Tag Archives: innovation

NESTA – Impact Investments

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NESTA the innovation funder has a number of open funding opportunities. One of these is the Impact Investment Awards. They aim to bring about positive outcomes for people, communities and society as a whole, as well as providing financial returns for investors.

Impact investment is needed to fund the creation of new innovations and to support their testing and development. It also allows the best ones to scale up and change the world. This is as true of innovation that seek to achieve social impact as it is of those motivated by creating financial value.

In particular, NESTA are seeking innovations that have a positive impact on:

  • the health and wellbeing of an ageing population;
  • the educational attainment and employability of children and young people; and
  • the social and environmental sustainability of communities.
This is a open call and has a rolling deadline. To find out more please visit the WEBLINK
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Over €400 billion agreed by the European Parliament

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The European Parliament had a busy week last week approving over €400 billion support measures for regional development, research and innovation, lifelong learning, cultural and media European collaboration activities.  The legislative packages for the following programmes have now been agreed by the European Parliament for the 2014 – 2020 programme period:

Horizon 2020 – €70.2 billion for research and innovation (Draft Horizon 2020 work programmes are now available via the European Commission website at http://ec.europa.eu/research/horizon2020/index_en.cfm?pg=h2020-documents. )

Cohesion Policy – €325 billion for growth and job creation through European Regional Development Fund; the European Social Fund; the Cohesion Fund; the European Agricultural Fund for Rural Development; and the European Maritime and Fisheries Fund. 

Erasmus+ – €14.7 billion for lifelong learning, focussing on student and staff mobility through strategic partnerships.

Creative Europe – €1.4 billion for supporting European culture, media and arts sectors

For more information contact externalprojects@staffs.ac.uk for draft work programmes and help in matching funding to your project ideas.  Find out more about Horizon 2020 and Erasmus + in particular at our annual UKRO event on 11th December – the day the first calls of Horizon 2020 will be launched.

INTERREG IVB North West Europe Event

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photo.JB3Staffordshire University staff attended a partnership event in Roubaix, France on the 14th November 2013. The day long event was led by INTERREG IVB North West Europe (NWE) funded by ERDF, the aim was to discuss the new programme and facilitate patnership opportunities around three key themes, Innovation, Low Carbon and Renewable Materials.

Sacha Oberweis represented ARBOR a University led project on BioMass. Representing the Office of Sustainability, John Adlen was championing the setting up of “Urban Labs” and Jose Beech from ECD took part in discussions on Innovation.

To find out more please contact the team at externalprojects@staffs.ac.uk or you can click HERE to access the information from the day.

 

 

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 EU Energy Focus, the National Contact Point for Energy in Horizon 2020, and the Energy Generation and Supply Knowledge Transfer Network are arranging a series of webinars on the topics covered by the draft Horizon 2020 Work Programme for 2014. It is hoped that 2014 work programmes will be published on 11th December, so for an early insight colleagues are advised to join these webinars or visit the site afterwards to listen to the recordings for more detail about the funding available.

Low carbon energy – 20th November at 2:30pm: Research and demonstration for grids, storage, biofuels, CCS plus market uptake www.eventsforce.net/h2020-6

Smart Cities and Communities – 22nd November 12.30pm  www.eventsforce.net/h2020-7

 

MacRobert Award

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The premier award for UK innovation in engineering

The MacRobert Award recognises the successful development of innovative ideas in engineering. It seeks to demonstrate the importance of engineering and the role of engineers and scientists in contributing to national prosperity and international prestige.

The Award, first presented in 1969, honours the winning organisation with a gold medal, and each of the individual nominees with a bronze medal. There is, in addition, a cash prize of £50,000.

Originally founded by the MacRobert Trusts the Award is now presented by The Royal Academy of Engineering, a prize fund having been established with donations from the MacRobert Trusts, The Royal Academy of Engineering and British industry.

Closing date: Monday 20 January 2014

For further information see MacRobert Award Brochure (attached) MacRobert_Brochure and http://www.raeng.org.uk/prizes/macrobert/default.htm

Royal Academy of Engineering logo

 

Global Innovation Initiative

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state U.S. State Department Brittish Council Institute of International Education

The Global Innovation Initiative is a higher education partnership grant opportunity established between the United States and the United Kingdom aimed at strengthening multilateral research collaborations between universities in the US, UK and other selected countries. The Global Innovation Initiative will award grants to university consortia focusing on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM)-related issues of global significance that foster cutting-edge multinational research and strengthen institutional international partnerships.  The Institute of International Education will administer the U.S. competition and the British Council will administer the UK competition.

The Department of State and Department for Business, Innovation and Skills have identified Brazil, China, India and Indonesia as designated countries for the Global Innovation Initiative.

