EIG CONCERT-Japan logo

Joint Call on Smart Water Management for Sustainable Society
Deadline: Jun 14, 2019  
CALL EXPIRED

 Forest Resources
 Maritime Affaires and Fisheries
 Sustainable Development
 Water Resource Management
 Climate Sciences
 Pollution

1. Background and rationale of the EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call

1.1. EIG CONCERT-Japan

The European Interest Group (EIG) CONCERT-Japan (http://www.concert-japan.eu/) is an international joint initiative to support and enhance science, technology and innovation (STI) cooperation between European countries and Japan. EIG CONCERT-Japan is flexible and inclusive in nature, able to accommodate a range of forms of collaboration ranging from unanimous concerted efforts to optional participation among its core members and other interested STI institutions.

CONCERT-Japan began as an ERA-NET project funded by the 7th EU Framework Program for Research and Technical Development (FP7) from 2011 to 2014. As a FP7 project, CONCERT-Japan had a high impact on the coherence and coordination of European collaboration and joint funding activities with Japan as a partner country.

At the end of the period, the outcomes showed a high relevance of the schemes and the need for continuation. As a result, the European Interest Group was founded as a flexible platform for communication and coordination among STI institutions in Europe and Japan. The collaboration which began in the FP7 project is now continuing independently of EU support as an activity of the European Interest Group, hence the name “EIG CONCERT-Japan”.

The primary function of the EIG CONCERT-Japan is to implement multilateral joint funding collaboratively, with the objective of enhancing cooperation and promoting transnational mobility between European countries and Japan in various fields of STI.

As a collaborative funding activity of the EIG CONCERT-Japan (the sixth of CONCERT-Japan, the fourth as an EIG activity), the core members representing France, Germany, Turkey, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Slovakia, Poland, Lithuania and Japan have decided to implement a joint call on the theme of “Smart Water Management for Sustainable Society”.

Incentives for partnering with EIG CONCERT-Japan

The EIG CONCERT-Japan research community, in addition to nurturing links between Europe and Japan, is a close-knit coordinated network supported by common academic interests as well as social and interdisciplinary concerns. The coordinating funding institutions are an independently governed, flexible body continually monitoring current support needs in research as well as science-society engagement. Successful applicants may be invited as speakers at interdisciplinary scoping events, institutional advisory roles and generally looked to as pillars of the EU-Japan cooperative network.

 

1.2. EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Calls

EIG CONCERT-Japan joint calls aim to support sustainable and multilateral research cooperation, especially promoting the transnational mobility between European and Japanese researchers, through:

  • Enhancing inter-regional communication and cooperation

  • Increasing and developing opportunities for high quality research networking between researchers

  • Developing new partnerships and strengthening existing ones

  • Exchanging existing knowledge and creating new knowledge

Previous CONCERT-Japan Joint Calls have been implemented on the themes of “Efficient Energy and Distribution” and “Resilience against Disasters” (2012), “Photonic Manufacturing” (2014), “Food Crops and Biomass Production Technologies” (2016), “Efficient Energy and Distribution” (2017) and “Functional Porous Materials” (2018) with more than 150 joint applications received and €9,625,600 of funding distributed in total.

2. The EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call on “Smart Water Management for Sustainable Society”

2.1 The thematic area

This EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call will focus on the thematic area of “Smart Water Management for Sustainable Society”.

Background

Water is a core resource for human wellbeing and has been playing an essential role in the world’s socio-economic development. In industrialised nations, industries consume more than half of the water available for human use1. Globally, about 70% of accessible fresh water is drawn by agriculture2 and about 20% is used for energy production3.

Despite its critical role to humans, water cannot be distributed equally as its main sources such as rain and snow depend on regional geographical conditions. In addition, climate change, global warming, rapid demographic changes including urbanization have caused various global challenges such as severe flooding and droughts, food crises and regional armed conflicts, all of which have become grave concerns which hamper the world‘s sustainable development.

This call aims to contribute to the overall challenge of water sustainability by inviting research teams from both Europe and Japan to collaboratively explore new areas of smart water management. The collaborative activities will fall in line with the United Nations 2030 agenda for Sustainable Development 4 . Specifically, the research scope tackles Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) including, but not limited to, Goal 6 “Clean Water and Sanitation”, Goal 9 “Industry, Innovation and Infrastructures”, Goal 11 “Sustainable Cities and Communities” and Goal 17 “Partnership for the Goals”.

There is a pressing need at a global scale to develop innovative technologies and systems of water use which are resilient to various natural and social changes, widely applicable to our societies with local consideration, and simultaneously sustainable in the long term. This is what motivates this call for research proposals on the theme “Smart Water Management for Sustainable Society”.

Project Aim

To tackle this challenge, projects submitted to this call are expected to take innovative approaches to achieve smart water management for sustainable society, such as development of treatment technologies, system integration, and operation or assessment methods. Cross- sectoral approaches which bring natural and social sciences together are also welcomed. Research targets can vary from a specific region to worldwide.

