Lead Agency agreement with Brazilian federal state of São Paulo
Two research groups - one joint funding application: the SNSF's list of Lead Agency partners now also includes the funding organisation of São Paulo (FAPESP).
Bilateral research programmes between Switzerland and Brazil have been ongoing for some time. With the Lead Agency agreement, the SNSF is creating further opportunities for researchers in Switzerland and in the federal state of São Paulo. They can now submit joint applications to either of the two funding organisations. The projects must have a joint research question and research plan. The parts of the project conducted in each country are not independent projects and cannot be carried out separately.
"We are delighted that a Lead Agency agreement is now in place to make collaboration easier," says Jean-Luc Barras, head of the SNSF division responsible for institutional relationships. "Research in the federal state of São Paulo is strong and diverse; Swiss researchers will be able to link-up with important partners there".
Part of project funding
The Lead Agency process is part of the SNSF's project funding scheme. There is no additional budget and the usual project funding requirements apply. For instance, researchers may only submit a Lead Agency application if there are no thematic overlaps with applications under evaluation at the SNSF or with ongoing projects.
First submissions by 1 October
The SNSF and the FAPESP have agreed to take turns as the Lead Agency on a yearly basis. Applications can be submitted by 1 October 2020 and 1 April 2021 at the SNSF, and at any time between 1 October 2021 and 30 September 2022 at the FAPESP.
The SNSF has already signed Lead Agency agreements with Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Luxembourg, Poland, Slovenia and South Tyrol. It will also continue the bilateral calls with Brazil. They are devoted to specific topics, for example water.