European Commission

In this fourth 'ERC Starting Grant' competition, just over €670 million is allocated for top talent to carry out their pioneering research in any domain throughout Europe. The projects selected cover a wide variety of topics from studying the exceptional properties of biological nanomaterials to the health impact of exposure to traffic noise and the role of economic media in financial crises.

In this Starting Grant call, the number of applicants has significantly increased; from 2873 last year to 4080 this year, which represents a 42% rise. The estimated total budget for the call is an increase of almost 15% from last year. The success rate (12%) slightly decreased. The average age of selected researchers is about 37 and 21% are women. Furthermore, a total 38 different nationalities are represented this year with German, British and Italian researchers taking the lead (see statistics below). The UK, Germany and France host the greatest number of successful applicants. The selected candidates will be based in universities or research institutions situated in 21 countries throughout Europe.

This year 17 researchers are moving from the United States to Europe with their grant, out of which 14 are returning Europeans, two are American and one is Canadian. An international strategy is currently under preparation as the ERC seeks to increase the share of researchers coming from overseas.

The ERC grants are open to all fields of research. In this call, 46% of applicants were selected in 'Physical Sciences and Engineering', 35% in 'Life Sciences' and 19% in 'Social Sciences and Humanities'. The selected projects ranged from understanding how economic media interpret financial crises in the second half of 20th century, to analyzing new routes and behaviors of traffickers of cultural goods and exploring the exceptional properties of biological nanomaterials (e.g. spider silk, bones) in order to use them for other purposes.

More information
ERC website: http://erc.europa.eu
The 2011 Starting Grant Call for Proposals is currently open - See the Funding Opportunities Section in this newsletter for more information.

The survey, published each year by the think tank, the German Marshall Fund, noted that 51 percent of people in the US believe Asia is "more important" for their "national interests" than the EU. The pro-Asia feeling was even stronger among young Americans (over 70 percent in the 18 to 34 age range). The result is a massive change compared to 2004 when just 29 percent of US respondents overall plumped for Asia.

From the European point of view, based on surveys in 12 large member states, the US is still the old continent's main partner on the world stage. Fifty two percent of Europeans said the US is more important than Asia, with France, Spain and Sweden the only countries on the pro-Asia side.

All the EU countries believed U.S. President Barack Obama is doing a better job than their own governments on issues ranging from the economic crisis, to fighting terrorism or the wars in Afghanistan and Libya. Fifty four percent of Europeans also said that US leadership in world affairs is "desirable".

Other findings of note include: more than half of Europeans (53%) said using the euro is or will be bad for their economies and Germany is the only EU country happy to hand over more sovereign powers to EU institutions to fight the economic crisis.

On the Middle East, Americans believed pressure should be put on Palestinians to promote peace while Europeans felt Israel has the lion's share of responsibility, most Europeans (54%) were pessimistic about future stability in Libya, and two out of three Americans and Europeans want to reduce troops in Afghanistan.

The transatlantic military alliance, NATO, was considered "essential" by 62 percent of all American and European respondents.

Click here to read the full press release.
Click here to read the key findings report.
Click here to read the topline data.
For more information, go to Transatlantic Trends

This is more than double the level of last year's expectations and represents a significant upturn from the 2.6% R&D cuts in investment implemented by these companies in 2009. The companies surveyed also revealed that an average of 27% of their annual sales comes from innovative products introduced in the past three years, demonstrating again that innovation is the key to commercial success and to job creation.

These figures were published today by the European Commission in its sixth EU Survey on R&D Investment Business Trends, a survey of the R&D investment expectations of the 1000 European companies which invest the most in R&D. 205 companies responded, providing a substantial sample.

Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, Commissioner for Research, Innovation and Science, said: "The survey provides welcome positive economic news and grounds for cautious medium-term optimism, given that business R&D is a key driver of sustainable growth and jobs. But if we are to achieve our Europe 2020 targets, including getting R&D investment in the EU up to 3% of GDP, we will need these forecast investments for 2011-13 to be delivered in practice. We will also need further increases in the rate of growth of private R&D investment in subsequent years, both by the big companies covered in this survey and by SMEs. And we will need to deliver an Innovation Union in Europe so that investing in R&D here is more attractive than doing so elsewhere."