Collaboration with water utilities and industry from the start of the project’s conception and innovative application proposals are encouraged in order to ensure future scaling-up of the technologies developed at acceptable cost and quality.

Projects with a work plan including benchmarking, piloting and trials of the developed technology for implementation in social and industrial applications are encouraged.

Research Scope

Research scope in this call includes development of efficient and sustainable water management systems that optimize quality and quantity of water at stages of its supply, discharge, reclamation and resource recovery. Comprehensive management systems should consider water treatment, reclamation, and resource recovery in different water uses including drinking water, sewage, industry and agriculture. Use of information and communication technology (ICT) and real-time data and responses can be an integral part of solutions for water management challenges. Such systems should be resilient to various natural and social changes, widely applicable to our societies with local considerations, and sustainable in the long term. Various factors should be considered including energy consumption, socioeconomic impact, environmental burden, public health, and circumstances specific to local communities.

Examples of research topics to be considered in this call include:

  • ⚫  basic R&D in materials science for advanced water treatment and reclamation processes

    using ozone/activated carbon or membranes and ceramic materials;

  • ⚫  water quality monitoring and assessment for efficient operation control;

  • ⚫  water reuse & recycle and resource recovery from wastewater for municipal, industrial and

    agricultural purposes;

  • ⚫  energy saving and efficient technologies and systems in water processing including

    drinking water and wastewater treatment

  • ⚫  comprehensive water resources (surface and subsurface water) and environmental

    management systems at the river basin scale;

  • ⚫  prediction methods of water resources availability in terms of climate and land use

    changes.

     

2.2. Participating countries and regions

The following national/regional funding organisations have agreed to participate in this Joint Call, leveraging their national/regional R&D programmes and applying their respective funding regulations:

  • Bulgaria: Bulgarian National Science Fund (BNSF)

  • Czech Republic: Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS) and the Ministry of Education,

    Sports, Youth and Science (MEYS)

  • France: National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS)

  • Germany: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)

  • Japan: Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST)

  • Lithuania: Agency for Science, Innovation & Technology (MITA)

  • Poland: National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR)

  • Slovakia: Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAS)

  • Turkey: The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK)

Only researchers based in these countries and regions are eligible for call funding in this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call.

2.3. Eligible beneficiaries and composition of the consortia

In general, this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call is open to applications from public and private legal RTD entities, higher education institutions and non-university research establishments, as well as enterprises and other kinds of organisations (the “beneficiaries”) depending on the individual national and regional regulations and restrictions of the participating funding institutions (see Part 2).

Each project consortium submitting an application should consist of at least 3 eligible beneficiaries (project partners), 1 from Japan and 2 from two different European countries participating in the Joint Call. In addition, in consideration of the priority to spread research networks across Japan and the Europe, projects with 4 or more partner countries will be given strong consideration. The number of beneficiaries in a project consortium should be appropriate for the aims of the research project and reasonably balanced in terms of multilateral participation. Applications should clearly demonstrate the added value of working together.

Each project consortium should choose 2 project leaders, 1 from the Japanese side and 1 from the European side. One of the two project leaders (the “Principal Project Leader”) will be responsible for submitting the proposal on behalf of the whole consortium. Project leaders may participate in only one project proposal. Each beneficiary will be represented by one (and only one) Principal Investigator (PI) and this PI will be the contact person for the relevant national and regional funding organisation.

 

Researchers and research teams from countries and regions not participating in this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call may participate as additional partners in a project consortium (after satisfying the minimum consortium criteria) if they can prove that they have secured funding from other sources that allows them to fulfil their obligations within the consortium. A confirmation letter from the external funding institution has to be submitted at the time of proposal submission.

2.4. Eligible costs and duration of funding

Within the framework of this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call, costs eligible for funding may be:

  • Research materials and small-scale research equipment: Consumables, small equipment and subcontracting (for example for the fabrication of samples at a specialised facility) are eligible if their need is listed in detail and duly justified

  • Travel costs: Only travel costs and associated living expenses incurred in travel to the countries participating in the same project consortium (including additional partners from countries/regions other than those participating in the Joint Call who secure their own funding) are eligible

  • Expenses for the organisation of small scientific events: Room rent, catering, printing of conference brochures, travel and accommodation of invited external experts (that do not form part of the project consortium but are considered necessary for the success of the event) are eligible

  • Personnel costs

The eligibility of all costs for each applicant depends on the relevant national/regional regulations applied by each Joint Call funding institution and should be calculated accordingly (see Part 2).

All project partners are advised to contact their National and Regional Contact Persons

(see Part 3) for further information on eligible costs and national and regional specifications.

Funding will be provided for the maximum duration of 3 years. The funding of projects should start in April 2020 and should be concluded by March 2023.

2.5. Call budget and funding principle

This EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call follows the principle that the national or regional financial contributions to a virtual common pot will be assigned to project partners of that respective country or region only, in accordance with national and regional regulations. Cross-border funding is not envisaged.

The overall budget of this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call is the sum of the individual budgets allocated by each participating funding institution. If more than one funding institution from a given country participates in the Joint Call, the combined amount from these institutions is considered as the country’s overall Joint Call contribution.

