Monthly Archives: December 2013

UKRO and H2020 is now Launched!!

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Hurrah!! At last all of the next Horizon 2020 proposals have been released. Following a great UKRO session yesterday with Eevi from the Brussels office (see pic below) the External Projects Team hosted a great day long programme of presentations on Erasmus + and the H2020 calls. We have been anticipating the launch which happened yesterday and we are now in the process of producing briefing sheets to help you to digest all of the information, but in the meantime you can access all of the latest info from the Commission HERE

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The Closed Loop Building Materials Facility

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View a YouTube video demonstrating the Closed Loop Building Facility Henrion Building Facade

The closed-loop system invented by Professor Michael Anderson and his team provides a method of producing high quality sustainable building products from previously unusable-quality waste glass. Using this innovative process he can produce paving slabs, external wall cladding-slips, floor tiles and construction blocks. Not only are the products themselves green, but the brick-slip product offer considerable building scope as when combined with a highly insulating backing-panel structure, the system can be used as ‘over-cladding’, thereby greatly improving the insulation of non-cavity wall Victorian/Edwardian dwellings. At the same time the visual appearance of the original structures can be preserved, as the slips can be manufactured to match the appearance of the original early brickwork. Thus allowing look-alike appearances to be maintained, this will help to contribute to the solution of preserving our heritage.

The process could also be very useful in urbanising and developing countries where rapidly growing populations are creating vast amounts of waste glass which is being dumped in landfill but which could actually be used in environmentally friendly construction projects. This would be particularly useful for tourist islands which import thousands if not millions of drink bottles every year and have to pay very high prices to then have them shipped off the island, but which could be used to regenerate existing holiday resorts.  
 
Finally, the process itself is self-sustaining. Unlike clay and concrete, the recycled glass products can be easily disassembled at the end of their life and recycled back into new building materials again and again and could change the entire way we think about building. This promises to make a significant contribution to sustainability in the future!   

The project was recently shortlisted for the IET Awards which celebrates the very best innovations in Science, Engineering and Technology and attracts over 400 entries from over 30 Countries with only 74 finalists being selected.

If you are interested in the project and would like to investigate further opportunities to how this could be scaled up and have potential to be commercialised please contact the team at the Office of Sustainability via sustainability@staffs.ac.uk or phone 01782  295837.

 

Nokia visiting professor awards

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The Nokia Foundation makes available grants and awards to support the scientific development of information and telecommunications technologies and to promote education of the sector in Finland. A multidisciplinary approach bridging other fields, for example social, behavioural, business and services sciences is encouraged.

Nokia Visiting Professor

Grants for Nokia Visiting Professors are given to distinguished foreign professors to work in Finland, or respectively to Finnish meritorious professors to work at a respected foreign university. The visit should last a minimum of two months. Visitors coming to Finland must typically participate in research work, give lectures and make corporate appearances.

To access the application form go to: Nokia Visiting Professor

No closing date for applications

For further information go to: http://www.nokiafoundation.com/scholarships_and_applying.html

 

In the Supreme Court UK this week: Disclosure of previous warnings or cautions in a Student’s past and the right to private and family life

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In the Supreme Court this week (The Queen on the Application of T v Secretary of the Home Department and others, there was consideration of the thorny issue of disclosure of a person’s past in terms of ‘spent’ criminal convictions; including cautions warnings and reprimands, and in this appeal to minors (persons under 18).

The case is of interest because in the case of one of the Appellants, T, born on 3 May 1991, when aged 11, received two warnings from the police in connection with two stolen bicycles. Although the warnings were in the jargon “stepped down” – in that only the police would retain access to the warning or caution, and not be disclosable to third parties. Nonetheless, when T sought to apply to study at University, the University sought an Enhanced Criminal Record Certificate (ECRC) and received notification of the stepped down warnings. It was apparent that stepping down the cautions and warnings, was not a procedure the police could follow, and they were obliged pursuant to amendments made to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974, to disclose details of the warnings to the University upon request.

The Court of Appeal decision is attached, containing the full facts of all the combined appeals (with appeals in relation to more serious offences than the alleged theft of two bicycles in the case of T.

It will be helpful to have clarification as to the extent to which a person in a similar situation to T, being minors at the time of offending, making applications into further education, and then into employment would continue to be either required to continue to disclose their own past, or be affected by disclosure of previous offences by third party agencies. The Court of Appeal indicated that in their view such disclosure was disproportionate and in breach of his Article 8 rights (please see the Court of Appeal decision for the wording of Article 8 – right to respect for private and family life), and it remains to be seen whether the Supreme Court would take a similar view.

The facts of the case of T, potentially relevant to those entering in to full time education or employment, with similar past infractions, are set out in the Court of Appeal judgment attached.

