COST – Part 1, Overview Wendy Simpson, UK COST National Coordinator Wolverhampton University 11 February 2015

What is COST? European Cooperation in Science and Technology Funds networking of nationally funded research projects across Europe and beyond One instrument: the COST Action – network of researchers Established 1971with a few Actions to 340 running Actions in 2014 Bottom-up – open to all disciplines and all categories of partners Key principles – excellence and inclusiveness 2

Which countries can participate? 36 COST countries –EU member states –EU candidates and potential candidates –Other countries: Norway and Switzerland –COST Cooperating state: Israel COST near neighbour countries (17): –Balkan countries –Mediterranean countries –Eastern European Countries International partner countries 3

COST Countries 4

COST Near Neighbour Countries 231 participations in running COST Actions accros 17 countries 5  Albania (19)  Algeria (6)  Armenia (10)  Azerbaijan (5)  Belarus (5)  Egypt (10)  Georgia (4)  Jordan (2)  Lebanon (4)  Moldova (5)  Montenegro (15)  Morocco (16)  Palestinian Authority (4)  Syrian Arab Republic (2)  Russia (58)  Tunisia (16)  Ukraine (50) October 2014 data

International Partner Countries 519 participations in running Actions across 29 countries 6 October 2014 data

A little bit of history Established 1971 – intergovernmental framework for transnational co-operation in Science and Technology Used to receive funding via an intermediary, no direct relationship with the EU Commission COST Association set up in September 2013 with all COST Countries as members Framework Partnership agreement with the Commission to receive funding from Horizon 2020 Changes to submission and evaluation process 7

COST in key figures (2014)  >340 Running Action  European researchers involved in COST Actions’ activities  participations in COST activities involving Early- Career Investigators (<PhD 8 years)  2550 Short-term scientific missions  4000 Trainees involved in training schools  8600 researchers involved in proposal in the last collection Sept 2014(845 eligible proposals; 40 funded)  €300 Million budget from Horizon 2020

New improved COST COST Association Truly “bottom-up” –All fields of research, especially trans-disciplinary, new and emergent fields –No longer have to fit proposals into one of none domains More transparent and accountable Single stage proposal of 15 pages (formerly a preliminary and full proposal) New Scientific committee – scientific and technological adviser to COST 9

Inclusiveness H2020 funding emphasises importance of widening participation of less research intensive COST countries. Aim is to encourage these countries to set up and/or join COST Actions and be more involved in all COST activities Already a good story to tell – 41% of COST participants from these countries COST Actions should have a plan towards inclusiveness that is revised and updated regularly 10

COST “inclusiveness target” Countries * 11

Other COST Policies Increased participation of early career investigators (PhD + up to 8 years). For example: –leadership roles in the Action structure; benefiting from training schools –in the UK there has been a threefold increase in the number of ECIs participating since 2011 Gender balance International cooperation –Involvement of near neighbour countries and international partner countries Encourage SME and industry participation 12

COST proposals Open call with two collection dates; March and September Next collection date 24 March 2014 Open to all fields of Science and Technology including Social Sciences and Humanities Must include researchers from 5 COST countries Should have own research funding More information and on-line submission tool at

COST Actions Networking tools –Management Committee meetings –Working Group meetings –Scientific Workshops and Seminars –Training Schools –Short Term Scientific Missions (STSM) –Dissemination and publications More information in COST H2020 Vademecum ( 14

What’s the budget Flat-rate scheme so Action’s budget depends on: –The activities planned –The number of participating countries Average of €130K p.a. for 4 years (22 countries) Some examples: –Accommodation is €120 max –Meal is €20 Some funding can be allocated for admin support Budget managed by the Grant Holder More information in Vademecum 15

Management Committee and Working Groups Management Committee –Manages the Action –Chair usually the lead proposer –Two members per country (plus substitutes) –CNC nominates MC members and substitutes (new and existing actions) Working Groups –Where scientific or academic work is done –Up to 6 WGs per Action, usually 2 WG members per country –WG membership decided by the MC 16

Example of a COST Action Parrotnet: European network in invasive parakeets – led by Dr Jim Groombridge, University of Kent  Parakeets are an ‘Invasive Alien Species’ in Europe  Cause of biodiversity loss – major risk to risk to agriculture and society  Cost European economy € billion/year  Urgent need for pan-European co-ordination to understand and manage associated risks 17

