David Krása ERC Executive Agency Unit B.3 Scientific Affairs American Geophysical Union

1. ERC – Advanced Grant and Synergy Grant David KrásaERC Executive AgencyUnit B.3 Scientific AffairsAmerican Geophysical Union 3 December 2012

2. ERC Advanced Grant • Encourages and supports innovative research projects by leading researchers at an advanced stage in their career • Complements the Starting Grant and Consolidator Grant schemes by targeting researchers who have already established themselves as independent leaders • attract & reward established top researchers – up to € 3.5 Million for 5 years (€2.5 Million + €1 Million if PI comes from outside EU, or if major equipment/access to facilities is needed)

3. ERC Advanced Grant (AdG) • Researcher's profile • Active researchers (any age, nationality, and current place of work) • Track-record of significant research achievements (last 10 years, extension in case of career breaks possible, up to 14.5 years) • Exceptional leaders in terms of the originality and significance of their research contribution • Freedom to choose team members (national or trans-national character, according to scientific added value)

4. Evaluation Criteria Excellence as sole criterion, to apply to: • Principal Investigator • Intellectual capacity and creativity: Track-record, capacity to go significantly beyond the state of the art. • Commitment: Willing to devote a significant part of PI's working time • Quality of the research project • Ground-breaking nature of the research: Important challenge?Substantially beyond the current state of art? • Potential impact: Possibility of a major break-through? • Methodology: Feasibility, high-gain/high-risk balance

5. ERC Advanced Grant - Proposal structure PART A – online forms A1 Proposal and PI info A2 Host Institution info A3 Budget PART B1 – submitted as .pdf • Extended Synopsis 5 pages • CV (including ‘funding ID’) 2 pages • Track Record 2 pages Annexes – submitted as .pdf • Statement of support of HI • If applicable: explanatory information on ethical issues PART B2 – submitted as .pdf • Scientific Proposal 15 pages

6. Proposal evaluation Individual assessment of full proposals by panel members & remote referees Submission of full proposals Eligibility check 2nd Panel meeting Step 1 (remote) evaluation on the basis of part B, section 1 of proposal* by panel members Proposals selected for funding 1st Panel meeting Proposals passing to step 2

7. ERC Synergy • For small groups of 2 to 4 excellent Principal Investigators (PIs) with complementary skills, knowledge and resources. • Unique configuration of PIs to jointly identify and tackle exciting research problems that will result in breakthrough ideas.

8. ERC Synergy - strong commitment required • PIs must be strongly committed to the project and engage in a genuine collaboration. • PIs may apply from any country, institution worldwide. • But: PIs expected to devote at least 30% of their working time on the project and 50% in an EU Member State or Associated Country. • PIs expected to spend significant periods of ‘core time’ together, but groups not required to be physically located in the same place throughout the project.

9. ERC Synergy - based on core ERC principles • Excellence is the sole criterion of evaluation. • PIs with excellent track records of independent creative thinking, regardless of their career stage. • ‘Bottom-up’ - research priorities and the configuration of the group determined by the individual investigators.  • Projects expected to cover more than one discipline or research field, but not obligatory.

10. ERC Synergy - first call took place in 2012 • Attractive, long-term funding - maximum grant of EUR 15M for a period of up to six years. • A total of over 700 submissions in 2012, with only 10 to 15 Synergy Grants expected - competition is very intense with only exceptional proposals funded. • Total funding of call is €150 Million (approximately 8.5% of the 2013 ERC call budget).

11. ERC Synergy - Evaluation/2 STEP 1 (5 panels) STEP 2 (new panel) Step 2a: Panel members meet and examine retained proposals and their reports Remote evaluation of full proposals by panel members and external referees* Select proposals for interview Step 1 Panel meeting Step 2b: Panel meeting and interviews Proposals retained for Step 2 Select proposals up to available budget *In the event of heavy oversubscription at step 1, panels may identify the less competitive applications by assessing the proposals on the basis of the extended synopsis and the Principal Investigators' track records and CVs.

