ERA chair & Twinning at CEITEC Masaryk University Dr. Zlatuše Novotná Head of Strategic Partnerships & International Relations Ljubljana, April 19th, 2017

Content Intro to CEITEC ERA chair TWINNING projects Links to previous projects Strong points in projects preparation

Central European Institute of Technology CEITEC is a research centre in the fields of life sciences, advanced materials and technologies whose aim is to establish itself as a recognized European centre of science. 6 partners 500 researchers 7 research programmes 63 research groups 25,000 m2 of new laboratories 12 core facilities Budget: EUR 208 mil. Start of operation: Q1 2011

CEITEC at Masaryk University 5 research programmes 35 research groups 323 staff (FTE) (2016) 10 core facilities Budget: EUR 21.1 mil. (2016)

WIDENING projects at CEITEC MU ERA Chair (FP7-Widening Participation), 2014-2019 The ERA Chair Culture as a Catalyst to Maximize the Potential of CEITEC ERA Chair Mary O´Connell TWINNING – H2020 – Spreading Excellence and Widening Participation, 2016-2018 MEDGENET – Medical genomics and epigenomics network; no. 692298 TWINFUSYON – Twinning for Improving Capacity of Research in Multifunctional Nanosystems for Optronic Biosensing; no. 692034 BISON – Bridging Structural Biology with Biological Synthesis and Self Assembly to Reveal Key Processes in Living Systems; no. 692068 PASSAGE – H2020 – TEAMING 1st stage, 09/2017-08/2018 Centre of plant synthetic biology for bio-engineering and sustainable agriculture; 2017-2018; no. 763672 VIB Ghent, Department of Plant Systems Biology & CEITEC MU, Mendel Centre of Plant Genomics and Proteomics

ERA chair www.ceitec.eu/era-chair The ERA Chair Culture as a Catalyst to Maximize the Potential of CEITEC FP7-ERAChairs-PilotCall-2013 GA No. 621368, 06/2015 – 05/2019 Budget: 2.778.660 EUR (MU cofinancing) Mary O'Connell – molecular biologist, selected out of 20 candidates, mostly from the U.S. and Western Europe The competition 11 ERA chairs – FP7 pilot call 13 ERA chairs – H2020 out of 88 proposals submitted

Work packages Work package PM Team members Duration 1 Recruitment of an ERA Chair 4 1-6 2 Operation of the ERA Chair research group 341 1+11 7-60 3 Grants support system development 96 1-60 Attractive scientific environment 22 5 International outreach and dissemination 35 6 Project management 30

WP1: Recruitment of an ERA chair TASK OUTPUT T1.1 Organization of the selection procedure (M1-M2) •20 high-quality applications received and assessed based on research performance indicators tailored for the position •4 candidates short-listed and invited to Brno for an open lecture, chalk talk and interview with selection committee (external members from abroad were included) •Final ranking based on clear criteria T1.2 Negotiation with the selected candidate (M3-M4) Negotiation was successful with Mary O’Connell T1.3 Relocation of the ERA Chair to Brno (M4-M6) Relocation successful (November 2014)

WP2: Establishment and operation of the ERA Chair research group TASK OUTPUT T2.1 Recruitment of the group members (M7–M13) RG: ERA Chair – RNA and Immunity: ERA Chair, 1 senior researcher, 2 postdoctoral fellows, 4 PhD students and 2 technicians. T2.2 Allocation of the research equipment (M7–M13) Research equipment was provided based on the needs of the ERA Chair through the EU Structural Funds. T2.3 Developing a full research strategy (M7–M13) Several pending and re-submitted grants T2.4 Full operation of the group (M10–M60) Flies research is up and running Mice research with difficulties

WP3: Grants support system development (Research office, Rectorate of MU) TASKS T3.1 Regular grant workshops (M3-M60) T3.2 Regular grant sessions for new researchers (M6-M60) T3.3 Training of grant managers (M6-M60) T3.4 Participation in grants-related events in Brussels (M6-M60) T3.5 Support - advising, grant-writing and monitoring of funding (M6-M60)

WP4: Attractive scientific environment TASK OUTPUT T4.1 Creating conditions for idea-driven and competitive scientific environment (M1 – M60) •HR Excellence in Research logo •Internal analysis (comparing C&C principles) → HR strategy (action plan) T4.2 Creating conditions for high-quality and competitive doctoral training (M1 – M60) •Approval of the interdisciplinary PhD Programme T4.3 Regular events developing scientific vision (M1 – M60) Cross-disciplinary workshops T4.4 Developing scientific talent (M1 – M60) Trasferable skills training T4.5 Strengthening links with relevant industries (M1 – M60) Science - Industry talks