Companies surveyed expect their R&D investment inside the EU to grow 3% a year over the next three years. Although this rate is lower than the growth expected for their R&D investment in other world regions, the companies still expect to locate 75% of their investments in the EU. They expect to make the largest percentage increases in R&D investment in China (25%), Japan (17%), other European countries (8%), India (8%) and the US and Canada (5%).

This trend (the same in three out of four previous surveys) shows that EU-based companies want to benefit from the growth in emerging economies while still retaining a strong overall focus on the EU. This is confirmed by the companies' figures for nominal R&D investment amounts, which are set to increase by €2.2 billion over the next three years in the EU and €2.7 billion outside the EU.
Top factors indicated as having a positive effect on innovation were the availability of qualified personnel and of public support such as grants and fiscal incentives. Collaboration with other entities, such as higher education institutions, was also seen as important.

Factors perceived as negative for all sectors were enforcement costs of Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) and the time needed to obtain IPR protection. This highlights the importance of fostering an innovation-friendly IPR regime– the proposed unitary EU patent will be a significant step forward in this respect.
In October 2011 the European Commission will publish its next EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard, which ranks the biggest 1000 EU and 1000 non-EU companies investing in R&D on the basis of actual investments in 2010.

Background

The EU Survey on R&D Investment Business Trends was carried out by the European Commission's in-house science service, the Joint Research Centre (JRC), and the Directorate General for Research and Innovation.
The survey results are based on 205 responses of mainly larger companies from the 1000 EU-based companies in the 2010 EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard. Taken together, these 205 companies are responsible for R&D investments worth almost €40 billion, constituting around 30% of the total R&D investments by the 1000 EU Scoreboard companies which is a significant share of European business investment in R&D.

The full report is available at: http://iri.jrc.es/reports.htm

For more information on the EU Industrial R&D Investment Scoreboard IP/10/1379
http://europa.eu/rapid/pressReleasesAction.do?reference=IP/11/957&format=HTML&aged=0&language=EN&guiLanguage=en

Radio telescopes around the world can now simultaneously observe the most remote objects in the universe and create high-resolution images – a level of detail equivalent to identifying a football on the moon. The technique, called Electronic Very Long Baseline Interferometry (e-VLBI), helps to reveal clues on how galaxies are formed by allowing astronomers to receive and process data in near real-time as an experiment is running, thanks to high speed optical networks. This allows multiple radio telescopes throughout the world to work together to simulate one giant telescope. This not only improves the quality of observation results but also helps to maximize the return on investments in radio telescopes. Two high capacity electronic communications networks projects, EXPReS and NEXPReS, which have received €7.4 million in EU funding, are supporting the development and use of e-VLBI astronomy. Developing e-Infrastructures to build Europe's innovative advantage is one of the priorities of the Digital Agenda for Europe (see IP/10/581, MEMO/10/199 and MEMO/10/200).

Radio astronomers observe celestial objects to understand how galaxies evolve and interact with each other. Traditional Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) observations are performed by telescopes distributed across several countries that simultaneously point at the same source. The greater the distance between telescopes, the better they can distinguish the small details of the source. Each station traditionally recorded data on hard disks that were shipped to a central supercomputer where the data was analysed. The new e-VLBI technique allows telescopes to connect directly to the central supercomputer via optical fibers, avoiding the costs of managing storage media and bringing much faster results. The data is then processed in real-time, providing astronomers with scientific results in a matter of hours rather than weeks. Previously limited to Europe, the e-VLBI technique is now being used on a global scale.

The e-VLBI technique was recently used to observe a "Seyfert galaxy" revealing the emission of powerful gamma rays thought only to originate from the most powerful type of black holes. No other galaxy of this kind had ever been detected at such high energy, and it could be the first member of a new class of cosmic objects. These e-VLBI observations have been made possible through the use of a global, real-time network of the largest and most sensitive radio telescopes in Europe, East Asia and Australia as far apart as 12,458 km and connected through high-speed optical networks.