12. Senior Professor Full Professor Marie Curie Junior Professor/ Junior Researcher Associated Professor Erasmus Post-docs Post Graduates Students Researchers career development and complementary funding schemes ERC Advanced ERC SyG– Synergy ERC StG – Consolidators ERC StG - Starters

13. ERC Grant schemes: StG and AdG Success rates 2007 - 2012

14. Timetable of 2013 ERC calls Single deadlines for all Calls

15. Capacities People (8 %) JRC non- (9 %) nuclear (3 %) Ideas Co-operation (65 %) (15 %) Budget proposal under H2020 (2014-2020) H2020 budget € 88 billion ERC budget € 15 billion FP7 budget € 50.5 billion ERC budget € 7.5 billion

16. Future calls under Horizon 2020 • Expect the first calls under the Horizon 2020 programme early in 2014 • Most likely, those first calls will be the Starting Grant and Consolidator Grant call • Precise planning once the European Parliament/Council adopt the overall Horizon 2020 programme

17. ERC supports independent excellent researchers Making a difference – over 3000 funded to date If you think that you could be a possible candidate – get as much information as you can Calls for 2014 through to 2020 Summary

18. European Research Council Information/Questions: Our website: http://erc.europa.eu E-mail: claudia.jesus-rydin@ec.europa.eu david.krasa@ec.europa.eu

19. Questions?

20. Backup Slides │ 21

21. European Research Council ERC Grant schemes Overall Submissions (2007 – 2011) 9165 4080 2873 2503 2167 2284 2009 1584 Starting grants Advanced grants

22. Submitted proposals from researchers with non-European nationalityERC Starting & Advanced Grant calls 2007-2011 │ 23 │ 23

23. A PI may hold only 1 ERC grant at any one time A PI may only submit 1 proposal per calendar year A PI who holds an ERC grant can only submit a proposal for ERC synergy if their grant expires before November 15th 2013 A PI who was/is a panel member in 2010 or 2012 may not apply in 2012 for the same type of grant A PI who submitted a proposal to a 2011 ERC call can only apply in 2012 for the same type of grant if their proposal was above the quality threshold at the end of step 1. European Research Council Restrictions on Submissions

24. European Research Council ERC Grant schemes: StG and AdG ERC grant distribution to countries AdG2008-10, StG2007-10 │ 25

25. European Research Council ERC Grant schemes 2012: StG and AdG 3 main scientific domains • LS: Life Sciences • PE: Physical Sciences and Engineering • SH: Social Sciences and Humanities • Previously (2007-2011) 4th domain: Funded cross-panel or cross domain proposals.

26. ERC Panel structure Social Sciences and Humanities • SH1 Individuals, institutions & markets • SH2 Institutions, values, beliefs and behaviour • SH3 Environment & society • SH4 The Human Mind and its complexity • SH5 Cultures & cultural production • SH6 The study of the human past Physical Sciences & Engineering • PE1 Mathematical foundations • PE2 Fundamental constituents of matter • PE3 Condensed matter physics • PE4 Physical & Analytical Chemical sciences • PE5 Materials & Synthesis • PE6 Computer science & informatics • PE7 Systems & communication engineering • PE8 Products & process engineering • PE9 Universe sciences • PE10 Earth system science Life Sciences • LS1 Molecular & Structural Biology & Biochemistry • LS2 Genetics, Genomics, Bioinformatics & Systems Biology • LS3 Cellular and Developmental Biology • LS4 Physiology, Pathophysiology & Endocrinology • LS5 Neurosciences & neural disorders • LS6 Immunity & infection • LS7 Diagnostic tools, therapies & public health • LS8 Evolutionary, population & environmental biology • LS9 Applied life sciences & biotechnology │ 27

