The Israel Science Foundation

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The Israel Science Foundation F.I.R.S.T. Program
Prof. Eli Pollak Coordinator ISF NEST
PROMISE Eli.Pollak_at_weizmann.ac.il
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The ISFs Mission

• To evaluate, select and support Israeli basic
  research through competitive grants based on
  excellence and scientific merit within the wide
  range of
• Exact Sciences and Technology
• Life Sciences and Medicine
• Humanities and Social Sciences

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Allocation to basic research in Israel

• ISF 54
• EU6 25.5
• GIF 13.2
• BSF 10.5
• 7.2 BARD
• DIP 6.2

in millions of

2005 data
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2006 submissions
Individual Research Grants - Distribution by
Sectors
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2006 New Grants
Budgetary Distribution by Area
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Leading basic research foundations(In millions
of )

• Foundation Annual budget Budget per
  capita
• (in )
• ISF (Israel) 60 10
• NSF (USA) 5,600 18
• DFG (Germany) 1,600 20
• FWF (Austria) 120 15
• SNF (Swiss) 350 50
• NSFC(China) 440 0.3

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Scientific vs. Economic Wealth
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Description of Israel Size
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International Cooperation

• European Science Foundation Representative
• ERANETS (nano, systems biology)
• NEST-PROMISE
• DFG (German Science Foundation)
• THE ISF IS INTERESTED IN CREATING ADDITIONAL
• BILATERAL COOPERATIVE PROJECTS

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The ISF - FIRST program
A special independent program supporting highly
original and/or risky and/or multidisciplinary
research. Budget 2,000,000 Programs

• Individual Scientist
• Institutional
• Post-Doctoral Fellowships

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The need for FIRST like programs

• Agencies typically support projects demonstrating
  
• feasibility with preliminary results.
• Multidisciplinary research is difficult to review
  
• and assess.
• Reviewing boards (especially scientists) are
• conservative.
• Agencies want success, dislike high risk!
• Established scientists are afraid to embark on
• new adventures need encouragement.
• Young scientists with new ideas need support.

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The FIRST/ISF Mission

• Funding for
• Pioneering ideas capable of opening new avenues
  of research
• High-risk, high-impact research.
• Innovative research of with a multi/inter
  disciplinary character
• Introduction of new and innovative research areas
  to the universities via junior faculty members or
  senior researchers introducing new fields

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How FIRST operates?

• FIRST is run by 5 board members all scientists
  representing different research disciplines and
  different institutes.
• The board members serve for 3 years
• They are all senior scientists with a broad
  overview of scientific activity in Israel.

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FIRST Tracks

• Special Individual Researcher
• Institutional
• Post-Doctoral Fellowships

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Special Individual Researcher Track

• Submission of proposals which are not suitable
  for submission to other ISF programs, because of
  their highly innovative character, unconventional
  approach, and lack of preliminary results, or
  their multi or inter disciplinary approach.
• Pre-proposal screening
• Peer reviewing
• Decision by the board members invited experts
• 1-3 year projects annual budget 30,000-60,000
  ( additional funding for small equipment up
  to 30,000)

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Special Individual Researcher Track
The problem The overall success rate should not
be below 20.
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The Institutional Track

• Israels seven research universities are invited
  to submit one research proposal each, in a new
  high-priority field of research, preferably via
  junior faculty, which can open new areas both
  within Israel and worldwide
• Up to 3 year projects with a total budget of
  maximum 800,000
• Peer reviewing and decision made by the board
  members

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The Institutional Track
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Post-Doctoral Fellowships

• Supports training of young PhDs at top
  institutions abroad in pre-selected subjects
• The chosen researchers obtain a grant that
  supports their research upon returning to Israel
• Thus far the four fields chosen were Evolution,
  Environmental Sciences, Virology and
  Analytical Chemistry

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Post-Doctoral Fellowships

• During the five years of operation
• 41 applications were submitted
• 21 received postdoctoral fellowships
• Environmental Sciences - 8
• Evolution - 5
• Analytical Chemistry - 3
• Virology - 5
• 12 received tenure at Israeli Universities

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NEST PROMISE www.nest-promise.net

• NEST New and Emerging Science and Technology
• PROMISE - Promoting Research on Optimal
  Methodology and Impacts

Israel Science Foundation www.isf.org.il
Coordinator
Partners
Fraunhofer Institute for Systems and Innovation
Research (Germany) www.isi.fhg.de
Trinity College, Trinity Centre for
Bioengineering, (Ireland) www.biomechanics.ie
www.pspa.ie
Consorzio Pisa Recerche Information Technology
and Telecommunications Division (Italy)
www.meta.cpr.it
NEST NCP, Institute for Fundamental
Technological Research, Polish Academy of
Sciences www.pr6.pl
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NEST-PROMISE GOALS www.nest-promise.net

• Survey European and other programs supporting
  innovative, high risk, interdisciplinary,
  original research
• successes and failures
• problems and solutions
• social impacts young and female scientists
• Analyse performance of NEST like programs
• overlap
• benefit optimization
• cost effectiveness
• Raise awareness for funding of NEST like programs
  .
• Provide experience validated tools to refine and
  optimize
• efficiency
• fairness
• impact and benefit
• strategies and procedure
• of NEST like programs.
• The bottom line
• Encourage original, innovative path breaking
  research.

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NEST-PROMISE WORKSHOP
www.nest-promise.net
CONFIRMED SPEAKERS Dr.
Carlos Saraiva Martins, Project Officer,
European Commission - DG RESEARCH Title The
NEST activity - an "open space" to stimulate
creative, visionary and anticipatory
science and technology Prof. Patrick
Prendergast, Partner NEST-PROMISE, Trinity
College Dublin Title Initial Survey Results of
research programs promoting novel high
risk research. Dr. Thomas Heinze, Partner
NEST PROMISE, Fraunhofer Institute ISI, Germany
Title Two case studies (US UK) on high-risk
funding programs SGER (NSF) and
Showcase (Wellcome Trust). Prof. Eli Pollak,
Coordinator NEST-PROMISE, ISF Title
Innovative and Interdisciplinary research in
Israel
PROGRAM
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NEST-PROMISE WORKSHOP
www.nest-promise.net

• Presenting the Italian approach to Innovative
  Interdisciplinary Research (IIR).
• Bringing together the administrative and user
  communities of IIR
• Encouraging NEST elements in National Research
  Programs
• Addressing policy makers and administrative
  staff of national research programs
• Establishing a network of contacts in NEST like
  programs.
• PLEASE JOIN US!
• http//www.nest-promise.net/forms/registration/

GOALS
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Thank you for your attention
Please visit us at www.isf.org.il