Background

e-VLBI observation is testing new frontiers since it allows real-time monitoring and the possibility of delivering immediate results, which is essential for coordination with other observatories at other wavelengths. More radio telescopes are expected to become connected through real-time high-speed networks, and the NEXPReS project is advancing technology to remove the distinction between traditional VLBI and e-VLBI techniques.

e-VLBI has also has other uses. It can be used 'in reverse' to measure the motion of the Earth's tectonic plates and help to predict earthquakes. It can also observe variations in the Earth's orientation and length of day, which can in turn be used in climate change research and to measure the speed of gravitational waves in fundamental physics research. To do so, a global network of antennas measures time differences from distant sources (such as pulsars) over a period of time.

Through the EXPReS project, which ran from 2006 to 2009, the supercomputer at the Joint Institute for VLBI in Europe (JIVE) in The Netherlands has been upgraded for e-VLBI operations. It can receive data from up to 16 telescopes at a time at 1 Gb/s from each telescope. The supercomputer now offers regularly scheduled e-VLBI sessions as well as opportunities for observations of transient cosmological objects, such as exploding stars, possibly connected to the formation of black holes.

More on EXPReS project – http://www.expres-eu.org/

NEXPReS (Novel Explorations Pushing Robust e-VLBI Services) is a three-year project running from 2010 until 2013 with the goal of implementing real-time e-VLBI into all observations conducted by the European VLBI Network, a collaboration of the major radio astronomical institutes in Europe, Asia and South Africa. This will enable better data quality and deeper images of the galaxy that can be offered to a larger number of astronomers. NEXPReS is carried out by 15 research institutes, National Research and Education Network (NREN) providers and advanced computing facilities in Australia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Italy, Latvia, The Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

More on NEXPReS project – http://www.nexpres.eu/
More on e-infrastructures
Digital Agenda website:
http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/digital-agenda/index_en.htm

Generally over 4000 researchers from across the US take the course each time it is offered.

Research commercialization involves taking articles, documentation, know-how, patents, and copyrights, which are created during research activities, and getting them to users and patients for real societal impacts.

In some cases, commercialization involves taking patents based on the research and licensing them to a company. This usually also involves having the researchers consult to the company. In other cases, commercialization involves forming a startup and applying to federally funded commercialization programs. In every case,  research commercialization typically involves defining the nature of the research being commercialized (e.g., in a patent or intellectual property agreement), establishing a commercial relationship with another party (e.g., employment, a sale or license), and negotiating a contract (e.g., compensation).

The Research Commercialization Course is recommended for all science, engineering and medical researchers in public or private research institutions (e.g., grad students, post-docs, and faculty). This is an indispensable course for S&E grad students looking for jobs in the next 6-18 months in this competitive employment environment.

Areas covered in the course include intellectual property, patents, copyrights, trade secrets, trademarks, licensing agreements, employment agreements, consulting agreements, tech transfer, creating and funding companies, and federally funded Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) programs.

Each lecture is a live 90-minute online class with Q&A.

Costs: This workshop course is offered free of charge but registration is required.

Certificate: Registered students who achieve 60% or greater on the final online multiple-choice test at the end of the program will be granted a Certificate of Successful Completion for this course.

Class Schedule:
Lecture 1: The Importance of Commercializing Research Tuesday, September 20, 2011, 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET

Lecture 2: Patents, Copyright, Trademarks and Trade Secrets Thursday, September 22, 2011, 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET

Lecture 3: Employment and Consulting Agreements Tuesday, September 27, 2011, 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET

Lecture 4: Tech Transfer and Licensing Agreements Tuesday, October 4, 2011, 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET

Lecture 5: Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Grants Thursday, October 6, 2011, 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET

Lecture 6: The Research-Intensive Company and Early Stage Funding Tuesday, October 11, 2011, 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET

Lecture 7: Partnering with SBIR Companies/Large Companies Tuesday, October 18, 2011, 1:00 pm to 2:30 pm ET

Registration: https://www2.gotomeeting.com/register/839561467

For more information about this webinar contact NCET2 at support@ncet2.org or visit http://center.ncet2.org

It welcomes 150 start-ups and laboratories in an exhibition space dedicated to networking with industry and technology demonstrations.

