The Specific Programme

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The Specific Programme Ideas The European
Research Council (ERC)Monica DietlEuropean
Commission, DG RTDDirectorate B/Unit B1 (W.P.
Cannell)
Personnaly speaking
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Outline

• Why an ERC?
• The ERC in the 7th Framework Programme
• ERC Structure and organisation
• Progress in building the ERC

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Why an ERC?

• European added value through Europe-
• wide competition
• Catalysing the creation of a more
• coherent European research system
• Making Europe more competitive
• Need of funding for Frontier research

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European added value through Europe-wide
competition

• Encouraging and supporting the finest talent
  scientists are ambitious and competition for big
  rewards will always raise the game
• Selecting the most promising research areas, by
  pushing groups to the edge of current
  possibilities
• Giving European and international visibility to
  research leaders

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Catalysing the creation of a more efficient
European research system

• Bottom-up competition promotes the
  re-configuration of research activities to meet
  the new opportunities and challenges, often
  across disciplinary boundaries
• Individual countries need external benchmarks
• National research systems learn from European
  competition

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Making Europe more competitive

• High quality frontier research stimulates
  early-stage industrial investment
• Europes universities and research organisations
  must stay at the forefront of knowledge
• Discoveries lead to Intellectual Propperty and to
  start-ups
• Knowledge acquisition is a major cultural benefit

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Need for Frontier research

• Research at the frontiers is an intrinsically
  risky venture
• it is characterised by an absence of disciplinary
  boundaries
• We need to avoid outmoded distinctions
• Between basic and applied research
• Between science and technology
• Between traditional disciplines

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The ERC in FP7

• Cooperation - thematic research areas
• Ideas - frontier research (ERC)
• People - human resources
• Capacities
• Infrastructures
• SMEs
• Regions of knowledge
• Research potential
• Science in society

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Whats new in FP7 ?

• Substantial annual budget increase
• Frontier research ( EUR 1 billion per year)
• Joint Technology Initiatives (JTI)
• A Risk-Sharing Finance Facility (loan finance
  EIB)
• Regions Knowledge (regional RTD driven clusters)
• Logistical and administrative tasks transferred
  to external structures
• Duration of 7 years

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FP7 budget (Non-Nuclear)
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Specific programme Ideas Innovations compared
with standard FP programmes

• Support to individual teams !
• Investigator-driven frontier research
• All areas of science and technology
• Simplified grant
• 100 reimbursement
• Independent scientific governance
  (Scientific Council)
• Dedicated implementation structure (Executive
  Agency)

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FP7 negotiations state of play

• Competitiveness Council of 28 November 2005
  arrived at a consensus on ERC (including a review
  of implementing structure by 2010)
• Competitiveness Council of 13 March 2006 global
  consensus on SP Ideas, no decision
• Parliament amendments FP7 - 15th March 2006
  (Buzek report) SP Ideas 4 May 2006 (Niebler
  report)
• FP7 budget following financial perspectives of
  the EU budget

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ERC Implementation requirements

• Autonomous (independent of political interest)
• Efficient (low bureaucracy)
• With necessary financial means (at programme and
  project level)
• But also.
• Accountable (scientific, financial)
• Appropriate European Structure

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ERC Structure and Organisation

• Scientific Council (SC)
• Dedicated implementation structure (DIS)
  (may be Executive Agency)
• Possibility of different structure after review
• (f.ex. Article 171 )

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ERC Scientific Council

• High level scientists reflecting the full scope
  of European research, nominated by Commission
  decision
• Role
• Establish overall scientific strategy,
  preparation of work programmes (including calls
  for proposals, detailed criteria of excellence,
  )
• Define peer review methodology ensure selection
  and accreditation of experts
• Monitor quality of operations and evaluate
  programme implementation
• Assure communication with the scientific
  community

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ERC Scientific Council

• Founding members were announced on 18 July 2005
  following an independent identification procedure
• Working in advance of the FP7 decision in the
  development phase of the ERC (already 2 meetings)
• 22 Members
• Chair Fotis Kafatos
• Vice Chairs
• Helga Nowotny
• Daniel Estève

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ERC SC 22 Founding Members

Dr. Claudio BORDIGNON (IT) Prof. Manuel CASTELLS (ES) Prof. Dr. Paul J. CRUTZEN (NL) Prof. Mathias DEWATRIPONT (BE) Dr. Daniel ESTEVE (FR) Prof. Pavel EXNER (CZ) Prof. Dr. Hans-Joachim FREUND (DE) Prof. Wendy HALL (UK) Prof. Dr. Car l- Henrik HELDIN (SE) Prof. Dr. Fotis C. KAFATOS (GR) Prof. Dr. Michal KLEIBER (PL) Prof. Norbert KROO (HU) Prof. Maria Teresa V.T. LAGO (PT) Dr. Oscar MARIN PARRA (ES) Prof Robert MAY (UK) Prof. Helga NOWOTNY (AT) Prof. Christiane NÜSSLEIN-VOLHARD (DE) Dr. Leena PELTONEN-PALOTIE (FI) Prof. Alain PEYRAUBE (FR) Dr. Jens R. ROSTRUP-NIELSEN (DK) Prof. Salvatore SETTIS (IT) Prof. Dr.med. Rolf M. ZINKERNAGEL (CH)
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ERC Dedicated Implementation Structure (DIS)

