Agreements

Guidelines for submission of the coordinated Brazilian proposals - Joint FAPESP-BBSRC Call for Proposals in Integrated Biorefinery

Reunião para tirar dúvidas

A Diretoria Científica da FAPESP convida os pesquisadores interessados na Chamada FAPESP-BBSRC Advanced Biofuels para uma sessão de esclarecimento de dúvidas.

A reunião de atendimento ocorrerá no dia 5 de outubro de 2015, das 10h30 às 12h00, na sede da FAPESP.  

Os interessados em participar deverão enviar e-mail ao endereço da chamada (Chamada_biofuels_bbsrc@fapesp.br) confirmando presença até o dia 1º de outubro de 2015 (quinta-feira). 

 

Joint FAPESP-BBSRC Call for Collaborative Proposals in Integrated Biorefinery Approaches for the Manufacture of Advanced Biofuels

Detailed of the call can be found at: www.fapesp.br/9759

Guidelines for submission of the coordinated Brazilian proposals

1. Eligibility

1.1 Each collaborative research proposal must involve eligible applicants based in the State of São Paulo, Brazil and the UK, with a minimum of one applicant per country. The Principal Investigator (PI) from Brazil and the PI from the UK will act as the project coordinator for their country and the liaison point with FAPESP and BBSRC respectively. It is the responsibility of the project coordinators from each country to ensure that all named co-Investigators are eligible. Applications involving ineligible applicants, from either Brazil or the UK, will result in the whole application being withdrawn.

1.2 Proposals will be processed by FAPESP as Thematic Project Research Grants, São Paulo Excellence Chair (SPEC) Awards, or Young Investigator Awards. Applicants in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, must note that the requirements for eligibility are those applied to each Program above described:

1.2.1 FAPESP Thematic Grants www.fapesp.br/176 , as transcript below:

Have a Ph.D. or equivalent qualification;

Have a formal contract with a Research Institution in the State of Sao Paulo;

Have significant scientific or technological production;

Have proven experience and expertise in the area of the project, demonstrated by:

i. Quality, regularity and impact of scientific and technological production.

ii. Supervision of researchers at the postgraduate level; this is defined as supervision of at least 2 PhD students and 2 Post-Doctoral researchers.

iii. Experience in scientific exchange and execution of research projects in collaboration with researchers from institutions in Brazil and other countries; this is defined as having joint publications with international colleagues.

iv. Demonstrated ability to form research groups with known results in the area; this is defined as proven leadership of a research team in the project area.

v. FAPESP’s norms do not allow a researcher to be a PI in more than one Thematic Grant simultaneously, except for brief periods as one grant is being finished.

1.2.2 São Paulo Excellence Chair (SPEC) Awards : The São Paulo Excellence Chairs (SPEC) have the objective of fostering the association of top level foreign researchers to qualified higher education and research institutions in the State of São Paulo, Brazil. Proposals for this program will be led by the foreign researcher who must be associated to a higher education or research institution in the State of São Paulo, Brazil, with a commitment to spend at least 12 weeks per year for at least 3 years at the host institution (the 12 weeks do not need to be consecutive). Eligible items for funding are: fellowships for students in the modalities Scientific Initiation (for undergraduate students working in a research project) and Fast Track Doctoral (graduate students going directly from graduation to a doctorate work, without before getting a MSc), scholarships for Post-doctoral fellows, research equipment, consumables, field trips, travel to and from the host institution for each period of stay (see below), and other items (details are equivalent to: www.fapesp.br/176).

1.2.3 FAPESP Young Investigator Award program, described at www.fapesp.br/en/6251, item 3.3.

1.3 Researchers from the State São Paulo must consult FAPESP (chamada_bbsrc-nitrogen@fapesp.br) regarding their eligibility before initiating the preparation of a joint proposal. Failure to observe this procedure will result in the rejection of the proposal, without review. Consultations will be accepted up to October, 26.

1.3.1 After FAPESP analysis, researcher will receive a Letter of Eligibility that must be added to the final submission. Please, note that proposals lacking this document will not be considered for review.

1.3.2 The Letter of Eligibility aims only to certify the eligibility of the PI (minimum qualification and time devoted to the project). It does not ensure the eligibility of the full proposal. Before merit review of the proposal, there is a step for assessing the adherence of the proposal to the terms of the call.

1.3.3 The following documents are required for the previous consultation by email:

a) Summaries CV of the Principal Investigator (according to https://fapesp.br/5266);

b) Project Summary (maximum 4.000 characters) containing the name and institution of the UK PI, including FAPESP scheme chosen (see item 1.2) and its duration;

c) An estimative of dedication hours/week;

1.4 All the PIs requesting support from FAPESP involved in the Joint Case for Support must consult eligibility. (See below item 2).

2. Case for Support

2.1 Case for Support may include, in the São Paulo side, one or more of the FAPESP schemes offered in section 1.2, each one led by a different PI. Please, note that although one researcher is the lead investigator of the Joint Case for Support, it must be mentioned who are the other PIs for each scheme (grant modality) at FAPESP.

2.2 Applicants should carefully demonstrate within the Case for Support that their projects:

i Represent true collaborative partnerships between transnational research teams; the added value of such collaborations should be clearly highlighted within the proposals.

ii Contain an integrated workplan and an equal commitment to the project (in terms of hours dedicated to the project rather than project costs). Projects that appear to be working in parallel with little interaction between the countries will not be supported.

2.3 The Case for Support form

www.fapesp.br/chamadas/2015/bbsrc/fapesp_bbsrc_biofuels_cfs.docx .