More information

The Conference encourages participants to join their colleagues and exchange the best strategies and tools for building and managing strategic investment programs and institutions.

Newly formed organizations receive the benefit of different viewpoints while established organizations track new approaches and resources. Participants meet with professionals from outside their local networks making one-on-one contact with specialized practitioners and discussing new methods of facilitating capital formation.

To view the program with speakers and sessions, visit NASVF 2011 Conference Agenda

The events will include an open house, scientific symposium, press conferences, outreaches to the marine and education communities, and will be coordinated by French BioBeach, serving as a Tara Foundation partner. It is expected that the Schooner Tara sailing expedition will generate a lot of interest among the general public and research Scientists.

You can learn more about the Tara Foundation and the Tara Oceans Expedition at: http://oceans.taraexpeditions.org/en/tara-foundation/presentation.php?id_page=1

ERC Science Officers and other representatives will be present at the booth and available to provide information about ERC and their funding mechanisms, Starting and Advanced Grants. Also present will be the EURAXESS team. We will provide more information about European presence at the conference in the forthcoming issues of the newsletter.

http://www.sfn.org/am2011/

. This major event will gather more than 1200 participants involved in the innovation chain, including high-level policy makers, leading CEOs, deans of universities and research centers, bankers, venture capitalists, top researchers and innovators.

http://ec.europa.eu/research/index.cfm?pg=conferences&eventcode=94605FF6-EBC0-A850-D5E9283516C75767

The Annual University Startups Conference will take place January 18-20, 2012 at the Washington Convention Center, Washington, DC. with an Opening Reception on January 18, 2012.

The Conference is organized annually by the National Council of Entrepreneurial Tech Transfer (NCET2.org). The Government Co-Hosts are the National Science Foundation (Division of Industrial Innovation and Partnership) and National Institutes of Health (Office of Tech Transfer). The Venture Capital Sponsors are the National Venture Captial Association (NVCA) and the National Association of Seed and Venture Funds (NASVF).

The University Startups Conference is a unique conference series dedicated exclusively to creating and funding globally competitive, venture-backable university startups. We bring together universities creating startups with VCs, angel investors, SBIR program managers and Fortune 500 technology scouts funding them. The conference also includes NSF, NIH, NIST, DOD, DOE, DHS and other government agencies working on improving the Innovation Economy by increasing the quality and quantity of startups coming out of universities.

For more information please visit: http://ncet2.org/UpcomingEvents/UnivStartupConf12/

. In 2011, the Fair was visited by over 5500 job seekers and featured exhibitions by 122 companies.

Last year’s Career Fair website 

CES welcomes proposals for panels, roundtables, book discussions and individual papers on the study of Europe broadly defined and encourages submissions in the widest range of disciplines and with configurations that transcend disciplinary, national and generational boundaries. More

1. COOPERATION PROGRAM
- Health
- Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, Biotechnology
- Information & communication technologies
- Nanosciences, nanotechnologies, materials & new production technologies
- Energy
- Environment (including Climate Change)
- Transport (including aeronautics)
- Socio-economic Sciences and the Humanities
- Space
- Security

2. PEOPLE PROGRAM
- Marie Curie Initial Training Networks
- Marie Curie Industry-Academia Partnerships and Pathways

3. IDEAS PROGRAM
- ERC funding opportunities

4. CAPACITIES PROGRAM
- Research infrastructures
- Research for the benefit of SMEs
- Regions of Knowledge
- Research Potential
- Science in Society
- Specific activities of international cooperation
- Support for the coherent development of research policies

For more information, go to: http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/page/calls

Download a special edition of a Newsletter from Interface Europe providing a graphic display of the current opportunities.

 The scheme operates international networks of researchers, encouraging more coordination and national and international cooperation in relation to postdoctoral scientific research with special consideration paid to inter-, multi- and transdisciplinary proposals.

Deadline: 1 October

Further Information: FWO

This program is open to Croatian and foreign researchers with two to five years of postdoctoral experience in Croatia or abroad with proved institutional support. Successful applicants will receive up to 350.000,00 Kuna annually (around 46.000 Euros), for three years. Candidates within biomedicine, natural, technological and biotechnical sciences may receive up to 350.000,00 Kuna annually and within social sciences and humanities up to 250.000,00 Kuna (around 33.000 Euros) annually. Application deadline is 28 October, 2011.

