Calls for Proposals
Call for proposals of UNESCO-TWAS/FAPESP Postdoctoral Fellowships for Least Developed Countries (LDC) Versão em português
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Type of FAPESP Support: |
Postdoctoral Fellowship (PD) |
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Deadline for submission: |
May 30, 2024 |
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Fellowship Duration: |
From 12 to 24 months |
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Contact: |
chamada-twas@fapesp.br (for FAPESP) |
1. Objective
Considering the need to promote scientific and technological cooperation between developing countries, the São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) - through its programme unit, The World Academy of Sciences (TWAS) - agree to implement scientific cooperation by funding research projects and grants.
For this opportunity, UNESCO-TWAS and FAPESP will offer up to a maximum of 20 postdoctoral fellowships to be awarded to researchers from Least Developed Countries (LDC), in all areas of natural, applied and social sciences.
Supervision of fellowships must be carried out by Responsible Investigators (Pesquisadores Responsáveis - PR) or Principal Investigators (Pesquisadores Principais - PP) of current projects of FAPESP, in accordance with the eligibility requirements detailed in section 2 – “Eligibility”.
The fellowships will be developed in host institutions in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, lasting from twelve (12) to twenty-four (24) months. At the end of the chosen period, the fellowship awardee must return to the country of origin.
All FAPESP requirements for the award of these Postdoctoral Fellowships that are available at https://fapesp.br/bolsas/pd (for English see on the right of the web page or https://fapesp.br/en/postdoc) must be considered, unless otherwise defined in this Call for Proposals.
For the purpose of this Call, countries identified by the United Nations as least developed will be considered. The list of the 46 Least Developed Countries (LDC) is available at http://twas.org/least-developed-countries-ldcs.
2. Eligibility
2.1. Eligibility of supervisors
Invited to participate in this Call as postdoctoral fellowship supervisors are:
a) Principal Investigators (Pesquisadores Responsáveis - PR) for current research projects at FAPESP in the following modalities: Regular (except mobility projects), Thematic Project, Young Investigator, Research, Innovation and Diffusion Centers (CEPID), Engineering Research Centers/Applied Research Centers (CPEs/CPAs), Science for Development (CCD), Public Education Programme and Public Policy Research Programme.
b) Co-Principal Investigators (Pesquisadores Principais – PP) of Thematic Projects, CEPIDs, CPEs and CPAs are also eligible to submit proposals.
c) The ongoing Research Grant from FAPESP must be indicated at the time of the submission of the expression of interest (item 4.1) as a 'linked process' and must be valid until at least September 30, 2024.
The supervisor candidates must also meet the requirements for 'Supervisors’ stipulated in the Postdoctoral Fellowship modality, as described in section 6.2 at www.fapesp.br/bolsas/pd
A submission of more than one proposal in this Call by the same supervisor is prohibited.
2.2 Eligibility of postdoctoral candidates
Candidates for this postdoctoral fellowship must meet FAPESP requirements (www.fapesp.br/en/postdoc) and meet the following eligibility criteria:
a) Be a permanent resident and native of a Least Developed Country (LDC), listed at http://twas.org/least-developed-countries-ldcs
b) Do not have a temporary or permanent residence visa in Brazil or any developed country;
c) Candidates already in Brazil are not eligible to apply;
d) Hold a doctorate or equivalent degree in an area of natural, applied or social sciences;
e) Apply for the fellowship within seven (07) years from obtaining the doctorate degree;
f) Have official acceptance by a supervisor of a host institution in the State of São Paulo, Brazil;
g) To have oral and written proficiency in the English language, to a level sufficient for the execution of activities outlined in the research project, proven by a formal statement from the Scholarship supervisor.
3. Financial Support
3.1 UNESCO-TWAS will be responsible for the following expenses:
a) Visa: UNESCO-TWAS will also cover visa-related expenses. In all cases, the above will occur in accordance with UNESCO regulations and based on budgetary availability.
It is the responsibility of the scholarship recipient and the supervisor to verify with the competent consulate the need for obtaining the specific visa, as well as to obtain it.