 

Below is an overview of the individual national or regional funding contributions envisaged in this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call budget by each participating funding institution:

Country and funding institution

Amount*

Bulgaria: Bulgarian National Science Fund (BNSF)

€300,000

Czech Republic: Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS)

€240,000

Czech Republic: Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS)

€600,000

France: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)

€110,000**

Germany: Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)

€750,000

Japan: Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST)

€750,000

Lithuania: Agency for Science, Innovation & Technology (MITA)

€100,000

Poland: National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR)

€750,000

Slovakia: Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAS)

€120,000

Turkey: The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TUBITAK)

€500,000

Overall call budget

€4,220,000

*Indicative only. The funding amount should be confirmed with the national contact point towards the end of the call. Check Part 2: National and Regional Regulations for details on funding in local currencies **CNRS personnel costs are not included in the framework of the EIG CONCERT-Japan Call budget. CNRS funding covers only the surcoût international of the project.

It is expected that 5 projects will be funded in this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call.

Some funding institutions may choose to set an upper limit on the amount that can be requested per project partner coming from their country or region. Applicants should therefore thoroughly check the national and regional regulations (Part 2) and contact their National and Regional Contact Persons (Part 3) with any related inquiries.

3. Proposal submission
3.1. Project consortium submission

Project proposals are to be submitted between 15 April 2019 and 14 June 2019 electronically using the PT-Outline webtool:
https://ptoutline.eu/app/EIG_JC2019
(The server will not accept proposals outside of this application period.)

The principal project leader should submit the proposal via the webtool on behalf of the whole consortium. Only one online proposal per project is needed. Proposals sent by post, e-mail or fax will be rejected. Proposals must be written in English.

3.2. National funding institution submission

Some participating funding institutions may require the project partner applicant from their country/region to submit a parallel proposal or project registration in line with the national or regional requirements (see Part 2).

The Japanese project leader is required to register their project’s information on the e-Rad website portal according to the national regulations listed in Part 2.

Before the submission of a proposal the national or regional regulations (Part 2) applicable for each consortium partner should be thoroughly checked.

 

4. Proposal evaluation and funding decision

A four-step evaluation process will be implemented for proposals submitted within this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call.

4.1. Eligibility check

The Joint Call Secretariat and the National and Regional Contact Persons (see Part 3) will check the eligibility of all submitted proposals taking into consideration the general Joint Call criteria and the individual national or regional criteria respectively. If a partner is found to be ineligible by one of the funding organisations, the entire proposal may be rejected without further review.

The general eligibility criteria are:

  • Appropriate length and layout of the proposal (maximum number of pages adhered to and use of template for the Project Description)

  • Inclusion of all necessary information in English

  • Eligibility of all project partners

  • Participation of at least three eligible project partners (beneficiaries), from a minimum

    of two different European countries participating in this Joint Call and Japan

  • Eligible thematic focus

  • Eligibility of requested funding

  • Inclusion of a confirmation letter from the external sponsoring institution in case of additional partners that need to secure their own funding

The national and regional eligibility criteria of the participating funding institutions are provided in the National and Regional Funding Regulations (Part 2).

Proposals meeting all eligibility criteria will be forwarded to the online evaluation stage.

4.2. Online evaluation of proposals

The selection of project proposals to be funded is based on an international and independent evaluation by scientific peers. Each proposal is assessed and given a written evaluation by at least two evaluators, nominated by the participating funding institutions.

The following three evaluation criteria are used:

1. Scientific excellence (scoring from 0 to 5 points)

  • Sound research concept and quality of objectives

  • Ambition, innovative potential and uniqueness of the research idea

  • Scientific track-record and potential of the partners (including publications in scientific

    journals)
    EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call Text and National/Regional Regulations 9

• Scientific standing of the organisations the applicants belong to

2. Impact of project results (scoring from 0 to 5 points)

  • Impact of the project on the scientific field and community

  • Contribution to enhancing innovation capacity and integration of new knowledge

  • Expected exploitation and dissemination of the results

  • Added value of the multilateral project consortium

    3. Implementation (scoring from 0 to 5 points)

  • Quality and effectiveness of the methodology

  • Feasibility of the work plan (in relation to governance, adequate budget, resources,

    time schedule)

  • Collaborative interaction and complementarity of project partners

  • Expected sustainability of the collaboration

  • Interdisciplinarity

  • Involvement of early-stage researchers and gender balance

    The scoring system is as follows:

5: EXCELLENT – The proposal fully satisfies all relevant aspects of the criterion in question.

Any shortcomings are minor.
4: VERY GOOD – The proposal addresses the criterion very well, although certain

improvements are possible.
3: GOOD – The proposal broadly addresses the criterion, but improvements are necessary. 2: FAIR – There are serious inherent weaknesses in relation to the criterion in question.
1: POOR – The criterion is addressed in an inadequate and unsatisfactory manner.
0: FAILS / INCOMPLETE INFORMATION – The proposal fails to address the criterion in

question or cannot be judged due to missing or incomplete information.