Further information can be found on this webpage.

This program offers personal grants to Croatian postdoctoral students from Croatian research institutions as well as foreign postdoctoral students coming to Croatia in order to carry out research projects over stays lasting from three to twelve months. The monthly budget per grant is 9.750,00 Kuna, i.e. around 1300 Euros. The call is open until October 2011. Find out more on the Croatian Science Foundation website.

. The purpose of the scheme is to improve the research standard and quality of doctoral studies and to promote the international mobility of young researchers during their doctoral studies. This call for proposal is open until October 2011. Access further details on the Croatian Science Foundation website.

The call is open to all fields of research, including Social Sciences and the Humanities, and will help emerging talent to pursue innovative ideas at the frontiers of knowledge. The total budget for this call amounts to €730 million, which is an increase of just over 10% from last year. The call will fund 500 to 600 researchers.

The ERC Starting Grant scheme helps fill Europe's funding deficit for the best up and coming researchers and enables them to get early scientific and professional independence. With up to €2 million per grant for up to five years, the scheme targets researchers having between two to twelve years of post-doctoral experience. The only selection criterion is scientific excellence. To date, 1,300 scientists have been awarded Starting Grants, including some coming from outside Europe. ERC grants are indeed one of the main EU instruments to address the "brain drain" and to attract and retain the best researchers of any nationality.

Proposals have to be submitted via a Host Institution (university, public or private research centre), based in one of the 27 EU Members State or one of the 13 countries associated to the seventh EU Framework Program for Research. The selection of proposals is performed by highly recognized international peer review panels including scientists from all over the world. Last year, the success rate of Starting Grants proposals was around 15%.

The call has the following three domain deadlines:
- Physical Sciences and Engineering: 12 October 2011
- Life Sciences: 9 November 2011
- Social Sciences and Humanities: 24 November 2011

The full announcement with complete background information and contact links is available at: http://erc.europa.eu/pdf/ERC_Press_release_Starting_Grants_call(2012).pdf

• 17 postdoctoral positions
• 3 senior researchers

The three senior positions are in power systems, maritime surveillance, and fisheries science.
Deadlines: Various
Further Information: JRC

: Institutions, Governance, and Democracy; Migration; Economic and Monetary Policy; Competition Policy and Market Regulation; Energy Policy; and International and Transnational Relations. The basic stipend is € 2,000 per month. The professorship is awarded for a period of one or two years for the selected researchers to conduct research at the Robert Schuman Centre for Advanced Studies (RSCAS) of the European University Institute located in Italy. The deadline for submitting applications is 25 October 2011.

More details on the EUI website.

It is funded by the European Commission (DG Education and Culture) and hosted by the European University Institute in Florence where the research community of professors, researchers and fellows provides an excellent environment for the Program. The Program, open to all nationalities, is designed for junior post-docs in the early stages of their academic careers or who have received a doctorate within the last 5 years in economics, law, history, social and political sciences, or a related field, and who want to advance in their research and academic training in an active multidisciplinary environment before entering the international job market.

The Max Weber Program offers 1- and 2-year fellowships. Two-year fellowships involve additional academic activities in the EUI departments, such as limited graduate teaching. The annual deadline for applications for these Max Weber Fellowships is 25 October but please note that, after 25 October 2011 and up to 25 March 2012, applications for self-funded fellowships are considered on a first-come basis for as long as there is capacity in the Max Weber Program. More details on the EUI website.

Fellowships last for up to ten months in one of the EUI's four Departments which in turn invite fellows to participate in departmental activities (seminars, workshops, colloquia, etc.). The annual deadlines for applications are 30 March and 30 September, but the Department of Law considers applications only for the 30 March deadline. More details on the EUI website.

