More involvement in Europe

More involvement with Europe is needed

Not a revolution, but an evolution – this is how the European Research Council describes Horizon Europe, the new EU-funded framework programme for research and innovation. – The programme’s priorities align quite well with the content of the new research and innovation bill. There is also a proposal for a national strategy for Sweden to receive more of these funds, explains Sigríður Beck, Head of Unit at FIK, the Grants and Innovation Office.

LIKE THE PREVIOUS HORIZON

2020 framework programme, Horizon Europe is based on three pillars, but now has a partly different division: scientific excellence, global challenges, and innovation, explains Sigríður Beck. – Among other things, the programme highlights six global challenges that essentially are similar to the five societal challenges in the research bill. These include health, digitalisation, climate and the environment. Furthermore, Horizon Europe emphasizes the importance of transparency and increased collaboration with society as a whole, something that is also brought up in the research bill.

A NOVEL ASPECT of the framework programme is the investment in five interdisciplinary missions that will create benefits for all EU citizens. This is according to Research Advisor Maria Enge. – It involves climate change, cancer, clean oceans and coasts, climate-smart cities and beneficial agriculture.

Demonstrating the benefits of research is, of course, a way of increasing its legitimacy among EU citizens, who have also been asked to come up with suggestions about areas to be prioritized.

The United Kingdom has left the EU but will remain in the framework programme, says Henrik Lindskog, Team Leader for research support at FIK. – On the other hand, the United Kingdom is leaving the collaboration within Erasmus. This is a problem, as the overarching ambition of Horizon Europe is to increase collaboration between education and research. This includes the investment in new university alliances, where the University of Gothenburg is part of the network called Eutopia.

Sweden’s share of allocated funds from Horizon 2020 was 3.4 percent for the period 2015–2020, says Henrik Lindskog

– AS A NATION, we are performing reasonably well, but we have the potential to raise even more funds when it comes to major societal challenges, for example. That is why last year the government gave a number of research councils the task of developing a national strategy for Horizon Europe. The goal is for Sweden to receive at least 3.7 percent of the funds.

The University of Gothenburg should also be able to obtain more funding from the EU, says Research Advisor Joel Jakobsson.

Of the approximately 66 million euros that the University of Gothenburg has received so far from the Horizon 2020 programme, almost 50 million has gone to excellent research, such as individual ERC and Marie Curie grants. In terms of excellent research in particular, we have received more funding compared with FP7, the European Research and Innovation Programme for 2007–2013. We are not alone in this, the same applies to the universities of Stockholm and Lund. But overall, the University of Gothenburg has received fewer grants than in the previous framework programme. Among other things, this is because FP7 was a broader investment initiative where it was easier to obtain funding for basic research as well.

The strategy developed by the research councils indicates, among other things, that Swedish higher education institutions need to be more active when it comes to working with the framework programme, such as participating in expert groups, networks and collaborations, Sigríður Beck explains.

– THERE ARE GREAT opportunities to influence the programmes, but to do so, the higher education institutions need to be more involved. Of course, it requires extra commitment and time from the researchers, who already have a lot to do. But the vice-chancellor also offers generous co-financing of indirect costs for EU projects that make it possible for more people to apply. In summary, you could say that the University of Gothenburg is moving in the right direction, but that we also have a large untapped potential.

Eva Lundgren

FACTS

HORIZON EUROPE

The European Research Council’s new framework programme for research and innovation will run from 2021–2027. The programme is based on three pillars, aimed at - scientific excellence - global challenges and European industrial competitiveness (health; culture, creativity and inclusive societies; civil security; digital issues, industry and space; climate, energy and mobility, food, as well as bioeconomy, natural resources, agriculture and the environment). The budget is 95.5 billion euros. Forte, Formas, the Swedish National Space Agency, the Swedish Energy Agency, the Swedish Research Council and Vinnova have been tasked by the government to draft a strategy for Swedish participation in Horizon Europe. The aim of the strategy is for: - Sweden to be among the leading participants in terms of applications granted. - Sweden to receive at least 3.7 percent of the total funds granted. - Swedish stakeholders to be internationally competitive and attractive partners.