3.2 FAPESP will be responsible for the following expenses:
a) Monthly fees: in the amount defined in the Value Table of FAPESP Fellowships, available at www.fapesp.br/3162 (Value Table of Fellowships in Brazil);
b) Overhead for the fellowship: Information available at www.fapesp.br/rt;
c) Moving Cost Allowance: The Moving Cost Allowance is granted according to the rules available at www.fapesp.br/7771. Exceptionally, for this Call, the additional monthly amount granted as Moving Cost Allowance will be provided in the initial proposal, if approved. It will be authorized for the deposit to be made into the supervisor's current account for the transfer of the amount to the fellowship holder upon their arrival in São Paulo. The release of the installation aid allowance must be requested by the supervisor via the email address chamada-twas@fapesp.br, upon presenting a copy of the boarding pass for the fellow's arrival in the state of São Paulo to start the scholarship. Subsequently, the receipt of the Moving Cost Allowance transfer, signed by the fellow, in a format to be provided by FAPESP, must be submitted in SAGe (FAPESP's online system).
Reimbursement of the fellow’s and their dependents' tickets may be requested.
d) Maternity/Paternity Leave: period of leave without interruption of payment in the event of children’s birth (complete regulations available at www.fapesp.br/8484). FAPESP CANNOT pay additional round trips to return to country of origin in this case. Any change in the duration related to Maternity/Paternity Leave must comply with the duration of the FAPESP ongoing process.
Notes:
Exceptionally for this Call, the Research Internship Abroad Grant (Bolsa Estágio de Pesquisa no Exterior - BEPE) will not be a budget item. Therefore, the FAPESP-UNESCO-TWAS Postdoctoral Fellowship cannot be interrupted for the fellowship awardee to participate in research internships abroad.
FAPESP will not be responsible for paying fees and other costs for study or research that may be waived or covered by the host institution, according to its policy. Public institutions in Brazil do not cover fees.
Receiving funding from FAPESP requires compliance with the conditions and obligations required under the modality of FAPESP Postdoctoral Fellowships and is subject to signing of the grant agreement to be issued by FAPESP, in compliance with its usual administrative procedures.
4. Submission
4.1 Expression of Interest Form (available at: https://fapesp.br/16504).
Candidates for Post-Doctoral Scholarship supervisors should fill out this form to express their interest in hosting the foreign scholarship recipient at their institution.
In this form, it will be necessary to provide the following information:
a) Researcher's name;
b) Ongoing FAPESP Grant number;
c) Grant duration;
d) English abstract of the research project to be developed by the scholarship recipient, specifying their contribution to the ongoing Research Grant from FAPESP
It is not necessary to submit the candidate’s name or any budget in the express of interest.
Supervisor candidates deemed eligible to host the scholarship recipients will be listed, providing their contact information along with the summary submitted in the Expression of Interest form.
This list will be available at the end of this page and will also be disseminated by UNESCO to Research and Higher Education Institutions in developing countries. This is to enable potential Post-Doctoral Scholarship candidates to find and contact them.
The final deadline for submitting expressions of interest is March 29, 2024.
The definitive list with the names and information of potential supervisors will be available from April 12, 2024.
4.2 Submission of proposal
After alignment between the supervisor and the scholarship recipient, a proposal under the 'Bolsa no País – Pós-Doutorado' modality should be submitted to FAPESP by the scholarship supervisor, following this specific path in SAGe: Nova Proposta Inicial > + Outras Linhas de Fomento > + Acordos de Cooperação > + UNESCO/TWAS – The World Academy of Science > Bolsas > No País > Pós-Doutorado > + Chamada de Propostas (2023).
The name of the scholarship recipient should be indicated in the 'Beneficiary' field. For this, the scholarship recipient must have previously registered in SAGe - either through their ORCID number or by completing the full registration in 'Not registered?'. All fields marked with (*) must be filled in for the registration to be considered valid.