The call is due to be opened in September. Finnish universities and research institutes may propose FiDiPro Professors and FiDiPro Fellows from all disciplines. Further information: TEKES

The offer is also open to scholars who obtained their PhD several years ago and who meet even higher demands regarding their personal qualifications and the focus of research in the framework of the professorship. Candidates for these professorships should preferably be returning or coming to Germany from abroad. Initially, a five-year period of funding is envisaged (can be prolonged to reach up to 8 years) with an amount of €0.8 to €1.5m per professorship. The deadline for application is 1 November, 2011.
Find out more here.

The Kauffman Foundation will award up to fifteen Dissertation Fellowship grants of $20,000 each to Ph.D., D.B.A., or other doctoral students for the support of dissertations in the area of entrepreneurship. Since its establishment in 2003, the Kauffman Dissertation Fellowship Program has awarded fellowships to 123 world-class scholars.

Learn more

them to spend 6-12 months at top international research centers. Deadline: 15 October. Further Information: FNP

The monthly scholarship varies according to the different type of beneficiaries as follows:

- University students: 280 euro
- PhD student: 480 euro
- Researcher without PhD degree and less than 4 years work experience: 670 euro
- Researcher with PhD degree or more than 4 years work experience: 850 euro
- Researcher with PhD degree and at least 10 years work experience: 1000 euro

Deadline for summer semester of the academic year 2011/2012 is 31 October, 2011. More details here.

The visits can last between one week and three months and are limited to one person (the visiting fellow) going to one institute (the host institute). Both the visiting fellow and one person from the host institute (the host) are co-applicants of the proposal.

The main aim of this funding instrument, which is open to all fields of research, is to initiate or to consolidate international collaborations. To reach this aim, short research projects between the host institute and the visiting fellow should be carried out during the stay. There should be an exchange of knowledge that is beneficial to both co-applicants and their institutions.

The attendance of congresses, conferences, workshops or seminars is not foreseen. Salaries for researchers on scientific sabbaticals are also not funded.

The International Short Visits have no geographical limitations. Swiss researchers can go to any other country or researchers from any country can come to Switzerland.

The visiting fellow must meet the following eligibility criteria:

• Hold a doctorate (or an equivalent degree)
• Be employed as a researcher in his/her country of origin before, during, and after the visit
• Aim to initiate or consolidate, thanks to his/her visit, a continued collaboration between both labs/institutes
• Have no concurrent support for this funding instrument or have received support within the last three years. Even after this period, applications can be subjected to restrictions

General eligibility criteria for the host:

• Have the approval from the director of the host institute to invite the visiting fellow
• Hold a research/faculty position at the host institute
• Guarantee having the needed capacities (e.g. working space) to welcome the visiting fellow
• Must not have had a guest financed by this funding instrument within the last two years

All relevant information on this funding instrument and on the procedure for submission of proposals can be found in the Guidelines for International Short Visits.

More information: http://www.snf.ch/E/international/worldwide/international-short-visits/Pages/default.aspx

The workshops can last between two and five days. Up to 30 participants from different institutions can participate. However, the SNSF will fund a maximum of ten researchers. The seminar is to take place in Switzerland, but exceptions can be granted if justified.

The aim of this funding instrument, which is open to all fields of research, is to allow researchers working on a similar question to meet and advance their knowledge on the issue. Typically, the workshop should bring together scientists with different backgrounds that might bring new insights to a theme by sharing their knowledge and actively working together for a few days. An interdisciplinary approach is therefore encouraged. Furthermore, it is strongly advised to have a balance of established researchers and young promising scientists among the participants.

It must be demonstrated that:

• the workshop allows for an exchange of information that is not possible at distance
• the workshop’s internationality brings an added-value
• the workshop has a clearly defined scientific aim

All relevant information on this funding instrument and on the procedure for submission of proposals can be found in the Guidelines for International Exploratory Workshops.

Although the call for this funding instrument is always open, there are three cut-off dates per year when the evaluation process begins. The next cut-off dates are: 14 October, 2011; 14 March, 2012; 20 June, 2012; 17 October, 2012.

More information: http://www.snf.ch/E/international/worldwide/international-exploratory-workshops/Pages/default.aspx

Applications must be made by a Principal Investigator at a UK research organization. Around 15-20 projects will be supported.

Deadline: 12 October

Further Information: ESRC / ESRC

planetary Science, particle physics, particle astrophysics, nuclear physics, or the development of STFC neutrons, lasers and synchrotrons. 

