the new nano(bio)technologies.

Who should attend?

• national and international researchers and innovation managers
• high tech companies, especially SMEs
• investors and funding institutions
• insurance and technology assessors
• consumers of nano technology

Further Information & Registration

EuroNanoForum on 30 May - 1 June 2011 in Budapest

This year's must-attend event for the European nanotechnology community:

If you participate, you will obtain crucial information about the development of nanotechnology, build partnerships, raise funding and do business. The venue for the event is the Congress and World Trade Centre in Budapest.  

• attend up to 70 presentations by leading research institutes
• obtain practical information about industrial applications from European nanotechnology leaders
• develop a deeper understanding of future R&D funding strategies from the European Commission
• pre-arrange meetings for a "matchmaking" day (brokerage event)

 
Click here for a list of registered organisations for the brokerage event.

Further Information & Registration

3 International Energy Events with Euresearch participation in Switzerland

Use these events to meet the Energy NCP for Switzerland, obtain help with issues such as the checking of ideas and the review of funding applications or hold project meetings. Don't hesitate to tell the Energy NCP that you are coming.

• European Fuel Cell Forum 2011 
  International Conference and Exhibition
  28 June - 1 July 2011 at the KKL in Lucerne
  
  Planning a project? Book a private room with all facilities via the free Project Meeting Organisation Support Service
   
• World Engineers' Convention 2011 
  Engineers Power the World - Facing the Global Energy Challenges
  4 - 9 September 2011 at CICG in Geneva (CICG)
   
• European Future Energy Forum 2011
  10 - 12 October 2011 at Geneva Palexpo

RE-thinking 2050
European Union Vision for 100% Renewable Energy

The European Renewable Energy Council (EREC) has published a vision of 100% Renewable Energy for the European Union by 2050

RE-thinking 2050 presents a pathway towards a 100% renewable energy system for the EU. It examines the effects on the European energy supply system and CO2 emissions, whilst at the same time portraying the economic, environmental and social benefits of such a system. In addition, the report includes policy recommendations for what is needed to fully exploit the vast renewable energy potential of the EU.

Download the PDF-file for the RE-thinking 2050 launch.

Conference on the Environment - Climate Change - Earth Observation on 15 June 2011 in Geneva

The World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) is hosting this public info event from 11.00 to 16.00 hrs. 

This will be the first event to present information on the new Call 2012, the structure and topics for its new programme and the new types of proposals! It will also provide an update on current FP7 projects under Swiss coordination. After the buffet lunch, there will be a workshop on the setting up and management of FP7 projects.

Bring along a short description of your ideas for networking and discussion!

Further Information & Registration

Info Days on European Commission Environmental Research 
on 17 June 2011 in Brussels

Book the date for your opportunity to talk to the Commission!

The event aims to highlight the new features for the 2012 Work Programme 2012 that is due for publication in July 2011. It will provide guidance on the preparation and submission of proposals. An additional day on "Ocean of Tomorrow" is under discussion. Visit the Commission website at Research & Innovation Environment 

More details to follow in our June Newsletter June.

2 upcoming Transport Events with Euresearch Participation

Use these events to meet the Transport NCP for Switzerland, obtain help with the checking of ideas and the review of funding applications or hold project meetings. Don't hesitate to tell the Transport NCP that you are coming.

• Swiss Transport Research Conference
  11 - 13 May 2011 in Monte Verita (Ascona)
    
• 2nd 2011 Symposium on Aeronautic Research Coordination
  9 June 2011 in Bern
  Enter the date in your diary now - detailed information to follow

Roadmap for a Single European Transport Area

New White Paper: Towards a competitive and resource efficient transport system

The European Commission has adopted a roadmap consisting of 40 specific initiatives for the next decade designed to build a competitive transport system that will increase mobility, remove major barriers in key areas and fuel growth and employment. At the same time, the proposals will dramatically reduce Europe's dependence on imported oil and cut carbon emissions in transport by 60% by 2050.

Discover the vision!