• Execute work programme as established by the
  Scientific Council
• Implement calls for proposals (information and
  support to applicants proposal
  reception/eligibility check etc.)
• Organise peer review evaluation
• Establish grant agreements, transfer funds
• Administer scientific and financial aspects and
  follow-up of grant agreements

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The European Commissions duties

• Guarantor of the autonomy and integrity of the
  ERC
• Ensure that implementation follows principles of
  autonomy
• Adopt work programme as established by the
  Scientific Council
• Double lock by the Programme Committee
• Provide annual report on ERC operations to
  Council and European Parliament

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Progress in building the ERC

• Individual team
• Frontier research grant
• Peer review process (SC)
• Work programme (SC)
• Preparation of the DIS
• Follow-up of political process Timetable

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Individual team

• The Principal Investigator (the team leader)
  has
• power to assemble his/her research group
• freedom to choose the research topic.
• Individual teams should consist of a grouping of
  researchers which meets the needs of the project,
  without artificial administrative constraints
  thus members may be drawn from one or several
  legal entities, from either within or across
  national boundaries, including third countries

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Frontier Research Grant Key principles

• An investment in research and research leaders
• Support for investigator-driven research projects
  implemented by individual teams
• Attractive (budget size, duration and conditions,
  including 100 reimbursement)
• Administratively simple
• Flexible in application

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Work programme ERC Launch Strategy

• The Scientific Council has made good progress in
  its first meetings regarding the ERC launch
  strategy Two streams of activity are foreseen
• ERC Starting Independent Researcher Grant scheme
  (ERC Starting Grant)
• Call for proposals to be published in early 2007
• ERC Advanced Investigator Researcher Grant scheme
  (ERC Advanced Grant)
• Call for proposals at a later stage

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Starting independent researcher grant

• first call at start of FP7
• designed to support researchers at the stage of
  starting their first independent research team
• continued throughout the life of the framework
  programme

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Advanced Investigator Researcher Grant

• Designed to support excellent investigator-initiat
  ed research projects by established investigators
• Brought on-stream from year 2
• Complements the SIRG scheme by targeting
  researchers who are already independent research
  leaders

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Peer review process

• Peer Review Evaluation
• Approx. 15 high level panels (10 members)
• Multidisciplinary projects encouraged (appraised
  by all appropriate panels)
• Possibly have ScC member as observer on each
  panel
• Evaluation Criteria
• Excellence of project
• Potential of people (research excellence,
  achievements, publications)

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Funding Streams principles

• ERC Starting Grant and ERC Advanced Grant
• - Operating on a bottom-up basis
• - Not duplicating other FP7 activities
• - Two-step procedure
• - 100 k - 400 k for up to 5 years

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Ongoing actions to build the ERC Preparation of
the DIS

• Under the guidance of the ScC
• Definition of scientific strategy (in particular
  for ERC launch and first calls)
• Development of the systems and processes for the
  DIS (call/evaluation methods, grant agreement)
• Building awareness of ERC and its early strategy
• And in parallel
• Continuation/completion of political negotiation
  (FP7, ideas programme)
• Development of the legal and operational basis
  for the Agency
• Building the operational capability of the DIS
  (recruitment of personnel, infrastructure.)

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Implementation Roadmap

• Preparatory work defined by eventual functional
  components of ERC, under the direction of a
  Core Group
• Strategy and Planning
• Communications and external interfaces
• Evaluation
• Grants and Finance
• Resources

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Initial structurefor ERC development
DG Research (Core Group)
Scientific Council
B1 unit SC and ERC Development
Other responsible departments

• Strategy
• Communication
• Evaluation system and ERC processes
• Grants, Finance
• Resources

ERC political negotiation
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European Events with ERC participation

• Euroscience Open Forum (ESOF2006)Munich, 15-19
  July 2006, Discussion forum on the European
  Research Council with the participation of Prof
  Kafatos
• FP7 launch event for information
  multipliersBrussels, 7-9 February 2007,
  conference aimed at intermediaries and at
  stakeholders of European research policy
• ERC launch conferenceBerlin, 26-28 February
  2007, organised with the German EU presidency as
  high-level conference
• European Research Event with Public
  ExhibitionBrussels, 7-18 March, Political
  High-Level Event with Presentations and
  Exhibition on European Research Success Stories

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FP7 Timetable
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Further information
Basic research website http//europa.eu.int/comm
/research/future/basic_research/ A new ERC
dedicated website ! http//erc.europa.eu