Newsletter June 2021
How wide is the horizon for Europe?
Now that Horizon Europe (HE) has finally got its legal basis, non-EU Member States can start the negotiation process to become “Associated Countries” (AC). When preparing the new Framework Programme (FP), the European Commission (EC) made much of their intention to open the circle of potential candidates for Association to include countries such as Canada and Japan. With the first big round of calls about to open, several draft Work Programmes have revealed, however, that the outlook of the EC has changed significantly. Not only have they demoted the status of these "Third Country" participants, in certain thematic areas such as energy, quantum technology and space, they even intend to exclude researchers from AC for the sake of the EU’s “strategic autonomy”. This notion had already appeared in early HE drafts, but its meaning was always taken to be increasing the EU’s technological independence from China or the US, not excluding neighbouring countries such as the UK, Switzerland or Israel. Even the representatives of the EU Member States (EU MS) in the Programme Committees, in charge of approving the Work Programmes, were apparently surprised — and not at all amused — by this evolving interpretation. Under the lead of Germany, several EU MS have rallied to reverse impending restrictions.
What does this mean for participants in Switzerland? At the moment, there is not much difference to the rules of the previous FP. Participants from countries formerly associated to Horizon 2020, as Switzerland was, can still submit to all 2021 calls as if they were from an AC. The German-led initiative has resulted in a more nuanced approach to collaboration, so that Swiss participants should still be able to join consortia on any topic they want. Meanwhile, the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) is still tirelessly trying to sign and seal the Swiss Association to HE in time for the signature of the first Grant Agreements.
So, the bottom line is: If you are interested in participating in any of the upcoming HE calls, do so! Only those who submit a proposal have a chance of getting funded and we certainly do not want SERI's efforts to have been for nothing.
Regina Schneider, Euresearch Director
Alexandra Rosakis, Illustration
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