Collaborative Calls for Proposals
Joint Call for Proposals: University of Birmingham (UoB) and São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) 2023 Versão em português
Call announcement: 24 April, 2023
Deadline for submission: 31 July, 2023
Selection results announcement: December, 2023
Start of projects: January, 2024
FAPESP Support Opportunity: Regular Research Grant
Maximum duration of the projects: 24 months
Eligibility: Researchers affiliated with Higher Education or Research Institutions in the state of São Paulo and Researchers from UoB
Submission: To FAPESP via SAGe and to UoB through e-mail.
FAPESP Contact Details: Chamada-UoB@fapesp.br
UoB Contact Details: m.e.elliston@bham.ac.uk
1. Objective
The São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP), Brazil, and The University of Birmingham announce a call for proposals to fund joint collaborative research projects in any discipline, under the terms and conditions hereinafter set forth. This Call is launched under the Scientific Cooperation Agreement signed between the institutions (Cooperation agreement between FAPESP and University of Birmingham - 2022).
2. Grant opportunity: Auxílio à Pesquisa Regular (Regular Research Grant) at FAPESP and up to £20,000 for researcher from The University of Birmingham
Researchers affiliated with Higher Education and Research Institutions in the State of São Paulo can submit proposals in the modality Auxílio à Pesquisa Regular (Regular Research Grant), to be elaborated and executed jointly with researchers affiliated with The University of Birmingham, who can request up to £20,000 per awarded proposal to cover research-related expenses directly pertaining to the project as well as travel (air tickets), health insurance, and living allowances for researchers in scientific mission between the two countries, for up to 2 (two) years.
3. Fields of knowledge
The present Call invites Research Proposals across all active research disciplines.
4. Timeline
Call announcement: 24 April 2023
Deadline for submission: 31 July 2023
Selection results announcement: December 2023
Start of Project: January 2024
5. Rules for application and instructions
Proposals for the same joint collaborative project must be submitted simultaneously before the deadline, both to FAPESP by the Principal Investigator (PI) from São Paulo and to The University of Birmingham by the UK PI(s).
• PIs from The University of Birmingham: please see Appendix I.
• PIs from the State of São Paulo: please see Appendix II and III.
6. Selection
Each party will select the proposals according to its own procedures. The proposals will be pre-qualified and, subsequently, analysed by way of a competitive merit review process. Only those proposals selected by both, FAPESP and The University of Birmingham, will be funded.
7. Result of the analysis
Final results will be announced on FAPESP’s and the University of Birmingham’s websites, and by means of a communication to the interested PIs.
APPENDIX I – APPLICATION AND INSTRUCTIONS FOR RESEARCHERS FROM THE UNIVERSITY OF BIRMINGHAM
1. Funding principles and duration of the Projects
Awarded proposals will receive financing of up to £20,000 from The University of Birmingham and up to R$150,000 from FAPESP, the funds being granted to the Principal Investigator for each institution (FAPESP can only grant funds to researchers affiliated with Higher Education and Research Institutions in the state of São Paulo, Brazil). The project period is for up to two (2) years.
Funds awarded by The University of Birmingham are for research-related expenses directly pertaining to the project (personnel, consumable supplies etc.) as well as travel (air tickets), health insurance, and living allowances for researchers from this university to visit the State of São Paulo, Brazil. Travel expenses reimbursed by The University of Birmingham must be in accordance with internal policy for travel expenses.
2. Eligibility rules
Researchers regarded as eligible to submit proposals within the scope of this Call are researchers from any active research discipline affiliated with The University of Birmingham. Each Principal Investigator may submit only one proposal to this Call.
3. Proposal characteristics
The proposal must include:
3.1 A Research Project having a maximum of 15 pages of scientific content, written jointly in English by the Principal Investigator from FAPESP and the Principal Investigator from The University of Birmingham. One copy must be submitted to FAPESP (through the SAGe platform) and another (identical) to The University of Birmingham.
The Research Project must include the following:
a. Summary/abstract of the project;
b. Statement of the goals and objectives of the project;
c. Background and rationale for the project. What is the problem addressed by the project and why is it important? What will be the contribution to the area?;
d. Details of the activities/experimental design to be completed in the project;
e. What are the benefits and scientific/scholarly gains to The University of Birmingham and to the university/institution in Sao Paulo of the project?;
f. What activities including additional external funding will be sought both during and after the project to sustain the collaboration?;
g. Which are the expected results? What are the performance indicators/metrics that will be measured to ensure the success of the project?;
h. Description of infrastructure and financial resources available for developing the research project in São Paulo, Brazil and at The University of Birmingham, excluding the expenses requested in the proposal;
i. Travel schedule, if applicable;
j. The history of the São Paulo and The University of Birmingham teams working together. Focus on the outcomes from previous work – papers published jointly, grants submitted jointly, joint meetings, seminar programs, etc.
3.2 CV of the Principal Investigators and the other research team members.
3.3 An itemized budget with a budget justification.
4. Submission of proposals
Submission to The University of Birmingham must be submitted electronically as one complete PDF document to: Mary Elliston, e-mail: m.e.elliston@bham.ac.uk
5. Contract for selected projects
The selected proposals will be subject of a Grant between the Principal Investigator and The University of Birmingham.