ICIC 2011 International Conference on Indicators and Concepts in Innovation on 19 - 21 September 2011 in Vienna

NET4SOCIETY Networking Event for Socio-economic Sciences and Humanities in FP7 on "Challenge Social Innovation - Innovating innovation by research". A variety of sessions will take place over the three days, ranging from policy discussion and debate to networking and FP7 engagement.

What does social innovation mean today? How can research sustain social innovation? What can the Socio-Economic Sciences and Humanities contribute? These are some of the topics to be discussed at both the international scientific conference Challenge Social Innovation and the NET4SOCIETY FP7 brokerage event. There will be key-note speeches by renowned researchers and practitioners in the field and a focused networking session will take place on 21st September, providing information on the upcoming call for proposals FP7-SSH-2012.

Further Information & Registration

Publication of report "SSH experiences with FP7 - a Commentary"

The results of the survey have now been presented to the European Commission.

In 2010, NET4SOCIETY conducted a survey of what researchers from the Socio-economic Sciences and Humanities thought of their experience with FP7. The full results of the survey have now been published and have been presented to the European Commission. The results will help inform the recommendations to be drafted on improving conditions for SSH researchers in FP7 and beyond.

A summary of results and the report are available for download.

Swiss National Space Day on 16 June 2011 in Lausanne

This is a must for all Swiss Space players in GMES and Critical Space Technologies, either as part of FP7 or with the ESA.

Following two years in Lucerne, the annual event that provides the latest FP7 Space and ESA information is moving to the EPFL Space Center in Lausanne.

New: an opportunity to give a short presentation on your research idea!

Further Information and Registration 

Results of the FP7 Space Call 2011

Congratulations to the new Swiss coordinator CSEM!

26 participants from Switzerland (including Swiss coordinators) were involved in submissions for the 4th Call FP7 Space. Of the Swiss submissions, 15 reached the threshold and 9 were ranked. This represents a success rate of 34% - the average success rate for EU members.

If you were not lucky this year, please contact your NCP Space for advice and a possible resubmission.

Review of COSMOS 5th FP7 Matchmaking Event in Bulgaria

This event - organised by the COSMOS network of Space NCPs on 18 March 2011 - attracted participants from 20 countries!

If you were unable to attend the event and would like to know what was discussed, you can download all the presentations!

You can also register for the COSMOS newsletter; it provides regular information on European FP7 Space events and news. Details of previous published events and news can be found on the COSMOS website, including how to subscribe to the newsletter.

FP7 Security Info Day on 16 June 2011 in Bern

Why not participate in this year's FP7 Security Call (SEC-2012) with a budget of over EUR 240M? The Info Day provides both newcomers in the public security field and experienced researchers from academia, SMEs or other companies, as well as interested end-user groups (police, civil protection units, fire services, etc.) with all the information they need to submit a successful proposal to the forthcoming Security Call, which is due to open in July 2011.

Focussing exclusively on civil solutions, the FP7 Security Programme offers a range of interesting possibilities—not least for highly specialised SMEs—in various sectors: telecommunications, optics, risk assessment, visualisation, psychology and much more.

Obtain a valuable insight into the European Security landscape and the political context of the FP7 Security Research Programme beyond 2013 as well as the latest information on this year's Call from FP7 project partners and evaluators who will share their tips and tricks for successful participation.

Don't miss this chance to meet potential partners in an informal setting!

Further Information and Registration

ERC Info Lunch on 26 May 2011 in Basel

This event will provide details of the Advanced and Starting Grants available from the European Research Council (ERC). These prestigious awards are open to individual principal investigators and will provide them with an opportunity to lead a research team and project for up to 5 years. The ERC supports projects in any field of science, engineering and scholarship.

Further Information and Registration

Your ERC Calendar

Interested in the upcoming ERC calls and specific ERC events? This document is your ERC programme in a nutshell. It gives you an overview on the upcoming ERC calls and all ERC related events at Euresearch.

