UWERTURA 1: Polish researchers to learn how to compete for European grants

On 10^th August, the National Science Centre (NCN) concluded the first edition of the UWERTURA call. This funding opportunity has attracted 24 applicants, 7 of whom will receive financing worth a total of € 133,665.

UWERTURA 1 is an opportunity addressed to researchers with a doctorate or a higher level academic qualification, who have carried out an NCN-funded research project as a principal investigator. The programme’s aim is to help the Polish research community successfully apply for European resources, and to increase their share among laureates of ERC grants. Polish researchers will be gathering indispensable international experience by visiting research teams abroad working on ERC-financed projects; subsequently, within 18 months of returning to Poland, the visiting researchers themselves will be required to prepare and submit a research proposal to ERC.

The UWERTURA call was developed in cooperation with the European Research Council and is addressed to researchers interested in applying for ERC grants, said professor Zbigniew Błocki, the director of the NCN. This arrangement was devised to enable them to enter into collaboration with and learn from those who have already received such grants. Poland is among 7 European countries taking part in this type of programme.

There were 24 researchers competing for the ERC fellowships. A sum of almost € 134,000 will be distributed among the 7 winners. The successful proposals were submitted by representatives of the AGH University of Science and Technology, University of Warsaw, Jagiellonian University, University of Gdansk, University of Wroclaw and two research institutes of the Polish Academy of Sciences: the Institute of Botany and the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology. The researchers will work on such topics as the impact of extreme waves on the environment of the Arctic coasts or biomedical uses of quantum dots.

A ranking list of the projects recommended for funding has been published in Polish on the National Science Centre’s website.