6. Information about the call for proposals
Mary Elliston, International Partnerships Officer, Birmingham Global, University of Birmingham; e-mail: m.e.elliston@bham.ac.uk
APPENDIX II – APPLICATION AND INSTRUCTIONS FOR RESEARCHERS FROM STATE OF SÃO PAULO
1. Eligibility and instructions for submission:
Apart from the Timeline (item 4 of this Call), and the Funding Principles (item 2.3 below), the rules for this Regular Research Grant opportunity are available in Portuguese at Auxílio à Pesquisa Regular (Auxílio à Pesquisa Regular (fapesp.br)). Please observe that submissions to FAPESP are only accepted through the SAGe platform (www.fapesp.br/sage). Each Principal Investigator may submit only one proposal to this Call.
In order to encourage international collaboration, researchers responsible for the current Regular Research Grant, not the result of a call for international collaborative projects, may submit a proposal in this call. The concurrency of projects must be justified in the Observations/Manifestations field of the proposal for analysis, including information on available dedication time, which must be compatible with the maximum equivalent of 40 hours per week for both grants.
2. Funding Principles and duration of the Projects
2.1 Awarded proposals will receive financing of up to £20,000 from The University of Birmingham and up to R$150,000 from FAPESP, the funds being granted to the Principal Investigator for each institution (FAPESP can only grant funds to researchers affiliated with Higher Education and Research Institutions in the state of São Paulo, Brazil). The project period is for up to two (2) years.
2.2 Funds awarded from FAPESP are for research-related expenses directly pertaining to the project as well as travel (air tickets, health insurance, and living allowances) for researchers from São Paulo to visit The University of Birmingham, according to the conditions below:
2.2.1 Are eligible for travel the team members of the project when previously defined as Principal Investigator or Associated Researchers affiliated to Higher Education and Research Institutions in the State of São Paulo. Associated Researchers who are Post-doctoral fellows must have an ongoing FAPESP fellowship during the planned exchange mission;
2.2.2 PhD and Master students are not eligible to take part in the travel related to this project;
2.2.3 The proposals must aim to respect the principle of reciprocity with regard to academic qualifications of those who will take part in the exchange activities.
3. Proposal characteristics required by FAPESP
The proposal must include:
3.1 A Research Project having a maximum of 15 pages of scientific content, written jointly in English by the Principal Investigator to FAPESP and the Principal Investigator at The University of Birmingham. One copy must be submitted to FAPESP (through the SAGe platform) and another (identical) to The University of Birmingham.
The Research Project must include the following:
a. Summary/abstract of the project;
b. Statement of the goals and objectives of the project;
c. Background and rationale for the project;
d. Details of the activities/experimental design to be completed in the project;
e. What are the benefits and scientific/scholarly gains to The University of Birmingham and to the university/institution in Sao Paulo of the project?;
f) What activities including additional external funding will be sought both during and after the project to sustain the collaboration?;
g) Which are the expected results? What are the performance indicators/metrics that will be measured to ensure the success of the project?;
h) Description of infrastructure and financial resources available for developing the research project in São Paulo, Brazil and at The University of Birmingham, excluding the expenses requested in the proposal;
i) Travel schedule, if applicable;
j) The history of the Sao Paulo and The University of Birmingham teams working together. Focus on the outcomes from previous work – papers published jointly, grants submitted jointly, joint meetings, seminar programs, etc.
3.2 All documents and forms required in the SAGe platform for the Regular Project submission. Please verify the list of documents at SAGe ahead of time. Details for the submission in the SAGe platform can be found below (Appendix III – only in Portuguese).
3.3 Important: The Principal Investigator from The University of Birmingham must also create a SAGe login, and confirm its articipation in the project online.
4. Information about this Call
Questions related to this Call for Proposals must be directed to Meritxell Zurita, e-mail: Chamada-UoB@fapesp.br.
APPENDIX III: Instructions to the SAGe platform (Guidelines for proposals submission on SAGe)
1. The Principle Investigator from the State of São Paulo and from The University of Birmingham must be registered in the SAGe platform:
(I) Researchers who do not have a SAGe registration should initially do so by accessing the SAGe page at www.fapesp.br/sage, clicking on “Sem cadastro?” and fill in the requested data. It is not enough to just register as a user, it is necessary to complete the cadastral data;
(II) Researchers from the State of São Paulo, already registered, must log into SAGe with the usual identification and password to access the platform homepage.
2. The proposal must be submitted by the Principal Investigator from the State of São Paulo. On the homepage, select from the menu options “Acesso rápido – Atividades do Pesquisador”, the link “Nova Proposta Inicial”.
3. In the Current Calls section, select and click on the link for this Call for Proposals.
4. The system will display the menu "Incluir proposta" on the following page to confirm the selected Call.
5. Click the “Incluir” button to start preparing your proposal.
6. Include the requested data in all tabs, including the list of documents to be attached.
7. Attention to the obligation to fill all items marked with “*”. You must submit the proposal at the end of the form. A saved proposal does not mean a submitted proposal.
8. Proposals will not be received without the acceptance of the Principal Investigator from The University of Birmingham in the SAGe platform. After being registered, the Principal Investigator must access in the menu: “Processos” → “Propostas em que participo”, select the proposal, and then confirm his/her participation at “Confirmar participação”.
9. If you have any doubts, you can use the Manuals link on the SAGe homepage: “Manuais de Apoio aos Pesquisadores”.
10. IMPORTANT: It is strongly recommended to periodically check the pending proposals using the “Validar” option. This can be repeatedly as the proposal is built, allowing the necessary arrangements for submission to be made in time. When selecting the option “Validar”, the SAGe platform will present the pending impediments to submit the proposal considering the items that were already attached. In case of doubts about the use of the SAGe platform, in addition to the Manuals, FAPESP also provides assistance at the Information Sector (+55113838-4000).