4.3. Meeting of the Scientific Committee

A Scientific Committee, comprising one expert nominated by each participating funding institution and chaired by an independent chairperson, will rank the proposals based on the online evaluations and internal discussion and recommend to the Funding Organisations Forum a list of proposals to be funded.

4.4. Meeting of the Funding Organisations Forum

The Funding Organisations Forum, comprising representatives of each participating funding institution, will take the final decision on the project proposals to be funded on a consensus basis, based on the recommendations of the Scientific Committee and in consideration of the funding available. Funding will be administered in accordance with the rules and regulations of the participating national and regional funding institutions.

All applicants will be informed by the Joint Call Secretariat of the outcomes of the evaluation. EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call Text and National/Regional Regulations 10

 

5. Project implementation and reporting

Following announcement of the funding decision to successful applicants, the project partners of each proposal to be funded will conclude an individual funding contract with their respective national or regional funding institution. Support to funded projects will be provided on the basis of these funding contracts and in accordance with all applicable national or regional rules and regulations.

Each project consortium funded in this EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call is required to conclude a Consortium Agreement listing the rights and responsibilities of each project partner. Depending on the nature of the funded project, special regulations should be included in the Consortium Agreement regarding intellectual property rights. Scientific and technological outcomes and any other information derived from the collaborative activities funded in this call can be announced, published or commercially exploited with the agreement of all partners in a funded project and according to the national or regional regulations as well as international agreements concerning intellectual property rights. The Consortium Agreement must be signed by all project partners and sent to the Joint Call Secretariat by the principal project leader preferably before the official project start date but no later than six months after the official project start date.

The principal project leaders of the funded projects will be requested to send an interim report (after 18 months of funding) as well as a final report (after three years of funding) to the Joint Call Secretariat. The reports should highlight the main results and outputs of the projects and any problems that have arisen and how they have been solved. Report templates will be prepared to ensure the comparability of information.

Additional reporting to the individual national or regional funding institutions may also be necessary depending on national and regional regulations (see Part 2).

Project teams will be expected to attend and reserve budget for two joint workshops to be held within Europe, one mid-term and one final, as shown in 6. Indicative Timetable.

In case of any significant changes in the work program or the consortium composition, the principal project leader must inform the Joint Call Secretariat, who will inform the relevant funding organisations, who will decide upon the proper action to be taken.

 

6. Indicative timetable*

Publication of the Call for Proposals
15 April 2019

Deadline for proposal submission
14 June 2019 (9 weeks)

Eligibility check
17 – 28 June 2019 (2 weeks)

Online evaluation

1 July – 9 August 2019 (6 weeks)

Scientific Committee meeting

September 2019

Funding organisations forum meeting

September 2019

Publication of results online and notification letters to Applicants (Principal Project Leader only)

November 2019

Preparation of national or regional funding agreements

December 2019 – March 2020

Start of projects

April 2020

Joint mid-term workshop

May/June 2021

Interim project reporting

October 2021

Final joint workshop

Jan/Feb 2023

Final project reporting

April 2023

[* This is an approximate implementation schedule and is subject to change]

 

 

PART 2: National and Regional Funding Regulations

The official national call announcement for Japan is published on the JST website:

http://www.jst.go.jp/inter/program/announce/announce_smart_water2019.html

→ Who can apply?
Any independent researcher personally affiliated with (and actively conducting research at) a domestic Japanese research institution (or who would fulfil this requirement by the start of the research project if not currently affiliated with a research institution in Japan), regardless of nationality, is eligible to apply.

“Domestic Japanese research institution” in Japan refers to universities, independent administrative institutions, national/public testing and Research Institutions, specially authorized corporations, public-service corporations and enterprises, etc. that satisfy predetermined requirements designated by MEXT. Please refer to the MEXT homepage for more information:

http://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/kansa/houkoku/1301688.htm

In addition to the joint application process, Japanese applicants will have to register their applications on the Cross-Ministerial R&D Management System (e-Rad): https://www.e-rad.go.jp/index.html

Applicants must complete a research ethics training program conducted by the research institute with which they are affiliated and then declare the completion of the program to JST within 30 days after the deadline of the call for proposals. If it would be difficult for them to undertake a program provided by their own institute, they should contact JST to register for a research ethics program provided by CITI Japan. Unless applicants complete a research ethics program, their application will be deemed ineligible for funding.

Funded researchers will also have to complete a Consortium Agreement and should consult with their own institutions regarding their respective regulations. Further guidance can be found on the JST website:
https://www.jst.go.jp/inter/research/contract/contract.html (available in Japanese only)

→ What types of funding are eligible for researchers in Japan?
The level of the funding available to Japanese researchers may be up to 6,000,000 Japanese Yen including 30% of indirect costs per year (i.e. overall around 18,000,000 Japanese Yen for the three years of funding). Funding will be made in Japanese Yen.

