Find below details on the call’s implementation:

Timeline

The timeline of the JTC 2016 “External Insults to the Nervous System” is shown below:

WhenWhat
11 January 2016Launch of the call
14 March 2016 Deadline for pre-proposal submission
10 May 2016 Selection of a short list of 36 projects
30 June 2016Deadline for full proposal submission
14 September 2016Peer review panel meeting, ranking list
October 2016Funding decision
First half 2017 Start of projects

Proposal submission, peer review process, funding decision

Proposal submission

Research consortia had to consist of 3 - 5 research groups from at least three NEURON partner countries participating in this call. Consortia including partners from countries that are to date underrepresented in this funding scheme (Latvia, Romania, Slovakia, and Turkey) could increase the total number of partners to six. The two-step process required at first the submission of short pre-proposals describing the research idea. From these a short list was selected and the respective consortia were invited to submit full proposals (see also below).

Both pre- and full proposals had to be submitted electronically by the coordinator of the consortium. Proposal templates and guidelines were provided by the Joint Call Secretariat in order to support the applicants in terms of the proposal format. The Joint Call Secretariat is hosted by the DLR Project Management Agency (DLR-PT), Germany.

Peer Review

In order to properly cover all aspects of the broad topic, 39 experts were recruited from NEURON partner countries and beyond. Each pre-proposal was assessed in writing by at least two, most of them by three evaluators. The assessments were based on the criteria listed in the call text and consisted of a global score and additional comments. The projects were ranked according to the reviewer’s scores. Based on this ranking list, the funding organisations selected 43 projects whose coordinators were invited by the Joint Call Secretariat to submit full proposals. Seventeen experts on the Peer Review Panel (PRP) discussed these full proposals thoroughly in a face-to-face meeting and eventually provided a funding recommendation for each proposal and a ranking list.

Funding decision and granting process

The funding decision was taken by the funding organisations participating in the joint call for proposals. Starting with the best proposal and following the ranking list, as many proposals were selected for funding in compliance with EU Cofund regulations, taking into account the national budgets available.

As a result of this step, the top 19 projects could be funded. The projects comprise 92 research groups (Principal Investigators) from 16 countries. The total funding volume amounts to about 17.9 m€ for three years.

In a last step, the Principal Investigators had to fulfil legal and administrative requirements of their national / regional funding agencies, in order to receive the grant.

The most projects started during the first half of 2017.

Funding organisations supporting this call

22 funding organisations from 18 countries participated in the JTC 2016 “External Insults to the Nervous System”.

CountryFunding Organisation
AustriaAustrian Science Fund (FWF)
Belgium (Wallonia)Fonds de la Recherche Scientifique  (FNRS)
Belgium (Flanders)Research Foundation Flanders (FWO)
CanadaCanadian Institutes of Health Research
Canada (Ontario) Ontario Neurotrauma Foundation
Canada (Québec)Fonds de recherche du Québec-Santé (FRQS)
FranceFrench National Research Agency (ANR)
Germany Project Management Agency (DLR-PT) – Health Research, on behalf of the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF)
IsraelChief Scientist Office - Ministry of Health (CSO-MOH)
IsraelThe Israel-Europe R&D Directorate (ISERD) on behalf of The National Technological Innovation Authority (NTIA)
ItalyMinistero della Salute
LatviaState Education Development Agency
NetherlandsNetherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO)
NorwayThe Research Council of Norway (RCN)
Poland National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR)Section for Research Projects BIOMED
PortugalFoundation for Science and Technology (FCT)
RomaniaExecutive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding (UEFISCDI)
Slovakia Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAS)
Department for International Cooperation
SpainNational Institute of Health Carlos III (ISCIII)
SpainMinistry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO)
Switzerland Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF)Division Biology and Medicine
TurkeyThe Scientific and Technological Research Council of Turkey (TÜBİTAK)
United KingdomMedical Research Council