Europe’s world class research and technology infrastructures as strategic assets for talent to Choose Europe

Expected Outcome:

Projects are expected to contribute to all of the following expected outcomes:

• Creation of interconnected international scientific networks centred around European research and technology infrastructures, including where appropriate their university partners and university alliances, promoting their potential for international scientific collaboration and exchange, with due regard to research security and safeguarding data critical for research addressing global challenges.
• Creation of opportunities for EU/Associated Countries scientific communities to engage with excellent researchers outside the EU. This should be achieved through engagement with scientific institutions in other world regions,
• Development of "Choose Europe" as a strategic direction in the context of Europe's research and technology infrastructures, for promoting Europe as a destination for top scientific talent and for promoting European infrastructures as strong and reliable partners for international scientific cooperation.
• Strengthened visibility and communication of Europe's research and technology infrastructures’ role as world-class hubs for science and innovation, for attracting talent and for fostering international cooperation.

Scope:

This topic aims to leverage Europe's world-class research and technology infrastructures to attract global scientific talent and to strengthen Europe’s position as a partner of choice for international scientific cooperation, in line with the European strategy on research and technology infrastructures. By highlighting the unique opportunities for scientific advancement, innovation and collaboration available in Europe and with Europe, while building cooperative links between research and technology infrastructures, the initiative endeavours to make Europe a preferred destination for researchers seeking to contribute to and benefit from these state-of-the-art infrastructures.

Projects are expected to focus on:

• Partnering with non-associated third-country scientific institutions, including universities to align on research methodologies, testing protocols and data sharing in the chosen field; promote the uptake in other world regions of practices developed and tested by pan-European research and technology infrastructures, to ensure comparability of results; and support the design of distributed research ecosystems, including data and cloud platforms and ecosystems. This could be achieved through joint workshops or training programmes, summer schools and other scientific visits aimed at building long-term bilateral links between European infrastructures and scientific institutions in other countries. Activities are expected to target students, early-career researchers, and/or scientific staff, including specialised technicians and support staff, while promoting gender-balanced participation.
• Organising targeted dissemination and outreach activities bringing together research and technology infrastructures, scientists and innovators, with the aim of effectively leveraging European infrastructures as world-class hubs for science and innovation and strengthening international engagement.

This could also include the production of reusable common communication assets, coordinated presence at major international science and innovation fora, and reinforcing links with initiatives such as EURAXESS. Where relevant, beneficiaries should build on resources funded under HORIZON-WIDERA2022-ERA-01-60.

Proposals are expected to address one of the areas listed below and the area addressed should be clearly identified in the proposal. If a proposal addressed multiple areas, they should select “Cross-cutting area”. A proposal may also choose “Other area” and identify which one.

• Area 1: Health and biomedical sciences
• Area 2: Food science and agriculture technologies
• Area 3: Clean energy and clean mobility solutions
• Area 4: Environmental and Climate sciences and observation
• Area 5: Physics and astronomy
• Area 6: Advanced materials
• Area 7: Social sciences and humanities
• Area 8: Cross-cutting area
• Area 9: Other area

Proposals could consider the inclusion of the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) EU Reference Laboratory for alternatives to animal testing (EURL ECVAM) in the area of Health and biomedical sciences, and the inclusion of the Nanobiotechnology Laboratory in the areas of Health and biomedical sciences, and Food science and agriculture technologies. In that respect, the JRC will consider collaborating with any successful proposal and this collaboration, when relevant, should be established after the proposal’s approval.

Proposals should consider the Council Recommendation of 23 May 2024 on enhancing research security^[1] and take into account its principles for responsible internationalisation.

[1] https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=OJ:C_202403510

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