1. Eligible direct costs

In principle, eligible direct costs are those costs directly necessary for accomplishing the research, indicated below from 1.1 to 1.4. Please refer to the guidance documents available at the following link for further details of eligible direct costs (available in Japanese only). https://www.jst.go.jp/inter/research/contract/contract.html

1.1 Research materials and small-scale research equipment
Research equipment, spare parts, prototypes, software (in-line product), and purchase of books, reagents, materials and consumables

1.2 Personnel costs
Personnel costs of the researchers, temporally staff, etc., who are hired for the research, and other costs such as honoraria for invited lecturers

 

 

Japan – Japan Science and Technology Agency (JST)

1.3 Travel costs
Travel costs and associated living expenses of the Project Leader as well as research project members registered in the research project plan, and costs of inviting external experts

1.4 Expenses for the organisation of small scientific events in Japan
Rental costs for the event venue, food & beverage (excluding alcohol) costs and other costs which are deemed to be necessary for organizing the event

2. Eligible indirect costs

Please refer to the following link for the provisions regarding indirect costs:

http://www8.cao.go.jp/cstp/compefund/shishin2.pdf

 

Bulgaria – Bulgarian National Science Fund (BNSF)

The official national call announcement for Bulgaria is published on the BNSF website:

https://www.fni.bg/

→ Who can apply?
Eligible applicants under the present call are Bulgarian entities, which are:

  1. 1)  Accredited universities under Art. 85 Para. 1 item 7 of the Law on Higher Education

  2. 2)  Science organizations under Art . 47 Para. 1 of the Law on Higher Education.

Applicants under items 1 and 2 must comply with the definition for “research and knowledge distribution organization” under item 15 “b” of the Framework for State Aid for research and development and innovation.

Applicants under the present procedure must be directly responsible for the implementation of the activities of the project proposal, and not act as intermediaries; they must perform the proposed project activities on their own behalf and at their own expense.

Call applicants must be persons:

• performing research; and

  • whose activities are fully not-for-profit or

  • whose activities are both for-profit and not-for-profit, but they are clearly separated and are organized in a way to allow tracking of expenses and revenues related to their performance, including through analytical accounting. When the applicant performs both for-profit and not-for-profit activities, the financing, expenses and revenues about each type of activity are considered separately on the basis of consistently applied accounting principles for costs that can be objectively justified.

In addition to the joint application process, Bulgarian applicants will have to submit in Bulgarian and English following documents: Administrative description of the project and Declarations

https://www.fni.bg/?q=node/578

→ What types of funding are eligible for researchers in Bulgaria?
The level of the funding available to Bulgarian researchers may be up to € 100 000 per project

(up to 195 583 BGN per project over 3 years)
Funding will be made in Bulgarian Leva.
National rules and BNSF internal processes will apply.

1. Eligible direct costs

In principle, eligible direct costs are those costs directly necessary for accomplishing the research, indicated below from 1.1 to 1.4.

1.1 Research materials and small-scale research equipment
Research equipment, spare parts, prototypes, software (in-line product), and purchase of books, reagents, materials and consumables.

1.2 Personnel costs
Personnel costs of the researchers, temporally staff, etc., who are hired for the research, and other costs such as honoraria for invited lecturers

 

1.3 Travel costs
Travel costs and associated living expenses of the Bulgarian Project Team Members registered in the research project plan.

1.4 Expenses for the organisation of small scientific events in Bulgaria
In general, all costs directly related to the preparation and the implementation of events like international workshops, conferences, etc. in relation with the project are eligible. → Room rent, catering, printing of conference brochures, travel and accommodation of invited external experts (that do not form part of the project consortium but are considered necessary for the success of the event), translation.

1.5. Expenses for dissemination of the project results
All costs related to participation in seminars, conferences and congresses related to the topic of the Project and presenting its results (travel, accommodation, daily subsistence) of Bulgarian Project Team Members. These costs have to be based on the National Regulation, respectively Ordinance for business trips abroad.

2. Eligible indirect costs

7% administration costs
1% costs for financial audit of the project at the interim and final report
/According the decision of The BNSF’s Executive Board, Protocol No 41, December 12th, 2018/

→ Is additional/parallel application requested to the funding organisation?
In addition to the joint application process, Bulgarian applicants will have to submit in Bulgarian and English following documents: Administrative description of the project and Declarations

 

Czech Republic: Czech Academy of Sciences (CAS)

→ Who can apply?
Only teams from the institutes of The Czech Academy of Sciences are eligible to apply. SMEs and/or industries may participate on the condition that they secure their own funding. Universities and other research organisations are eligible to apply to MEYS (see MEYS’s guidelines and conditions).

→ What types of funding are eligible for CAS teams participating in consortia?
The level of funding for the CAS teams may be up to 120,000.00 Euro per project (3 years), in case two or more project partners in a proposal are from the CAS institutes, they may together request up to 120,000.00 Euro per project proposal.

1. Eligible direct costs

1.1. Mobility costs. All mobility costs may only be related to networking events and secondments within the project.

1.1.1. Transport costs of the members of the participating Czech team (economy class flight / train ride 2nd class) are eligible.

1.1.2. Living expenses on the daily allowance basis (in accordance with the national legislation) and accommodation costs of the members of the participating Czech team are eligible.