ParrotNet: Why COST?  Plenty of research on parakeets, but a lack of cohesion across Europe  Urgent need to: Integrate natural and social science research Standardise existing data Upscale measurement of impacts Harmonize methodologies and data protocols Develop bespoke solutions that can inform policy effectively

ParrotNet: Aims of COST Help understand why parakeets are such successful invaders Be able to predict economic, societal and ecological impacts accurately Create a virtual European Monitoring Centre for monitoring invasive parakeets Transfer results to policy and management action

ParrotNet: Aims of COST Inter- disciplinary platform Regular meetings (physical and virtual) Short-term scientific missions Knowledge transfer at workshops, conferences Production of high- quality publications and outputs Creation of European Monitoring Centre Direct involvement of stakeholders Linking with non-EU countries (e.g. Indian Ocean) Outreach activities

ParrotNet: The Network Israel Humans and IAS (HUJ) IAS interactions (HUJ)  Austria  Turkey

Management Committee  Chair, Vice-Chair, Admin Officer, Working Group Chairs, STSM managers, two members/country  Physical meeting every six months (local support committee)  Virtual (Skype) meeting every two months Four Working Groups (WP 1-4)  Meet every six months  Organise two workshops  Allocate and manage two STSMs/year  Early-stage researchers encouraged to lead Thirteen Tasks  Each task has a scheduled milestone ParrotNet: The Organisation

ParrotNet: The Benefits  Large scale network funding  Great way to bring people together (who might not otherwise be able to)  Offers exciting opportunities for early career researchers  Excellent way to bring about ‘impact’ and ensure research has application to wider society  Way to build a network and target future Horizon 2020 funding

Targeted networks 4 targeted networks exploring specific policy strategies: –Gender STE - Gender, Science, Technology and Environment e e –Sci-generation – Next Generation of Young Scientists: Towards a Contemporary Spirit of R&I generation generation –BESTPRAC: The Voice of Research Administrators – Building a Network of Administrative Excellence –Capabal – Capacity Building in Forest Policy and Governance in the Western Balkan Region

Joining an existing Action Two ways to participate: –Ask CNC to consider nominating you to the Management Committee as a member (if there is a vacancy) or as a substitute. Will be asked to submit your CV; and/or –Contact the UK Management Committee members or the Chair to ask about joining a working group – find details via 25

COST in the UK UK participating in all running COST Actions Lead proposer in over 18% of cases UK generally has the highest number of successful COST Actions for each call For 2014 significant increases in –Money transferred to UK from COST Action’s networking budget (threefold increase since 2011) –Number of UK participants (more than twofold increase since 201)1 –Number of UK Early Career Investigators participating in 2014 (almost threefold increase since 2014) Cost National Coordinator –Answers enquiries – –Nominates UK Management Committee members 26

Submission and evaluation of proposals - Overview Submission of proposals –via the new e-COST online submission tool –First collection date 24 March at 12 noon (CET) New evaluation of proposals: –Evaluation by independent External Experts –Revision of evaluations by Review Panels –Selection by new Scientific Committee Back at c.12 noon with more information about this 27

COST – Part 2, The Evaluation Process Wendy Simpson, UK COST National Coordinator Wolverhampton University 11 February 2015

Overview Submission of proposal Evaluation by independent External Experts Revision by Review Panels Selection by Scientific Committee Approval by the Committee of COST Senior Officials (CSO) After approval: –Nomination of MC members for approved proposals –First Management Committee meeting (the kick-off meeting) 29

Submission of proposal On-line submission tool at Section on General Features (title, summary etc) Technical Annex of up to 15 pages: –S&T Excellence –Impact –Implementation Guidelines available at: Meet the deadline; March 24, 12 noon (CET) 30

Eligibility criteria  Represent a network of proposers from at least 5 COST Countries or Cooperating State  Be coordinated by a Main Proposer in a COST Country  Be anonymous - not contain any reference to the names and/or institutions of the participants in the network of proposers  Address science and technology challenges destined only for peaceful purposes  Respect word or page limits as described in the SESA Guidelines  Be written in English, the working language of the COST Association  Not be identical with another submitted proposal 31