27. European Research Council Feedback to applicants: new in 2012 • Step 1 A of sufficient quality to pass to step 2 B of high quality but not sufficient to pass to step 2 C is not of sufficient quality to pass to step 2 (resubmission limitations may apply) B and C receive individual reports, panel comments and panel ranking Step 2 A meets excellence criterion, will be funded if sufficient funds available B meets some but not all elements of excellence criterion, will not be funded A and B receive individual reports, panel comments and panel ranking

28. European Research Council ERC Grant agreements • Simple and flexible, no negotiations – take it or leave it • Are portable • Additional funding for StG or AdG for researchers moving to Europe or Associated Countries or for purchase of major equipment • Cover 100% total eligible costs plus 20% indirect costs

29. European Research Council Seventh Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development FP7 (2007-13) Main instrument of the EU for funding research Cooperation – Collaborative Research Ideas – Frontier Research People – Marie Curie Actions Capacities – Research Capacity Total FP7 Budget: € 50.4 billion

30. ERC Structure ERC Scientific Council 22 members ERC President Prof. H. Nowotny ERC Vice President Prof. K. Heldin ERC Vice President Prof. P. Exner ERC Board ERC President,ERC Vice Presidents, SecGen, Director ERCEA • Secretary General • Prof. Dingwel STEERING COMMITTEE 5 members + 1 observer ERC Executive Agency Staff: 389 by 2013 Director ad interim:Pablo Amor European Commission DG Research and Innovation │ 31 │ 31

31. The ERC Scientific Council Members(re-newed 1 February 2011) • Prof. Claudio BORDIGNON (IT – Medicine) • Prof. Nicholas CANNY, (IE – History) • Prof. Sierd A.P.L. CLOETINGH (NL – Earth Sciences) • Prof. Mathias DEWATRIPONT (BE – Economics) • Prof. Tomasz DIETL (PL – Physics) • Prof. Daniel DOLEV (IL – Computer Sciences) • Prof. Carlos M. DUARTE (ES – Biology) • Prof. Daniel ESTEVE (FR – Physics) • Prof. Pavel EXNER (CZ – Applied Mathematics & Mathematical Physics) • Prof. Hans-Joachim FREUND (DE- Physics & Physical Chemistry) • Prof. Carl-Henrik HELDIN (SE – Molecular Cell Biology), ERC Vice President • Prof. Timothy HUNT (UK - Biology) • Prof. Norbert KROO (HU – Physics) • Prof. Maria Teresa LAGO (PT – Astrophysics) • Prof. Henrietta L. MOORE (UK – Social Anthropology) • Prof. Helga NOWOTNY (AT – Social Studies of Science), ERC President • Prof. Christiane NÜSSLEIN-VOLHARD (DE – Genetics) • Prof. Alain PEYRAUBE (FR – Linguistics) • Dr. Jens ROSTRUP-NIELSEN (DK – Chemistry) • Prof. Mart SAARMA (EE – Biology) • Prof. Anna TRAMONTANO (IT- Biochemistry) • Prof. Isabelle VERNOS (ES – Molecular Biology)

32. Bridging the Innovation gap European Research Council ERC Proof of Concept: for ERC Grantees • From ‘blue sky research’ to commercialisation • Fundamental research often generates opportunities for commercial application • ERC-funded excellent ideas should not miss these opportunities! Innovation

33. ERC Synergy - pilot for 2012 Attractive, long-term funding - maximum grant of EUR 15M for a period of up to six years. Only 10 to 15 Synergy Grants in 2012 - competition likely to be intense with only exceptional proposals funded. First call 25 October 2011 with deadline 25 January 2012. Total funding of first call is EUR 150M (approximately 10% of the 2012 ERC call budget). European Research Council

34. Single submission of a proposal followed by a two step peer review evaluation Evaluated by Step 1: 5 panels Step 2: 1 new panel The composition of the panels is not predefined: the 5 panels will be formed in a dynamic way after all proposals have been received. Proposals will be assessed by panel members and independent external experts. ERC Synergy - Evaluation/1 European Research Council