European Funding: A History in Logos

Although the draft work programmes for the EC's new Framework Programme, Horizon Europe, are being leaked and the Portugese presidency is making it a priority to get things moving on it, the main question has yet to be answered: what's the logo for it, and how does it compare to previous iterations? Fortunately, fearless Fundermentals is here to help. 

Fundermentals Top 5 2020

2020: Another year 'we'd all rather forget'
Photo by ANIRUDH on Unsplash

Last year I started my annual round up of the most popular posts on Fundermentals with the words 'it's been quite a year. One, I think, that we'd all rather forget.'

After 2020, the previous year feels positively halcyon. The pandemic has changed everything, and we've all had to adjust to a new way of working, living and relaxing. As we start 2021 even the idea of going to an office or a cafe feels positively exotic. 

Given the changes we've had to adapt to, I've had less opportunity to post frequently, so this year's round up is more svelte, limiting itself to the top five. Still, it's not about the quantity but the quality, and 2020 saw some of the finest, well-crafted and frankly world-changing articles. So sit back, try not to think about the world outside, and enjoy looking back at another year 'we'd all rather forget.' 

Beyond the Horizon

The long goodbye

With the UK due to leave the European Union on 31 January 2020, what’s ahead for international research funding for UK researchers? 

Rodney Takes over European Research

In a surprise move, seen by some as offering a soothing pat on the head to the off shore asylum formerly known as Britain, the European Commission has appointed Rodney Trotter as the new Director General of DG Research and Innovation.

He succeeds long term incumbent Harvey Keitel, who held the position for eight years. He was a highly regarded Director General, but great things are expected of his successor.

'He knows how to hold his nerve and remain steady,' said an unnamed source very very very close to Jean-Claude Junker. 'Although he appears to be playing second fiddle to a loudmouth chancer with delusions of grandeur, he actually has very little to do with David Davis - I mean Jason,' he quickly corrected.

Any similarity to Jean-Eric Paquet is, of course, entirely coincidental.

Trotter

Paquet

Who Ya Gonna Call?

Downtown Brussels. Help is just a phonecall away (photo: Elliott Brown)

With the news that the UK's participation until the end of H2020 has been secured, now is the time to dust off your proposal and get working for the deadlines in the early months of next year - and beyond. But do you need help with preparing it, or questions about the detail? There is a network of national contact points (NCPs) who can help you. It is sometimes hard to track these down, so here they are, in cut-out-and-keep form:

Grants Factory: Applying for Marie Curie ITNs

2-4pm, Wednesday 10 May 2017

Venue: TBC

Dr Richard Guest

Marie Curie Innovative Training Networks (ITNs) provide funding for doctoral training programmes run jointly between a number of institutions across Europe. They run for up to 4 years and are worth up to €4.5m. There is no limit to the disciplines which can apply, and the University currently has six ITNs running. One of these is Enhanced Mobile Biometrics (AMBER) in EDA, led by Dr Richard Guest.

The next call is due to open in the autumn with a deadline early in the New Year. Despite the triggering of Article 50 UK universities can still apply, and the Treasury has agreed to underwrite any grants that have been approved at the point the UK leaves the EU in March 2019. Richard has kindly agreed to talk about his experience of applying for these complex grants, what worked for him, what he would have done differently, and what people should bear in mind when starting to develop the collaborations.

The session is free and open to all, and tea and coffee will be provided. However, do drop me a line to let me know that you plan to come. 

Lighting a Candle

For most of June I've been travelling. I went up to Birmingham for the ARMA Conference, and then spent a week in Ghent with my team on an Erasmus+ exchange with colleagues at the University there. Finally, I was at the EARMA Conference in Lulea in Sweden last week.

And those three weeks brought home to me what a wonderful continent Europe is. From the vibrant, multi-cultural metropolis of Birmingham, to the cosmopolitan, relaxed and historic centre of Ghent, to the natural wonder of Lulea and the glittering archipelago of Stockholm: it is a diverse, open and inclusive continent, rich in history, but forward looking. 

Now you will have noticed that I included Birmingham as a natural part of Europe. Because to me it is: the UK is a part of Europe. Whilst the Channel is a geographic boundary, in all other ways the UK is strongly linked with the mainland. Economically, historically, culturally, environmentally, scientifically: on every level we are Europe. 

Which is why the Referendum result on Friday morning felt like a body blow. The messages, like telegrams, came in as I was driving back from Gatwick, from Stockholm, in the early hours, and the darkness that surrounded me felt foreboding.

Engaging with Europe

In April I wrote about the European Research Area, the ‘borderless continent’ that the founding fathers of the European Union hoped to achieve. The ERA can best be seen as a work in progress, but that shouldn’t stop academics from engaging with it and trying to influence its future direction and focus.

To many, the European Commission can seem like an impenetrable technocracy. If you ever hear a commissioner speak, it will do little to dispel this notion. I wrote once about the basic components of a Commission presentation. The vital elements are PowerPoint slides dense with text, detailed maps of the process by which directives have been agreed, preferably involving an incomprehensible flowchart, lots of clip art, and a peppering of unexplained acronyms.

H2020: Year One Report Card

Horizon 2020, the European Commission’s main programme for distributing research funding across Europe, has now been running for a little over a year, so it seems like a good time to check in on how things are going so far. 

We have already had 79 calls, and researchers across Europe have responded by submitting 25,903 proposals, asking for some €41bn. Around 14.5% of these have been successful (3,765), totalling €6.6bn. That’s around 8.5% of the total H2020 budget of €70bn for the seven year programme.