WP5: International outreach and dissemination (CEITEC MU Event office) TASK OUTPUT T5.1 International scientific conferences (M13–M60) •Three conferences in Brno: “Nucleic Acids and Immunity“ T5.2 International Mendel lecture series in Brno (M1–M60) 10 ML/MU LSS lectures since 2017 T5.3 Establishing partnerships with long established research counterparts (M1–M60) T5.4 Open Days (M1-M60) 5.5 Project website (M1 – M60) •www.ceitec.eu/era-chair

Lessons learned Project implementation at several parts of University – project management, budget spending, auditing Project vs. reality: Formal role of the Rector / members of International Scientific Advisory Board Difficult position of ERA chair within the scientific community Not easy introduction of new project´s and own non-scientific goals (PI seminar, work-life balance workshop,..) Research team: difficulties with recruitment of international postdocs and PhD students Sustainability and further funding

TWINNING Call ID: H2020-TWINN-2015 Projects duration: 01/2016 – 12/2018 TWINFUSYON (Micro-/Nanotechnologies) MEDGENET (Molecular medicine) BISON (Structural biology) The competition 552 proposals submitted, 66 projects funded (success rate of 12%) 5 projects selected for funding in the Czech Republic 4 projects submitted by CEITEC MU

Twinning for Improving Capacity of Research in Multifunctional Nanosystems for Optronic Biosensing GA number: 692034 Coordinator: Masaryk University, Prof. Humlíček Partners Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Italy Universität Linz, Austria Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, France www.twinfusyon.eu

Medical Genomics and Epigenomics Network GA number: 692298 Coordinator: Masaryk University, Prof. Pospíšilová Partners EMBL, Germany Uppsala Universitet, Sweden CERTH, Greece www.medgenet.eu

Bridging Structural Biology with Biological Synthesis and Self Assembly to Reveal Key Processes in Living Systems GA number: 692068 Coordinator: Masaryk University, Prof. Koča Partners Universität Wien (UNIVIE) Université Grenoble Alpes (UGA) University of East Anglia (UEA) www.twinning-bison.eu

BISON Scientific objectives – complementary expertise Integrating methods for structural and cellular biology and biophysics of challenging biological systems Chemical and biological synthesis of novel bioactive compounds Recognition in biological systems, self assembly and nanobio- technology

BISON – Work packages and outputs (1/2) WP1 Visiting experts Short-time visits – speakers, lecturers and members of PhD committees coming to Brno 20 visiting experts hosted at CEITEC MU in 3 years 5 lecturers involved in PhD retreats/conferences Only travel and training costs covered WP2 Training Joint supervision of PhD students Contributions to PhD retreats/conferences Participation in courses taking place at UNIVIE, UGA, UEA Training at CEITEC MU with lecturers from UNIVIE, UGA, UEA 100 person-days of training activities performed in 3 years

BISON – Work packages and outputs (2/2) WP3 Academic stays and secondments Short- and mid-term (up to six months) for CEITEC MU staff (advanced PhD students, postdocs and experienced researchers) to UNIVIE, UGA, UEA 40 person-months during 3 years WP4 Research management workshops Grant officers´ study stays abroad Administration staff workshops at CEITEC WP5 Scientific events – periodicity of approx. 6 months 4 workshops, 1 conference 2 summer schools WP6 Dissemination 3 open days dedicated to the general public and policy makers

Links to previous projects ERDF, 2011-2015, 208 mil.€ Regional Innovation Strategy of South Moravia Regions of Knowledge 2009-2012, 1 mil.€ Research Potential 2012-2015, 3.9 mil. € SYLICA

Strong points in project preparation Know what you are applying for and why Stakeholder management – top-down and bottom-up agreement at the (inter)institutional level Different parts of the institution may be able to contribute – tailor elements to suit particular needs of individuals/groups/ research centres/institution Join forces to find gaps and strategy → vision → key research topics → scientific objectives Core partnerships – rely on previous ‘living ‘ collaboration Risk management if forming consortium Research relevance in line with RIS3 strategy Go for it! – invest time and resources, consider project management vs. proposal writing

Good luck!  zlatuse.novotna@ceitec.muni.cz Central European Institute of Technology Masaryk University Kamenice 753/5 625 00 Brno, Czech Republic www.ceitec.muni.cz | info@ceitec.muni.cz