Factsheets on H2020

Posted on December 19, 2013 by Holly Hoar

Following the launch of the new European Horizon 2020 funding programme last week, UKRO have made factsheets for each of the new strands. You can access these by logging onto their site http://www.ukro.ac.uk/subscriber/funding/Pages/index.aspx.

The diagram below outlines the funding areas which are covered by H2020. URKO has factsheets for each of these topics. You can click on the diagram to enlarge it.

To be able to access this information, you will need to sign up for an UKRO account if you do not have one already. Alternatively, you can contact the External Projects Team requesting which factsheets you require and we can send them out.

The University has a high level of success in applying for European funding. If you have not been involved with an EU project before a good place to start might be to look at small funds that can help you meet other European partners. If you already have potential European links, a good place to start is by being a partner on a project.

If you are interested in making an application to Horizon 2020, make the External Projects Team your first port of call. externalprojects@staffs.ac.uk

Workshop: Disconnection, Division and Exclusion – apply by 30th January 2014

Posted on December 17, 2013 by Esther KNIGHT

This open call invites expressions of interest to attend a research development workshop addressing the challenges of Disconnection, Division and Exclusion, being held as a part of the cross-Council Connected Communities Programme on 18-20 March 2014 at the Novotel Sheffield Centre Hotel.

The aim of this workshop is to stimulate the development of innovative, cross-disciplinary, community-engaged, research projects to better understand the disconnections that can occur from, within and between communities and the consequences, positive and negative, of disconnection in different cultural contexts. It will explore the potential for research to engage with the assets and creativity within diverse communities, to address some of the challenges that can be associated with ‘disconnection’, such as loneliness, isolation, exclusion, alienation, marginalization, discrimination, conflict and extremism and low levels of civic participation and/or engagement. A key priority will be the sharing, understanding and further development of creative approaches to engaging with diverse communities in the co-production and co-design of the research projects to address issues of disconnection.

The AHRC is are seeking applications to participate in the workshop from:

Researchers and project partners supported under the Connected Communities Programme who are interested in working with others to address the challenges of disconnection, division and exclusion.
Researchers from a wide range of disciplines who are not currently involved in the Connected Communities Programme with expertise relevant to the themes of this workshop (disconnection, division and exclusion etc.) interested in working collaboratively with other academic and non-academic partners to explore these issues.
Individuals from outside the higher education sector (e.g. from community, voluntary or policy organisations or from the heritage and creative arts sectors) with experience or expertise in exploring issues such as disconnection, division and exclusion and who are interested in working collaboratively with academic and other non-academic partners to explore these issues.

The facilitated workshop will be highly participative, interactive and open to innovative ideas from participants about future research opportunities and priorities. Attendees at the workshop will have an opportunity to apply for ring-fenced funding for follow-up projects of up to £100,000 to support inter-disciplinary collaborative grants combining arts and humanities expertise with other research disciplines and community, policy and practice partners, to take forward the most innovative research ideas that emerge during the workshop that would contribute to the aims outlined above.

The workshop is being organised by the AHRC as a part of the cross-Council Connected Communities Programme, in collaboration with RCUK partners in the ESRC, NERC, MRC and EPSRC. Through the workshop the research councils are also keen to explore links to other initiatives and potential collaborations with other research funders and with a range of other policy, practice, charitable and voluntary organisations.

Closing Dates

30/01/2014

Deadline Date

The deadline for applications to attend the workshop is 1700hrs Thursday 30th January 2014.

How to Apply

The deadline for applications to attend the workshop is 1700hrs Thursday 30th January 2014. Applications should be submitted electronically as an e-mail attachment to connected.communities@ahrc.ac.uk (please quote ‘EOI Research Development Workshop’ in the subject line). Please note that late submissions will not be considered.

Further information on how to apply is provided in the call document (PDF, 246KB, opens in new window).