  1. 1.2.  Expenses for the organisation of small scientific events related to the project in the Czech Republic are eligible. The upper limit of 20% of the project budget should not be exceeded.

  2. 1.3.  Costs for consumables and small equipment, only on a limited scale and if its need is demonstrated, are eligible.

  3. 1.4.  Personnel costs for young researchers (PhD students and postdocs) participating in the project are eligible. The upper limit of 20% of the project budget should not be exceeded.

2. Eligible indirect costs

There are no eligible indirect costs.

→ Is an additional/parallel application requested to the funding organisation?
Yes. Basic information must be submitted on a special form available for download athttp://www.avcr.cz/cs/veda-a-vyzkum/mezinarodni-vztahy/aktuality/ to the Contact point

at the

CAS. Following information will be required:
Identification of the project: Project title, Name of the principal project coordinator and List of all project partners and their affiliations;
Abstract of the project (1 100 characters incl. spaces);
Summary of Research Plans of the Czech Project Partner(s), their Implementation and Justification of Proposed Collaboration (1/2 page);
Description of the Czech Project Team – Involvement of Young Researchers is Mandatory (1/2 page);
CV of the Czech Principal Investigator (1 page).

Partners in consortia from the CAS whose project proposal is recommended for funding by the CONCERT scientific committee have to contact the CAS Contact point in order to prepare the contract.

→ For more information please contact EIG CONCERT-Japan Call CAS Contact Point: Alena Klvaňová
Division of International Cooperation, CAS
klvanova@kav.cas.cz

 

 

Czech Republic – Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS)

Information about call announcement will be published on the MEYS website:

http://www.msmt.cz

→ Who can apply?
In the Czech Republic universities, research organizations and Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs). For universities and research institutes, up to 100% of eligible cost can be funded. SMEs up to 50% (according to the Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014).

→ What types of funding are eligible for researchers in the Czech Republic?
The level of the funding available to Czech researchers may be up to 200 000 euros per year/project (i.e. overall around 600 000 euros for the three years of funding).

1. Eligible direct costs

National rules will be applied in accordance with the Regulation (EU) No. 651/2014 (in line with articles No. 107 and 108 Agreement) and Act. No. 130/2002 Coll.

1.1Research materials and small-scale research equipment
Research equipment, spare parts, software, reagents, materials and consumables

1.2 Subcontracting
The beneficiary is entitled to use this financial tool but only if it is unable to perform the activity of its own capacity and this fact justifies in the project proposal

1.3 Personnel costs
Personnel costs of the researchers, temporally staff, etc., who are hired for the research, in accordance with the internal regulations of the applicant. Max. 40 % of total budget of a Czech participant.

1.4 Travel costs
Travel costs (economy class flight / train ride 2nd class are eligible) and associated living expenses of research project members on the daily allowance basis (in accordance with the national legislation) and accommodation costs of the members of the participating Czech team are eligible.

2. Eligible indirect costs

Eligible indirect costs are eligible as per HORIZON 2020 rules.

→ Is additional/parallel application requested to the funding organisation?
A copy of the application sent to the call secretary should be sent to the Ministry of Education Youth and Sports through data box vidaawt according to following rules:

  • data message cannot exceed 20MB.

  • In data message in the field „Věc“ fill in „EIG CONCERT JAPAN“

  • In data message in the field „K rukám“ fill in „Oddělení 33“

  • In data message must be tickled the field „Do vlastních rukou“

    After announcement the EIG CONCERT JAPAN call results the MEYS will provide the institutional support in line with national regulations: Act. No. 130/2002 Coll., §7, article 8.

 

France – National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS)

→ Who can apply?
Research proposals may be submitted by any laboratory or joint research unit (UMR) affiliated

to CNRS.

What types of funding are eligible for French researchers?

1. Eligible direct costs

The level of the funding of French researchers may be up to around EUR 8,000-12,000 per project per year, over 3 years.

National rules and CNRS internal processes will apply.

1.1. Travel costs

Travel costs are eligible for funding and will be paid by the sending country. Travel costs for French project partners who travel to foreign countries will be covered (economy class flight / train ride 2nd class). For booking purposes, CNRS standards and applications apply.

1.2. Living expenses

Living expenses are eligible for funding and will be paid by the sending country. The amounts of the allowances (lump-sum) vary according to the destination country. For calculation purposes, CNRS standards apply.

1.3. Expenses for the organisation of small scientific events in France

In general, all costs directly related to the preparation and the implementation of events like international workshops, conferences, etc. in relation with the project are eligible.
→ Room rent, catering, printing of conference brochures, travel and accommodation of invited external experts (that do not form part of the project consortium but are considered necessary for the success of the event), translation...

The upper limit of 20% of the project budget per partner/year should not be exceeded.

1.4. Research materials and small-scale research equipment

Costs for consumables and small equipment (research equipment, prototypes, computer hard or software, office supplies, purchase of books, etc) are eligible only on a limited scale and if its need is demonstrated and directly related to the project. Equipment belonging to the applicant’s basic facilities is not eligible.