  ERC Calendar (pdf, 503 kb)

Evaluation Timeframe for ERC Advanced Grant 2011

The 4th ERC Advanced Grant Call closed in April 2011.
The following table provides an approximate timetable for feedback to applicants:

New Vice Presidents for the ERC

The Scientific Council of the European Research Council (ERC) has confirmed the election of Professors Carl-Henrik Heldin and Pavel Exner as new ERC Vice Presidents. Their term of office runs until the end of the 7th Framework Programme for Research (December 2013).

Both Vice Presidents are founding members of the ERC Scientific Council. Pavel Exner, a Czech national, is scientific director and professor at the Doppler Institute for Mathematical Physics and Applied Mathematics in Prague. Carl-Henrik Heldin, a Swedish national, is Director of the Ludwig Institute for Cancer Research, Uppsala and a professor at Uppsala University.

They succeed Professor Helga Nowotny, who became ERC President in March 2010 and Dr. Daniel Estève, whose term as Vice President had expired.

Swiss Marie Curie Blog

"Can you suspend an IOF for a certain duration?" or "Are bank charges an eligible cost?" If you come across these and other questions in connection with a Marie-Curie Action and get lost in the jungle of documents, we can offer a simple tool to help you: the Swiss Marie Curie Blog.

The blog is designed to provide Swiss-based researchers with a directory of Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) on Marie Curie Actions. You can also post a comment in order to obtain more information on a certain topic. The blog, for which there is a RSS feed, will help you keep up-to-date.

Take a look! It will keep you well informed on Marie Curie Actions and provide the answers you need:

swissmariecurie.blogspot.com

40 New Positions at EC Joint Research Centres (JRC)

The JRC has launched a call for the secondment of 40 national experts and grant holders as part of its enlargement and integration measures. The job opportunities are available for experts from research organisations, national enforcement laboratories and scientists from the following countries: Albania, Croatia, Iceland, Montenegro, Switzerland, Bosnia and Herzegovina, FYR of Macedonia, Israel, Serbia and Turkey.

The deadline for submitting applications is 16 May 2011.

Further Information

Consortium Agreement
Updated DESCA model (3.0) now available

One of the main changes to the latest version of the Model Consortium Agreement is the introduction of a mediation clause for the settlement of disputes.

DESCA (Development of a Simplified Consortium Agreement) aims to provide a single text that balances the interests of all those participating in projects. In order to accommodate the differing objectives and interests of partners in the various projects, the DESCA Model Consortium Agreement offers:

• alternative modules for large projects and small projects
• optional module for projects with a strong software focus
• options in the IPR section and finance section

Download DESCA 3.0 from the DESCA website.

Financing of Research Activities for Swiss-based Researchers

COST is a framework for pan-European cooperation and the coordination of research activities. Research is financed nationally. In addition to the various funds that finance research in Switzerland, the State Secretariat for Education and Research SER has a specific budget for the support of projects involved in a COST Action.

Further Information

Service Overview
Innovation - Opportunities for cooperation
Promotion of individual technology profiles
Brokerage events

Matchmaking Event on Recycling, Environmental
Technologies and Waste Management
10 June 2011 in Istanbul

Companies, public bodies and research organisations looking for trade intermediaries, partners for technical cooperation, consortium partners for the realisation of project ideas relating to EU-funded R&D projects are invited to participate.

The matchmaking event will be held as an adjunct to the 7th International Recycling, Environmental Technologies and Waste Management Fair (08 – 11 June 2011) REW Istanbul 2011. Deadline for registration: 3 June 2011. Cost: free of charge.

Further Information & Registration

Technology request of the month

Development of coating technology for long absorber pipes and parabolic reflectors to increase the long-term stability of solar thermal power plants (Ref 11 DE 18A5 3KYU) 

A German company with considerable experience in the development of various thin-coat technologies is planning to focus on development and improvements. It is looking for cost-effective coating technologies and procedures for long absorber pipes with the mean diameters used at solar thermal power plants. It is seeking a license or the joint development of new procedures.

Detailed Technology Profile
More opportunities for innovation and cooperation