Further Enquiries about the workshop should be directed to:

Pete Henly: connectedcommunities@ahrc.ac.uk

Visualising research workshop: January 24th 2014 – London

Posted on December 16, 2013 by Esther KNIGHT

Event Date: 24/01/2014

Event Location: British Library

Visualising Research: bringing public data to life

Can you present complex data to tell a compelling story that anyone will be able to understand?

The AHRC are inviting designers, graphic artists, software developers, programmers and anyone with an interest in data visualisation to enter the ‘Visualising Research’ competition and produce images that will show how this public funding contributes to research in the UK.

This workshop is for anyone considering entering the competition who wants some inspiration, information about the Gateway to Research database and to meet potential collaborators. Representatives from the AHRC and BBSRC will be there on the day, as well as data visualisation evangelists (Guardian Digital Agency) and developers (Cottage Labs) who have worked with the data.

There is no charge for the workshop and lunch and refreshments will be provided. Please sign up by 15 January 2014 as places are limited (opens in new window).

You do not have to attend the workshop to enter the competition. Entry forms will be available from the ‘Visualising Research’ website on 27 January 2014; the competition closes on 21 March 2014 (opens in new window).

Every year the seven Research Councils, funded by UK tax payers, spend around £3 billion on research that improves lives and the world around us. Research Council funds are awarded on the basis of applications made by researchers, which are subject to independent, expert peer review. Applications are judged by considering a combination of factors, including their scientific excellence, timeliness and promise, strategic relevance, economic and social impacts, industrial and stakeholder relevance value for money and staff training potential.

Key data from the seven Research Councils are now available from one place – Gateway to Research – enabling anyone to interrogate grants awarded, publications, people and organisations.

Funding for travel to commonwealth countries

Posted on December 16, 2013 by ejd2

The Association of Commonwealth Universities Early Career Academic Grants Scheme is now open.

As a member of the Association of Commonwealth Universities, Staffordshire University is able to apply for Early Career Academic Grants for conference or meeting attendance. The grants are for up to £2000 for early career researchers to travel abroad and build research connections. This Association of Commonwealth Universities scheme have 100 grants available, applications are to be received by 7th February.

Further information at https://www.acu.ac.uk/membership/grants-awards/early-career-academic-grants.

Erasmus + calls now launched

Posted on December 13, 2013 by Josephine Beech

The successor of the Life Long Learning Programme, Erasmus + has now published its first calls for proposals. Staffordshire University has successfully applied for the “Erasmus Charter” a pre requisite of applying for the programme and there are now open calls. A summary of these can be found with indicative budgets and call deadlines below.

You can link to the programme document for more detail ERASMUS + Programme Guide

BUDGET

Education and training	:	EUR 1 305,3 million
Youth	:	EUR 174,2 million
Jean Monnet	:	EUR 11,2 million
Sport	:	EUR 16,6 million

Key Action 1

Mobility of individuals in the field of education, training and youth (all)	17 March 2014
Mobility of individuals in the field of youth only	30 April 2014
Mobility of individuals in the field of youth only	1 October 2014
Joint master degrees	27 March 2014
Large-scale European voluntary service events	3 April 2014

Key Action 2

Strategic partnerships in the field of education, training and youth (all)	30 April 2014
Strategic partnerships in the field of youth only	1 October 2014
Knowledge alliances, sector skills alliances	3 April 2014
Capacity building in the field of youth	3 April 2014 2 September 2014

The external projects team will be disseminating this information across the University, but if you would like any further information please get in touch with the team at externalprojects@staffs.ac.uk

UKRO and H2020 is now Launched!!

Posted on December 12, 2013 by Josephine Beech

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

The Closed Loop Building Materials Facility

Posted on December 12, 2013 by nl6

View a YouTube video demonstrating the Closed Loop Building Facility

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

Posted on December 12, 2013 by BENNETT Margaret

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

Creative Europe Funding to Launch in January

Posted on December 11, 2013 by Holly Hoar

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

Staffordshire University Research and Funding Blog

Category Archives: Funding