Any consumables necessary for the implementation of the project may be considered as direct eligible costs (i.e. consumable: unit cost less than 800 EUR and/or duration of use less than one year). Consumables are only eligible costs under the project if bought (“service fait”) after the start date of the project. Consumables belonging to the applicant’s basic facilities are not eligible.

The upper limit of 20% of the project budget per partner/year should not be exceeded.

1.5. Personnel costs

Personnel included in the project may be from CNRS laboratories including joint research units (UMR), whether they are hired by CNRS or by its partner institution. Nonetheless, personnel costs are not eligible for funding.

2. Eligible indirect costs

There are no eligible indirect costs.

→ Is additional/parallel application requested to the funding organisation? No

 

Germany - Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)

Please refer to the German call documents on www.bmbf.de or www.internationales-buero.de as well because these documents are binding.

→ Who can apply?
Funding will be awarded as project grants usually amounting to 150,000 Euros per collaborative project and year usually for a maximum period of 36 months.
The basis for calculating the grants for universities, non-university research institutions and similar institutions is the eligible project-related expenditure (in the case of the Helmholtz Centres and the Fraunhofer Gesellschaft [FhG] the eligible project-related costs) which can be individually funded up to a maximum of 100 percent.
In the case of research projects at higher education institutions (public and private) and teaching hospitals (irrespective of the legal form), a flat-rate grant amounting to 20% of total expenditure will be awarded in addition to the eligible expenditure. It should be noted that the project flat rate grant is already included in the above-mentioned maximum grant amount of 150,000 Euros.
Grants for commercial companies will be calculated on the basis of the eligible project-related costs, up to 50% of which can, as a rule, be covered by government grants, depending on the project's relevance to application. The calculation of the respective rate of funding must take account of the provisions governing de minimis aid and the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER/AGVO). The GBER (AGVO) allows various additional payments for small and medium-sized enter-prises (SMEs) which could in some circumstances lead to a higher rate of funding.
Research establishments that are financed jointly by Bund and Länder can (in addition to their basic funding) only obtain funding for their additional expenses under certain circumstances.

→ What types of funding are eligible for researchers in Germany?
The level of the funding of German researchers may be up to 50,000.00 Euro per year (i.e. overall 150.000 Euro for maximum three years of funding). In case two or more partners of a project are located in Germany, they may together request the aforementioned maximum sum.

1. Eligible direct costs

The national rules will be applied and are binding. Please refer for the National call conditions of BMBF https://www.bmbf.de/foerderungen.
1.1 Travel costs and living expenses: As a general rule, travel costs (from the point of departure to the location of the project partners) will be paid by the sending country. Travel costs for German project partners who travel to foreign countries will be covered (economy class flight / train ride 2nd class). Visa fees for Japan and vaccine costs for vaccinations officially recommended for Japan by the German Foreign Ministry will also be reimbursed.

1.3 Expenses for the organisation of small scientific events in Germany (including the invitation of external experts): Grants can be provided towards expenses such as room rent and catering, accommodation of guests, transfer costs in Germany.
1.4 Research materials and small-scale research equipment (no basics, e.g. Computer hard- or software, office supplies, etc.): only on a limited scale and if its need is demonstrated. An upper limit of 20% of the project budget per partner / year should not be exceeded.

1.5 Personnel costs: personnel to carry out scientific activities or research
Project related expenditures / costs for student and / or scientific/technical personnel (max. TVöD EG 13) are subsidized up to 36 person months.
As a rule, no funding will be provided to cover any of the cost of the participating institutions' normal basic equipment.

 

2. Eligible indirect costs

There are no eligible indirect costs.

→ Is additional/parallel application requested to the funding organisation?
Yes. General BMBF funding regulations apply. German researchers whose proposal is recommended for funding by the scientific committee will have to submit a formal proposal in order to prepare the contracts.

 

Lithuania - Agency for Science, Innovation and Technology (MITA)

Please review Lithuanian national rules on www.mita.lt. → Funding organisation

Agency for Science, Innovation and Technology (MITA)

In addition to the national funding regulations provided herewith, all Lithuanian applicants are strongly advised to check the web page of MITA for the conditions of funding, and before applying they are strongly advised to contact with the Lithuanian national contact person.

→ Who can apply?
In Lithuania only very small, small, medium and large enterprises are eligible organizations for funding and could be beneficiaries. Eligible expenditures deemed appropriate by MITA, is paid to the beneficiary, after these expenditures for project activities are made and paid by the beneficiary. Beneficiary may demand a certain amount of pre-payment to cover the expenditures to be made.
Universities, research and science institutions or similar establishments can participate in the joint call but have to cover the project costs from their own sources or participate as subcontractor.

Grants for commercial companies are calculated on the basis of the total project-related costs eligible for funding, up to 75% for SMEs and up to 65% for large companies, of which can, as a rule, be covered by MITA, depending on research and innovation activities, performed in the project.

