Agreements
Agreement between FAPESP and Research Foundation - Flanders Versão em português
RESEARCH COLLABORATION AGREEMENT BETWEEN SÃO PAULO RESEARCH FOUNDATION AND RESEARCH FOUNDATION - FLANDERS
The SÃO PAULO RESEARCH FOUNDATION, established by Law nº 5.918, of October 18th, 1960, with headquarters at Rua Pio XI, 1500, Alto da Lapa, São Paulo, SP, enrolled in CNPJ/MF under nº 43.828.151/0001-45, herein represented according to article 11, “a” of Law nº 5.918, combined with its General Rule approved by Decree nº 40.132, of May 23rd, 1962, represented by its President, Prof. Dr. JOSE GOLDEMBERG, in the exercise of the powers delegated by Act of the Governor of the State of São Paulo, published in the Official Gazette of the State, of August 22st, 2015, hereinafter referred to as FAPESP, and the RESEARCH FOUNDATION - FLANDERS, Public Utility Foundation which was granted legal personality by the Royal Decree of 20 January 2006 and recognized as an External Independent Agency operating under private law by the Decree of 30 April 2009 on the organization and financing of the scientific and innovation policy (BOG (Belgian Official Gazette) 6/7/2009), represented by its President, Prof. WILLY VERSTRAETE and its Secretary General, Dr. HANS WILLEMS, hereinafter referred to as FWO and both to as “Parties”:
CONSIDERING the importance of promoting cooperation in basic scientific research between Flanders, Belgium and the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil, wishing to strengthen this cooperation on the basis of equality and mutual benefit;
CONSIDERING the need to strengthen the links between the scientific communities of both regions and also to encourage new forms of collaboration between the research centers of both regions;
WISHING to promote initiatives for collaboration in basic scientific research in all scientific areas, fostering bilateral cooperation;
Agree as follow:
1. Purpose
Through this Research Collaboration Agreement, the Parties will implement scientific cooperation between researchers from Flanders, Belgium and from the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil, through the funding of joint research projects.
2. Methods of Collaboration
The Parties will promote such collaboration observing their international obligations and domestic laws and other existing regulations through mechanisms such as implementation of joint research projects on issues of common concern, including exchanging knowledge and results.
3. Areas
The call for joint research projects is open for research projects in any scientific domain, as long as it covers basic scientific research.
4. Implementation
a) In establishing methods of collaboration pursuant to Section 2 above, the Parties will do so in accordance with the scientific relevance and the national legislation in Brazil and Belgium, respectively, and each Party’s budget availability.
b) The Parties will each appoint one representative to serve on a Joint Steering Committee responsible for the continuation of this Agreement and for drafting the call for joint proposals (“Call for Proposals”). A new “Call for Proposals” will be drafted for each call and will include all necessary details i.e.; eligibility conditions, submission of proposals, evaluation process and criteria, financial aspects, intellectual property and timing.
c) The Parties may agree to host evaluation meetings, workshops, correspondence and other procedures, as applicable.
d) Each Party will receive the joint proposals according to its own criteria and rules.
e) Each Party will conduct an eligibility check of the received proposals, respecting the eligibility rules laid out in the “Call for Proposals”. The results of the eligibility check are communicated between the Parties, resulting in a final list of eligible files.
f) The evaluation of the eligible proposals will comprise two steps:
1. Independent peer review performed separately by both Parties. The peer review reports should be drafted in English.
2. Joint Evaluation Panel meeting composed of half Belgian and half Brazilian experts who will review and rank the eligible proposals taking into account the independent peer review reports of the first evaluation step. Scientific excellence is the main criteria for this evaluation.
g) After the revision of the joint proposals, the Parties, through a Joint Steering Committee meeting, will recommend which proposals will be supported. The ranking established by the Joint Evaluation Panel and recommended by the Joint Steering Committee will be ratified by the Boards of both Parties.
h) The Parties are committed to follow up, support, and evaluate the approved projects on a regular basis.
5. Funding
a) For each of the joint research projects that are approved, the FWO will finance the funding of research teams from Flanders, Belgium and FAPESP of the research teams from the State of Sao Paulo, Brazil, in all cases according to their national rules and regulations and budget availability.
b) The amount of funding necessary to support joint research projects will be defined for each new call by the Joint Steering Committee and will be laid down in the common document “Call for Proposals”.
c) Each Party covers its own administration costs regarding its contribution to the Call for Proposals, unless otherwise jointly decided.
d) This Agreement is subject to the availability of funds in the budget of the Parties and the applicable laws and regulations of their respective countries.
6. Intellectual Property
a) The Parties agree that when the actions taken by virtue of this Agreement result in products of commercial value and intellectual property rights, they will be regulated by national legislation and international conventions in force. Participants should also observe the Intellectual Property Policy of the Party responsible for the funding of their team.
b) In the case of joint ownership of Intellectual Property, the relevant parties will in good faith endeavor to establish a joint ownership agreement regarding the allocation and terms of exercising that joint ownership, taking into account the relevant contributions of the parties.
7. Ethics
a) The Parties shall maintain the highest ethical and legal standards in funding research under this Agreement.
b) Scientific experiments involving humans, human material, animals and often also scientific research having a broader impact on people and their environment are governed by legislation at national and European level and must have an ethical clearance by the relevant committees of each country where this concerned research is performed.
8. Validity and liability
a) This Agreement shall be valid for a period of 5 (five) years from the date of its signing and may be extended by mutual agreement between the Parties in a written amendment to this Agreement.
b) Either Party may terminate this Agreement by a six months’ advance written notice.
c) The termination of this Agreement shall not bring harm to the implementation of projects and programs already approved or which had already started, in which case the Parties should keep their budget for the projects and programs during the entire term of the approved project.
d) This Agreement may be amended by mutual consent of the Parties and made official by Addenda.
e) The Parties agree that this Agreement is produced in good faith, so that any dispute and / or interpretation arising therefrom in relation to its implementation, execution and compliance will be resolved jointly by them and shall be in writing. If no agreement is reached between the Parties, this document will be terminated without liability to the Parties that should agree how to conclude the actions in progress to date of notification of termination by either party. Neither Party may use any identifying marks such as logos of the other without the explicit written permission of the other party.
9. Communications
Any notice to be served on either of the Parties by the other shall be made in writing and shall be sent to the following addresses:
(a) FAPESP:
Rua Pio XI, 1500 – Alto da Lapa
CEP 05468-901 – São Paulo / SP – Brasil
e-mail: dc@fapesp.br
Att.: Scientific Director
(b) FWO:
Egmontstraat 5
1000 Brussel
Belgium
e-mail: interprog@fwo.be
Signed in Sao Paulo, Brazil on ___/__/____, in two original copies in English and Portuguese, both texts being equally authentic.
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