12 Fellowships will be offered, each lasting for five years.

Deadline: 12 October
Further Information: STFC

The Ernest Rutherford Fellowship scheme was announced on 29 March 2011. The Fellowships will enable early career researchers with clear leadership potential to establish a strong, independent research program. They will encourage talented researchers in UK universities to remain in the country and at the same time attract outstanding overseas researchers to the UK. This new scheme replaces and builds on STFC's Advanced Fellowship program. Each Fellowship will last for five years, with 12 being offered annually. Fellows will receive support for their salary and be able to bid for significant additional funds to support their research. Proposals must be submitted by 12 October 2011. More details available here.

The following calls are currently open under the Ideas program.

The following calls are open under the Cooperation program:

Participants from the United States are eligible to join research proposals under the Cooperation scheme. These programs require at least three partners in three different EU or associated countries plus a partner in the United States. With the exception of Health proposals, there is no funding from the European Union for U.S.-based partners unless the participation of the U.S. partner is deemed necessary for the success of the program. Cooperation schemes in the area of Health provide for full funding of the U.S.-based partners.

The following calls are open under the Capacities program.

To access a full list of currently open calls for proposals launched by the European Commission and for full details of the calls, go to: http://ec.europa.eu/research/participants/portal/page/calls

This year’s calls make available nearly 7 billion Euro for joint research projects covering a vast range of scientific disciplines, public policy areas and commercial sectors. This funding shall contribute to advance scientific boundaries, increase European competitiveness and help solve global societal challenges such as climate change, energy and food security, health and an ageing population.

The Seventh EU Framework Program is open to organizations from outside Europe, and this year’s calls for proposals have a particular focus on stimulating cooperation with the U.S. Currently open FP7 calls (filtered by research themes) specifically targeting research cooperation between EU and the U.S. can be found here: http://www.euussciencetechnology.eu/uploads/docs/InternationalCooperationBetweenEU&USA_2012_BILAT-USA.pdf

For more information about the calls and the rules of participation, please go to the BILAT-USA program website: http://www.euussciencetechnology.eu/news/show?id=197

up by the Commission and submitted to the Steering Committee of the Executive Agency, to the European Parliament, to the Council and to the Court of Auditors. Call deadline: 14 October 2011 16:00

Access the call

http://ec.europa.eu/research/dgs/tenders/open_en.cfm

 There are 3 options:

• Do you want to upload your CV? Login into your account MyEURAXESS:
  http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/index.cfm/res/index
• Did you forget your password? Recover it with a simple click:
  http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/index.cfm/jobs/passwordRecovery
• Do you want to delete your account? Click here:
  http://ec.europa.eu/euraxess/index.cfm/res/deleteAccount

http://ec.europa.eu/eures/home.jsp?lang=en

The Chronicle of Higher Education Careers Service: http://chronicle.com/jobs/
Find A Postdoc: http://www.findapostdoc.com/
Career.edu: http://www.career.edu/index.php
Nature.jobs: http://www.nature.com/naturejobs/index.html
Jobs.ac.uk: www.jobs.ac.uk
Research Jobs in the Netherlands: http://www.academictransfer.org/org/
Brainpower Austria: http://www.brainpower-austria.at/webfiles/home.asp
Euro Science Jobs: http://www.eurosciencejobs.com/
Elsevier Jobs: http://www.recruitment.elsevier.com/register/default.aspx
Academics.com job search: http://www.research-in-germany.de/research-career-in-germany/jobs/29640/academics-com-i-frame.html
Talent Scotland: www.talentscotland.com

You can see the change in expenditure for a given theme over the years and also compare the expenditure by theme for a given year. In addition, each chart links to a page describing the research area concerned. For the Capacities program you can "drill down" to charts for each area of the program by year and each year by area.

Expenditure Charts

http://ec.europa.eu/research/horizon2020/index_en.cfm

Share - a research databank on population ageing
ESS - the world's most powerful neutron source
SIOS - an integrated, Arctic Earth Observation System
NeuGRID - grid/cloud computing
OpenAIRE - opening science to all