The Case for Support template comprises the sections below. Each section has specific character or page limits detailed on the template. These limits must be adhered to:

a) General Information;

b) Description of the Proposed Project;

c) Additional Project Information.

3. Proposal Structure and Composition

3.1 The Case for Support described in the previous section, 2.3.

3.2 FAPESP Letter of Eligibility, confirming the previous consultation and approval by FAPESP (sent by email after consultation, item 1.3).

3.3 The specific Submission Form to register into the scheme lead by each PI (see item 2.1). The Submission Form contains the complete list of documents (checklist) to be sent to FAPESP, considering the requirements of respective scheme.

3.3.1 The Research Project listed in the checklist mentioned above must be written jointly in English by the Principal Investigator to FAPESP and his/her colleague, the British Principal Investigator.

3.4 The Summarized Budget Worksheet (FAPESP-RCUK Funding Summary).

3.5 In case of approval, a Letter of Agreement between the Partner Host Institution and the Host Institution to which the PI from São Paulo is affiliated, establishing how Intellectual Property rights, confidentiality, and publications will be treated jointly, in observance of the policies of each funding Party. The Letter of Agreement is not mandatory for the submission of proposals, but no approved project will be contracted before the presentation of a copy of the signed Agreement.

(i) Ownership of IP generated during the project and rights to exploitation, as well as any costs regarding management of IP, are expected to be agreed between the collaborating research organizations before the research begins. The presentation of this agreement is mandatory before the signature of the grant award in case of FAPESP funding.

4. Submission of proposals

4.1 Each scheme must be submitted separately to FAPESP by the PI in the State of Sao Paulo, on behalf of the established consortia, until the deadline of the CFP (section 6).

4.3 Submission to FAPESP can only be accepted in paper, via mail, with a CD containing all documents in a single PDF file. The envelope should be addressed to: Rua Pio XI, 1500, Alto da Lapa, CEP 05468-901 – São Paulo/SP, with “FAPESP-BBSRC Advanced Biofuels” written on the envelope. Will be considered the date of the postal postmark stamped on the envelope.

4.4 Proposals submitted by any other means will not be accepted.

4.5 No proposal will be accepted after the closing date for submission, nor will any addendum or explanation be accepted.

5. Funding principles

5.1 To support the areas of this Call for Proposals the UK side will offer up to £5 million and the Brazilian partner organizations will match this with equivalent research effort.

5.2 In the UK research costs are estimated as Full Economic Costs (FEC), as defined below by RCUK:

FEC is “a cost which, if recovered across an organisation’s full programme, would recover the total cost (direct, indirect and total overhead) including an adequate recurring investment in the organisation’s infrastructure.” Proposers must demonstrate the full economic costs of the project regardless of which funder is covering them. Costs can include institution facilities, estates, direct and indirect costs. FEC costs must also include values of salary expenses of the research team, including faculty and staff, proportional to the weekly hours dedicated to the proposed project. The individual funder’s financial forms will provide more information on this. In accordance with RCUK policy, the UK funders will contribute up to 80 per cent FEC .

5.3 Applicants do not need to request equal amounts from both sides. The difference in values should reflect the difference in costs covered and local prices. It is envisaged that applications will be for a balanced partnership, not specifically in monetary terms but with equivalent research commitment and efforts from both partners.

5.4 Considering item 5.2 it is necessary that costs in Sao Paulo be demonstrated in the Summarized Budget Worksheet (item 3.4) also as FEC.

5.5 Please, note that collaborating partners from industry and / or partners from other countries are strongly encouraged where relevant to the research; however, neither BBSRC nor FAPESP will provide funding for such collaborators. Please see that Letters of Support must be presented in case of complementary supporters/collaborators of the project.

5.6 The types of costs allowed are described in the rules of each scheme (item 1.2).

5.6.1 In all cases, in the budget request to FAPESP, applicants must include the values for the applicable FAPESP Overheads (“Reserva Técnica”), as presented at www.fapesp.br/rt.

6. Timeline

Eligibility consultation to Fapesp and Intention to Submit to BBSRC (item 1.3 above)

Up to October 26th, 2015

Deadline for Submission of Proposals

November 19, 2015

Panel Review

March, 2016

Communication of Decisions for Funding

April, 2016

Commence of awarded grants

May, 2016

7. Analysis and selection

7.1 Eligible proposals will be subject to full peer review and will be assessed and ranked for funding by an International Assessment Panel.

7.2. A joint external peer review process will be undertaken, led by FAPESP, with BBSRC nominating an equal number of reviewers and panel members. Reviewers from Brazil, the UK, and other countries will be used as appropriate. Applications will be assessed by an international peer review panel comprising experts from Brazil, the UK, and other countries. In addition to all relevant application documents, the panel will also have access to reviewers’ comments. The following criteria will be taken into consideration:

a) Design and feasibility of the proposal;

b) Previous experience of research teams;

c) Scientific rationale: novelty, importance and timeliness of the joint research proposal;

d) Research partnership development: including strength and clarity of collaborations and opportunities provided;

e) Quality of the project structure proposed (including governance, arrangements for data management and sharing and management of intellectual property);

f) Added value of the joint research partnership;

g) Quality and suitability of the research environment and of the facilities;

h) Significance and impact of the research partnership;

i) Capacity building potential;

8. Results of the selection

The results will be announced by FAPESP at www.fapesp.br and BBSRC at www.bbsrc.ac.uk/funding/opportunities/2015/joint-fapesp-advanced-biofuels.

9. Contact

At FAPESP: Bruna Musa

Queries: chamada_biofuels_bbsrc@fapesp.br