Proposal Sections GENERAL FEATURES Online tool Mandatory  Key Expertise needed for Evaluation  Fields and Subfields of Science and Technology plus Key words TECHNICAL ANNEX PDF Mandatory  MAX 15 Pages  Anonymity  3 sections: S&T Excellence, Impact, Implementation  Figures and Pictures – Copyright REFERENCES Online tool Optional  500 words  Anonymity COST MISSION & POLICIES Online tool Mandatory  500 words  Inclusiveness Policy  Innovation Union Goals NETWORK of PROPOSERS Online tool Mandatory  Minimum 5 researchers from 5 COST COUNTRIES

Evaluation by External Experts Three independent experts from large pool closely matched to subject area of proposal Anonymous, consensus oriented Evaluation criteria: 33 S&T ExcellenceImpactImplementation Soundness of the challenge Scientific technological and/or socio-economic impact Coherence and effectiveness of the work plan Progress beyond the state- of-the-art and innovation potential Measures to maximise impact Appropriateness of management structures and procedures Added value of networking Level of risk and level of potential innovation/breakthroughs Network as a whole Total mark for this section: 25 points Total mark for this section: 20 points Total mark for this section: 20 points Total possible marks – 65 points Overall threshold – 45 points (proposals below the threshold will not be funded)

S&T Excellence Challenge –Description of the challenge –Relevance and timeliness Objectives (clear & pertinent to tackle the challenge) –Research Coordination Objectives –Capacity-building objectives Progress beyond the state-of-the-art & Innovation Potential –Description of the state-of-the-art –Progress beyond the state-of-the art –Innovation in tackling the challenge Added value of networking –In relation to the Challenge –In relation to existing efforts at European &/or international level 34

Impact Expected Impact –Short-term & long-term scientific, technological, and/or socio-economic impacts –Measures to Maximise Impact Plan for involving the most relevant stakeholders –Dissemination and/or Exploitation Plan Potential for Innovation versus Risk level 35

Implementation Description of the Work Plan (risks/contingencies) –Description of Working Groups –GANTT Diagram –PERT (optional) Management structures and procedures (are they appropriate) –Network as a whole (added value) References (optional, need to maintain anonymity) COST Mission and Policies Network of proposers 36

Revision by Review Panels Quality check and resolve potential differences of opinion Pool of review panel experts; 3 from each COST Country in 6 scientific fields, nominated by CNC –Natural Sciences, Engineering and Technology, Medical and Health Sciences, Agricultural Science, Social Science, Humanities Ad-hoc panels based on proposals Review & validate reports and marks, rank proposals above the threshold Identify proposals indicating emerging issues or potentially important future developments Feedback to all proposers at this stage 37

Selection by Scientific Committee Select proposals from the ranked list by discriminating among proposals with the same marks, taking into account COST aims and policies Balanced COST Action portfolio, by ensuring coverage of all S&T fields One member of Committee from each COST Country – high-level expert nominated by each country. Committee also acts as scientific and technological adviser to COST 38

Approval and after Approval by the CSO –Usually given without any issues being raised Nomination of Management Committee members –By the country’s COST National Coordinator (CNC) –Should be contacted with c.2 weeks of approval; no need to contact the CNC (October 2015) First Management Committee meeting (the kick-off meeting) –Organised by the COST Office (a few months later) –Expenses reimbursed by the COST Office 39

Last recommendations  Strong competition: be ambitious  Start: start early – a proposal needs time and evolution  Become acquainted with the COST Open Call: Submission, Evaluation, Selection and Approval (SESA) guidelines  If you have the chance, then have a native speaker check the English  BUT - Perfect English is not necessary, it is the clarity + consistency which counts and increases your chances  Be smart!! the technical annex only 15 pages!!  ………… 40

Become an independent External Expert Contribute to the evaluation of COST proposals; Participate in the assessment of Action results and outcomes; Take part in the assessment of COST strategic activities. Gain insight into the latest scientific and technological developments; Contribute to the success of COST More information and how to apply

More information COST website – Enquiries to UK CNC – Enquiries to COST – Useful documents: COST 133/14 B1: COST Action Proposal, Submission, Evaluation, Selection and Approval ( COST Open Call: Submission, Evaluation, Selection and Approval (SESA) Guidelines ( COST H2020 Vademecum (financial rules)( 42