The following documents are mandatory at this stage:
a. Summary of the Linked Research Grant Project (in English);
b. The Research Project. The research project to be developed by the fellowship candidate must be closely linked to research project of the Grant financed by FAPESP, to which the proposal of this Call will be linked, and must be presented in maximum 4 pages (in English);
c. Summary of CV of supervisor (in English);
d. Complete PhD academic record, issued as an official document (with stamp and signature or authenticity code). The transcripts must contain: the names of the disciplines in full; possible failures or cancellations of the candidate's registration; the approval criteria (minimum grade) or, alternatively, a statement from the University informing what the criteria are (in English);
e. If the supervisor is not the PI of the linked ongoing Grant, a statement signed by the researcher responsible for the Grant must be presented, agreeing to linking the two proposals (in Portuguese);
f. Statement by the Director of the Host Institution’s Headquarters, according to the model available for download in SAGe (in Portuguese);
g. Information approved by the Host Institution about the institutional infrastructure, according to the model in Annex II available for download in SAGe (in Portuguese);
h. Document describing the Data Management Plan, in maximum 2 pages, prepared according to the guidelines available at www.fapesp.br/gestaodedados (in English);
i. Statement of proficiency in a foreign language. Formal declaration from the responsible person attesting to the beneficiary's proficiency in the required foreign language for the overseas internship (in English).
The following are mandatory documents for contracting (only for approved proposals):
a) Certificate of completion of the beneficiary's Ph.D. degree;
b) Proof of leave or resignation for candidates with employment contracts during their stay in São Paulo (in English);
b.1. At FAPESP's discretion, situations may be considered in which the candidate has an employment contract and a leave of absence from the institution of origin - with or without pay – and which allows exclusive dedication to the research project, as specified in item 6.1 in https://fapesp.br/bolsas/pd;
b.2. In cases where the candidate does not have any employment relationship, a signed statement containing this information must be submitted.
c) Development plan of the Postdoctoral programme, according to the model available for download in SAGe (in English).
5. Timeline
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Call Opening Date |
30 November 2023 |
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Deadline for submission of preliminary proposals |
29 March 2024 |
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12 April 2024 |
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Deadline for submission of full proposals |
30 May 2024 |
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Publication of proposals selected by FAPESP and approved by UNESCO-TWAS |
August 2024 |
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Start of approved projects |
From 1st September 2024 |
6. Evaluation
FAPESP will be responsible for selecting the proposals.
The proposals will be initially screened based on the requirements of this Call and, subsequently, analyzed through a competitive process that will validate the merit and relevance of the proposal, taking into consideration the research project, the candidate, the supervisor and the relationship with the current project supported by FAPESP.
The list of candidates selected by FAPESP will be submitted for review by UNESCO-TWAS. The final decision will be taken jointly by FAPESP and UNESCO-TWAS, in accordance with the procedure established by the Joint Steering Committee of the two parties.
Gender is a UNESCO Global Priority. Therefore, the Joint Steering Committee will consider gender balance in the final decision on awards.
Taking into account the expected timeline of this Call, there will be no possibility of reconsidering the final results.
7. Scientific Report
The Scientific Reports of the Fellowship must be submitted on the dates specified in the fellowship Grant Contract.
Partial and final Scientific Reports of the Fellowship should be prepared following the sample available at www.fapesp.br/14453
a) Every Scientific Report must have a section indicating how the Data Management Plan is being followed and if there are any modifications to it. When submitting the Final Scientific Report, the fellowship awardee must provide a link to a web page that describes how to access the data made available by the project, as described in the Data Management Plan. Such information may be provided even in the first Scientific Report, but it is mandatory when sending the Final Scientific Report.
b) Any publication emanating from the results of the research carried out must be done in accordance with the open access policy of UNESCO and FAPESP (www.fapesp.br/openscience/en).
The reports presented by the fellowship awardee must be reviewed and commented on by the supervisor, by sending the Submission Form of the Scientific Report. The form must be submitted in the system, when sending the Scientific Report to SAGe, duly completed and signed (mandatory for Partial, Final and Reformulated Reports).
A report on the completed stages of the postdoctoral programme’s development plan must also be presented, according to the plan attached to the application upon acceptance of the Fellowship award.
If a report is not submitted within the stipulated deadline or the report is not approved, the Fellowship will be suspended until its presentation or satisfactory reformulation, at the discretion of FAPESP Management. This situation implies the impossibility of providing new Grants and Fellowships, as well as the blocking of balances that may exist in other lines of funding.
If this default persists and three months have elapsed from the date set for this submission or reformulation, the Fellowship will be cancelled retroactively, from the date of its suspension.
8. Financial Report
Guidelines for submitting the grant’s accounting are available at www.fapesp.br/normaspc and www.fapesp.br/prestacaodecontas.
9. Contact
Questions about this Call’s document should be directed to chamada-twas@fapesp.br with cc copy to fellowships@twas.org.