Grants Office Newsletter March 2024

Dear Researchers of the University of Basel,

In this issue, we tell you why we can finally use the ERC logo in our newsletter again, inform you about past and present events and as always highlight the most important upcoming Calls for proposals.

For those wanting to know more about the upcoming opportunities for EU projects, the events section is for you. In addition to subject specific information events, you can find out more about the Marie Skłodowska-Curie (MSCA) funding schemes that are open to any area of research.

In February representatives from Innosuisse and Bridge, visited Basel to inform about the funding schemes from their organizations. If you missed the event but would like to learn more about these schemes, please see our report below.

The Grants Office Team

Eve Silfverberg, Gillianne Bowman, Caroline Peneff, Luca Wacker & Julia Wyss

After a break of almost three years, we can finally use the ERC logo in our newsletter again. Following positive discussions on a political level, a transitional arrangement has been agreed with Brussels, allowing researchers from Switzerland to apply for an ERC Advanced Grant this year. The Call is due to open in May with a deadline on the 29th August. It was very nice to see the ERC communicating that they are looking forward to welcoming Swiss applicants again. Full Swiss participation in most Horizon Europe Calls in 2025, including all ERC and Marie Skłodowska-Curie Calls is also foreseen but this is dependent on further positive developments on the political side. We continue to watch with interest and will keep you up to date.

The R'Equip scheme from the SNSF helps co-finance the acquisition and development of large-scale apparatus. The grants generally cover 50% of the costs for equipment valued between CHF 100’000 and CHF 1 Mio. An important aspect of a proposal is shared access and added value for research. As this scheme will be discontinued as of 2025, this is the last chance to apply. On the administrative side, applicants require a commitment letter, confirming the co-financing. This needs to be signed by the Vice President for Research and Chief Financial Officer. Please contact the Grants Office for a template of the commitment letter and organization of the relevant signatures. Requests for signatures should be announced at least two weeks before the deadline.

From scientific discoveries to groundbreaking innovations that create a positive impact on society, 60 participants curious to see the opportunities available to finance their innovation projects took part in this event at the beginning of February.

Invited speakers and guests discussed all matters related to innovation, from project funding to finalizing tech transfer thanks to Unitectra. It was a pleasure to hear about the training organized by the Innovation Office, the funding opportunities from Innosuisse and BRIDGE, as well as the university support services.

Two researchers gave inspiring presentations on how they have been using these opportunities to push their research forward, bringing concrete improvement for applications in their fields. A lively discussion ensued after the presentations, where researchers and speakers could discuss projects around a coffee and a snack.

If you  missed the event but are interested by one of the instruments, please contact us.

As every year, we took part in the Clinical Research Day, presenting the Grants Office, next to the sciCORE booth and the Data Stewards from the Data Management Network. Between coffee and intense discussions around the poster sessions, researchers came to us to find out about funding opportunities and other services the Grants Office can provide.

The Grants Office would like to congratulate:

• Jirí Cerný and Jannis Epting for their WEAVE projects
• Andreas Kuhlmann for his QuantERA project
• Günther Fink for his Transforming Health and Care Systems grant
• Innosuisse projects: Nicolas Gerig, Matthias Wymann, Ferda Canbaz, Heiko Schuldt, Stefan Stübinger, Gregor Hutter, Richard Warburton, Dennis Gillingham
• EURAMET projects: Philipp Treutlein, Stefan Willitsch, Martino Poggio
• Leading House: Valentina Basoli, Arka Banerjee, Stéphanie Musy
• Horizon Europe Collaborative projects: Matthias Schwenkglenks EPIC, Valentina Basoli Phoenix OoC, Anne-Katrin Pröbstel ID-DarkMatter-NCD, Ivan Martin ENCANTO
• Julie Bernath for her Stanley Thomas Johnson funded grant
• Sabina De Geest for her Velux Foundation funded grant
• Karen Dixon for the funding from the Novartis Foundation for biomedical research
• Claudio Giachino for the Swiss Cancer League funded grant
• Gili Rosenberg and Irene Pallucchi for their EMBO Fellowships
• Carlos Eduardo de Bento Flores for his HFSP Fellowship
• Christoph Müller for his Fellowship from the Peter and Traudl Engelhorn Stiftung

Check out Research Professional for more national and international Calls.