Click to access r-t-chief-constable-manchester-judgment-29012013.pdf

Creative Europe Funding to Launch in January

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With all the talk about Erasmus+ and Horizon 2020, it is easy to forget that the European Commission is also launching the Creative Europe Programme this January. Creative Europe will provide €1.46 billion over seven years to strengthen Europe’s cultural and creative sectors

What does it support?

  • Cross-border cooperation projects between cultural and creative organisations within the EU and beyond.
  • Networks helping the cultural and creative sectors to operate transnationally and to strengthen their competitiveness.
  • Translation and promotion of literary works across EU markets.
  • Platforms of cultural operators promoting emerging artists and stimulating a truly European programming of cultural and artistic works.
  • Capacity building and professional training for audiovisual professionals.
  • Development of fiction, animations, creative documentaries and video games for European cinema, television markets and other platforms.
  • Distribution and sales of audiovisual works in and outside Europe.
  • Film festivals that promote European films.
  • Funds for the international co-production of films.
  • Audience development to foster film literacy and to raise interest in Europe’s films through a wide range of events

The commission has not yet announced how much match funding will be needed for these project. Traditionally it has been around 50%.

We will keep you up to date as more details come in on this fund.

Find out more http://ec.europa.eu/creative-europe

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Horizon 2020: New Participant Portal Now Live

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The new version of the Research Participant Portal, to be used for Horizon 2020 calls and projects and ongoing FP7 projects is now live. 

http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/desktop/en/home.html

The Participant Portal is the point of entry for information about Horizon 2020, funding calls, partner searches and information about the types of funding instrument in Horizon 2020. It is also the mechanism through which applications will be submitted for calls under the programme, and through which grant signature and subsequent grant management will take place.The portal is different in appearance to the FP7 portal and is easier to navigate. A key document is the Online Manual, accessible through most pages and providing useful information on applying for grants and on each stage of grant management.

Users should note that much of the portal is not yet complete – in particular, information on calls is not yet provided. The intention is that most of the site will be fully operational from 11 December and the launch of Horizon 2020, but some areas may continue as work in progress after this date as final details are resolved and can then be added to the portal.

Information continues to be available on the portal on FP7 – key documents for instance – and access to existing FP7 projects is unchanged by the upgrade of the participant portal.

Wellcome Trust Awards – Society & Ethics

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The Wellcome Trust invites applications for its university awards in society and ethics. These allow universities to attract or retain outstanding research staff at an early to mid-stage in their careers by providing support for up to five years, after which time the applicant takes up a guaranteed permanent post in the university. A monograph and other substantial publications are expected to result from an award, and so teaching and other non-research commitments are expected to be minimal during the period of support.

Candidates must be nominated by their prospective head of department and have an undertaking from the head of the institution, vice-chancellor, principal or dean that the personal support will be taken over by the institution at the end of the grant. Support is normally available only at lecturer level, although in exceptional cases awards to senior lecturer level may be possible. The host institution should normally be located in either the UK or Republic of Ireland.

Up to five years’ support is available, providing a full salary for three years, 50 per cent in the fourth year and 25 per cent in the fifth year. The trust provides travel costs to attend meetings for five years and other research expenses for the first three years of the award. Public engagement costs may also be included.

For more information click here: Wellcome Trust Awards

Royal Society/Leverhulme Trust Senior Research Fellowships

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      Leverhulme Trust

This scheme is for scientists who would benefit from a period of full-time research without teaching and administrative duties.

The scheme reimburses the employing institution with the full salary cost of a teaching replacement.

The scheme covers all areas of the life and physical sciences, including engineering, but excluding clinical medicine.

The applicant must

  • have a PhD or equivalent
  • hold a permanent post at a UK university or not-for-profit institution
  • be at a stage in their career when they would particularly benefit from a period of full-time research

The award lasts between one term and one academic year.

The applicant’s employing institution will be reimbursed for the full salary cost of a teaching replacement (up to the equivalent of the minimum point on the lectureship scale as paid by the host university).

Research expenses up to a maximum of £2,500 are available to each fellow to cover the costs of consumables, equipment, travel and communicating science.

Eligibility requirement can be found in the scheme notes.

For further information on how to apply go to http://royalsociety.org/grants/schemes/leverhulme-trust-senior-research/

Designer in residence workshops

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There are places available to register for two workshops with Designer in Residence Jonathan Butters on Friday 13th December.

The sessions are:

How to find and brief a designer 9.30am – 11.00am

• Once you have a specification and a brief you can try to find some talent to help deliver a great solution
• An interactive journey to find who else might be relevant and help them understand how the process of selection is often very informative and can help focus the project

 

Design as an engine of commercialisation 11.30am – 1.30pm

• Examples and discussion of how the design process fits into the commercialisation process for innovative products and services

Please email r.watmore@staffs.ac.uk to register for one or both of the workshops.