New or existing research partnerships comprised of at least one US, one UK and one institution of higher education from one of the four emerging economies are invited to apply for a Global Innovation Initiative grant. Partnership research proposals in the area of STEM are eligible.

Goals of the Global Innovation Initiative

  • To increase the global mobility of students, researchers, faculty, and higher education administrators from the US, the UK, and other countries;
  • To develop a cadre of people in the US, UK, and other countries who have the international experience, outlook and knowledge to confront global challenges and operate in a global context;
  • To encourage international collaborations that develop capacity across a range of universities in the US, the UK and other countries;
  • To forge university and business linkages that support a globally mobile talent pool and a multinational base for the exchange of discovery and innovation.

Approximately 20 grants will be awarded ranging from $150,000 to $250,000 (US competition) or from £100,000 to £150,000 (UK competition).

UK-led partnership proposals must apply through the UK grant competition, administered by the British Council.

British Council

The application for both country competitions will close December 16, 2013

For further information go to: http://global-innovation-initiative.org/

HEIF call news

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Enterprise and Commercial Development will shortly be opening a call for Innovation and Collaboration Vouchers. The guidelines and application form for this call are now available for download from Drop Box at the following link: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/o7enem2ouzowbem/-Um17cAot7.  

Applications can be submitted from the 4th Nov – 6th Dec 2013. Further details can be found by viewing the guidelines and a best practice example of a completed HEIF application form is also available at the above link.  Please send all completed application forms to Alex Harvey, HEIF Project Manager, via email to a.harvey@staffs.ac.uk.  

Future calls: A call for Continuous Improvement Projects is planned for January 2014.

HEIF

Enhancing Learning and Research for Humanitarian Assistance

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The Humanitarian Innovation Fund supports organisations and individuals to identify, nurture and share innovative and scalable solutions to the challenges facing effective humanitarian assistance.

Enhancing Learning and Research for Humanitarian Assistance, (under the humanitarian innovations fund), invites proposals for its large grant facility. Funding supports the development, implementation and testing of a humanitarian innovation that will lead to demonstrated cost-effective improvements in humanitarian practice.

Non-profit organisations such as non-governmental organisations, public or governmental institutions and academic or research institutes that have legal status and are registered in the country in which the project will be carried out, may apply. There is no geographic restriction as to the origin of an applicant. Organisations may apply individually or in consortia.

Grants will be allocated to projects with an implementation period of up to 18 months and range from £75,000 up to £150,000.

There are five key steps to innovation and large grants are awarded at two of these stages:

To date the Fund has awarded grants to fifteen projects from its large grant facility which supports the development, implementation and testing of innovation in humanitarian contexts with grants of up to £150,000.

The Fund has also awarded grants to eleven projects from its small grant facility which supports the recognition, invention and dissemination of an innovation with grants of up to £20,000.

For further information go to: http://www.humanitarianinnovation.org/funding/awards/large-grant

Closing date Expressions of intent due by 28 October; full proposals due by 13 December 2013. This call is repeated 2 times a year.

Innovation Design Development

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A workshop for staff with Staffordshire University Designer in Residence, Jonathan Butters
Jonathan specialises in bringing design solutions to healthcare products, medical devices, laboratory equipment, and consumer, leisure and domestic products. Before founding his two businesses, he was a Mechanical Engineer and then lectured in 3D and product design in both Further and Higher Education.
Jonathan Butters has created and managed two innovation consultancies, Jab Design and Butters Innovation, operating in the UK and abroad. Jab Design, offered product design and technology development to small start-ups through to large blue-chips, while Butters Innovation has, since 2008, focused on the strategic development of disruptive innovation, particularly in hi-tech university spin outs.

2pm on Wednesday 16th October in the Brindley Building B211
Email r.watmore@staffs.ac.uk to register.

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EU Prize for Women Innovators 2014

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The European Commission has launched the second edition of the EU Prize for Women Innovators. The competition is open until 15th October 2013 and aims to raise public awareness about the need for more innovation and more women innovators. It will reward three women who have developed outstanding innovations and brought them to market, with prizes ranging from €25,000 to €100,000.

Any woman innovator complying with the following criteria can apply:

  • Resides in an EU Member State or in a country associated to the Research Framework Programme.
  • Is a founder or co-founder of an existing and active company.
  • Your company must have been registered before 1st January 2011.
  • The annual turnover of the company must have been a minimum €100,000 in 2011 or 2012.
  • Either you or the company you founded/co-founded have received or is receiving funding from the European Union or the European Atomic Energy Community Research Framework Programme, or from the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP).

If you would like to participate, please got to the contest website before the 15th October 2013.