The research funding organisations of France (ANR)[1], Germany (DFG), The Netherlands (NWO) and the United Kingdom (ESRC) are delighted to launch a new multi-lateral collaboration with the National Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC) consisting of a joint research programme on two basic societal challenges:
Green Economy
- the “greenness and dynamics of economies”
- institutions, policies and planning for a green economy
- the green economy in cities and metropolitan areas
- consumer behaviour and lifestyles in a green economy
Understanding Population Change
- changing life course
- urbanisation & migration
- labour markets and social security dynamics
- methodology, modelling & forecasting
- care provision
- comparative policy learning
Applications received in response to this call should address one or more of the priority areas under either “The Green Economy” or “Understanding Population Change” in a coherent programme of innovative research.
Proposals should include leading European researchers wishing to develop contacts with leading researchers from universities or institutions in China. Proposals should involve participation from at least two different participating European countries and at least two universities or institutions from China which are eligible to apply at NSFC.
Proposals are invited for research projects within these priority themes that are particularly promising if undertaken by multinational teams with participation from China and Europe. Research conducted within this joint programme should be of great value, going beyond current research within Europe and China. Research proposals should consider development of conceptual and theoretical work, as the same concept often has different meanings across disciplines, practical contexts and different regions. Proposals should show a true joint partnership between European and Chinese researchers. The added benefit of the collaboration to each party should be clearly demonstrated in the proposal.
Applications are welcomed that not only facilitate international collaboration between researchers, but also for research which is multidisciplinary, and involves participation of end-users where appropriate. Researchers may have different disciplinary background within the social sciences and beyond, however, proposals that are not significantly driven by a social science question will not be accepted for the review. The current list of eligible lead disciplines are: area and development studies, demography, economic and social history, economics, education, environmental planning, human geography, linguistics, management and business studies, political science and international studies, psychology, science and technology studies, social anthropology, social policy, socio-legal studies, sociology, statistics-methods and computing.
Applications should
- address a coherent programme of innovative research,
- be a joint activity involving research groups from both the Europe and China,
- involve participation from at least two different participating European countries AND at least two eligible institutions from China,
- demonstrate the added value of collaboration,
- demonstrate the adventure and novelty of the research and its relevance to the broader relevant societal challenge agenda,
- also outline the applicants’ longer-term plans for working together with overseas partners and demonstrate how the outputs of the project will be communicated to stakeholders in academia, industry and government, in both Europe and China. It is important to note that a key goal for this funding opportunity is that transfer of knowledge between partners occurs both ways and continues throughout the project.
The call, its decision procedure and funding mechanisms will be based on the Open Research Area for Social Sciences (ORA), a process established on international standards. Funding will be distributed among the partners according to the place of work of the researchers, and according to the funding rules of each individual agency.[2]
Proposals should be up to three years in duration and must start on 1 July 2014. Proposals will be assessed through a panel meeting which will take place in May 2014.
Resources requested can include travel and subsistence expenses of the investigators, as well as normally permitted costs such as investigator and research staff salary costs.
Applicants must meet the specific eligibility criteria set out by their respective national funding agencies. Co-investigators from other countries may be included as long as they bring the relevant funding with them, or are eligible for funding under one of the subscribing agencies’ rules.
The complete call documents including the guidelines for applicants and information about the assessment procedure will be launched in early September. This call will be administered by the ESRC. The closing date of the call will be the 3 December 2013.
Further information
If you have any further questions, please contact:
ANR: Pierre-Olivier Pin, Pierre-Olivier.Pin(at)agencerecherche.fr, phone +33 1 78 09 80 83
DFG: Christiane Joerk, Christiane.Joerk(at)dfg.de, phone +49 228 885-2451
ESRC: Alexa Mills, international(at)esrc.ac.uk, phone +44 1793 413159
NWO: Marcus van Leeuwen, m.vanleeuwen(at)nwo.nl, phone +31 70 344 09 31
[1] The ANR are in the process of making a decision about their involvement. For detailed information please call the ANR office.
[2] For further details of the funding rules of each agency and remit definition information please refer to the organisation’s website or contact the representatives listed.