→ What types of funding are eligible for researchers in Lithuania?
The level of the funding of Lithuanian beneficiaries may be up to 33,000.00 Euro per year (i.e. overall 100.000 Euro for maximum three years of funding). In case two or more partners of a project are located in Lithuania, they may together request the aforementioned maximum sum.

1. Eligible direct costs

The national rules will be applied.

1.1 Travel costs: As a general rule, travel costs (from the point of departure to the location of the project partner) will be paid by the sending country. Travel costs for Lithuanian project partners who travel to foreign countries will be covered (economy class flight).

1.2 Living expenses (including accommodation costs): As a general rule, the daily subsistence allowance for exchanges between countries participating in the EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint call will be covered by the sending country. The amounts of the allowances (lump-sum) vary according to the destination country. For calculation purposes, national standards apply.

1.3 Expenses for the organisation of small scientific events in Lithuania (including the invitation of external experts): funding can be provided towards expenses such as room rent and catering, accommodation of experts (that do not form part of the project consortium but are considered necessary for the success of the event). Daily allowances will not be paid in this case. The upper limit of 20% of the project budget per partner / year should not be exceeded.

 

1.4 Research materials and small-scale research equipment (no basics, e.g. Computer hard- or software, office supplies, etc.): only on a limited scale and if its need is demonstrated. An upper limit of 20% of the project budget per partner / year should not be exceeded.

1.5 Personnel costs: Personnel costs of the researchers, temporally staff, etc., who are hired for the research.

1.6. Other eligible direct costs
Other eligible direct costs include the following:

- Costs of R&D services and consultancy related to the project from universities and/or R&D institutions.

An upper limit of 20% of the project budget per partner should not be exceeded.

2. Eligible indirect costs

There are no eligible indirect costs.

→ Is additional/parallel application requested to the funding organisation?
Yes. Lithuanian company whose proposal is decided to be funded by the FOF will have to submit a formal financial proposal in order to prepare the contracts.

→ Mandatory acknowledgement
Any publication or dissemination activity resulting from the granted projects must acknowledge MITA funding: “Project (reference no XX) partly funded by MITA”.

For more information please contact EIG CONCERT-Japan Call National Contact Point:

Mrs Daiva Keršienė daiva.kersiene@mita.lt

 

Poland – National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR)

Information about call announcement will be published on the NCBR website:

http://www.ncbr.gov.pl/

Who can apply?

  • Research organisations

  • Enterprises (micro, small, medium or large)

  • Groups of entities (scientific consortia)

    The scope of support:

  • Basic research (only research organisations) – up to 15% of the total project cost for

    the Polish researchers

  • Applied research

  • Experimental development

    What types of funding are eligible for the Polish researchers?

    The NCBR ́s total allocation for the current EIG CONCERT-Japan Joint Call for Proposals is 750.000 EUR. The level of funding for Polish participants is limited up to the maximum of 150.000 EUR per project for up to 3 years (36 months).

    What types of costs are eligible for funding?

1. Personnel costs (W) - researchers, technicians and other supporting staff to the extent employed on the research project;
2. Costs of instruments, equipment (A) and intangible assets (such as patents, certificates etc.) to the extent and for the period used for the research project; if they are not used for their full life for the research project, only the depreciation costs corresponding to the life of the research project, as calculated on the basis of good accounting practice, shall be considered eligible;

3. Purchase of land and real estate (G) to the extent and for the period used for the research project; if such instruments and equipment are not used for their full life for the research project, only the depreciation costs corresponding to the life of the research project, as calculated on the basis of good accounting practice, shall be considered eligible;

4. Costs of subcontracting (E), i.e. costs based on agreements with third parties to perform a portion of the project without a direct supervision of the project participant and without a relationship of subordination the subcontracting can be obtained from consortium partner only in justified case, this need will be verified by a national experts panel;

Costs of subcontracting cannot exceed 70% of all eligible costs of the project.
5. Other costs (Op) - including costs of support services, materials, supplies and similar products incurred directly as a result of the research activity, travel costs (costs of delegations, costs of participation in conferences), costs of maintaining a separate bank account, costs of promoting the project;
6. Overheads (O) - incurred indirectly as a result of the research project; Overheads must be calculated according to the formula:

O = (W+A+G+Op) x up to 25%*

* percentage from 0% to 25% estimated by the Applicant himself (the same percentage for every task in the project)

For the funding granted by the NCBR, the following regulations apply:

  1. The Law of 20 July 2018 on Higher Education and Science, published in Journal of Laws item 1668, 2018;

  2. The Act of 30 April 2010 on the National Centre for Research and Development, published in Journal of Laws item 1249, 2018, as amended;

  3. The Regulation of the Minister of Science and Higher Education of 25 February 2015 on criteria and rules on granting state aid and “de minimis” aid by the National Centre for Research and Development, published in Journal of Laws item 299, 2015.

Maximum level of funding:

  • For research organisations – up to 100% of eligible costs

  • For enterprises – up to the level submitted in the Regulation of the Minister of Science

    and Higher Education of 25 February 2015 on criteria and rules on granting state aid and “de minimis” aid by the National Centre for Research and Development, published in Journal of Laws item 299, 2015.

 

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