Dr Marta Kołczyńska from the Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences will carry out a research project on political participation in the age of polarization under Weave-UNISONO. She has been awarded over 1.1 mln PLN for her research.

The project entitled “Political participation in the age of polarization” will be funded under Weave_UNISONO. Dr Marta Kołczyńska from the Institute of Political Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences will receive over 1.1 mln PLN for her research carried out together with foreign partners. 

Under the Weave-UNISONO Programme, funding is granted for bilateral or trilateral research projects carried out jointly with research teams from Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium-Flanders and Poland.

Dr Kołczyńska’s project will be carried out in cooperation with research teams from Austria (Universität Salzburg) and Slovenia (Univerza v Mariboru). Researchers will address the question about who becomes motivated to participate in politics by an increasingly polarized political climate, and the possibility that increases in political polarization have positive consequences for democracy. Researchers are planning to collect new data in the three project partner countries (Austria, Poland, and Slovenia) via two types of surveys: a general population survey and surveys among participants in public demonstrations. In addition, they will conduct an analysis of existing survey data, including age-period-cohort analyses of time-series cross-section datasets.

Full ranking lists

Dr Kołczyńska’s project has been evaluated by the Austrian agency Fonds zur Förderung der wissenschaftlichen Forschung (FWF) acting as the lead agency.

Simplified procedures

Weave-UNISONO aims to simplify submission and selection procedures for research proposals that bring together researchers from two or three different European countries in any discipline of science. The selection process is based on the Lead Agency Procedure (LAP), under which only one partner institution is responsible for merit-based review.

Under Weave, partner research teams apply in parallel to their relevant domestic institutions. Their joint proposal must include a coherent research plan and clearly spell out the added value of international cooperation.

The Weave-UNISONO call accepts proposals on a rolling basis. Polish teams wishing to partner up with colleagues from Austria, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium-Flanders are encouraged to carefully read the call announcement and submit their funding proposals.

Four projects involving Polish research teams have qualified for funding under Understanding the Mechanisms for Non-Pharmacological Interventions, a call organised by the JPND network. Two of these are coordinated by Polish principal investigators.

This year, international consortia submitted 92 proposals focused on research into the biological mechanisms behind non-pharmacological interventions in various neurodegenerative disorders. The JPND network selected 14 projects aimed at developing personalised, holistic treatment approaches to such conditions. All four projects involving Polish research teams were featured among the top five highest rated proposals on the international ranking list and will receive a total of nearly 5.2 million zlotys in funding.

DC4MND: Wielowymiarowa charakterystyka działania przezrdzeniowej polaryzacji prądem stałym w chorobach neuronu ruchowego/Multidimensional mechanistic investigations of trans spinal direct current stimulation in motor neuron disease. Principal investigator: Dr Marcin Bączyk. Host institution: Eugeniusz Piasecki University of Physical Education in Poznań. The project will be carried out in cooperation with partners from Germany, France, Italy, Portugal and Latvia.

The project is focused on the treatment of amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) with the neuromodulation technique of trans spinal direct current stimulation (tsDCS), which has recently been introduced as a novel way to halt the degeneration of neurons responsible for skeletal muscle activation. The results of the project will be used to create more effective ALS treatment plans with the use of tsDSC.

TREMENDOS: Rola mikrogleju w pozytywnym wpływie wzbogaconego środowiska w chorobach neurodegeneracyjnych/The role of microglia in the effects of environmental enrichment in neurodegenerative disorders. Principal investigator: Dr Ali Jawaid. Host institution: Marceli Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology, Polish Academy of Sciences. The project will be carried out in cooperation with partners from Switzerland and Austria.

The TREMENDOS project will use a brain stimulation strategy known as environmental enrichment to test ways to boost the natural ability of cerebral immune cells to remove toxic plaque. The project may pave the way for new and more effective treatments for Alzheimer’s disease and similar brain conditions.

EPI-3E: Rozpoznanie płciowo-, wiekowo- i komórkowo-specyficznych mechanizmów epigenetycznych i skojarzonych nieinwazyjnych biomarkerów dla nie-farmakologicznych interwencji w chorobach Alzheimera i Huntingtona/Defining (sex and age) cell-specific epigenetic mechanisms underlying Environmental Enrichment/Exercise as non-pharmacological intervention for Alzheimer’s and Huntington’s disease and related potential non-invasive biomarkers. Principal investigator: Anne-Laurence Boutillier, University of Strasbourg, France. Polish team coordinator: Dr hab. Bartosz Zbigniew Wilczyński. Host institution: University of Warsaw. The project will be carried out in cooperation with partners from Germany, Spain, France and Hungary.

The purpose of the project is to study the mechanisms responsible for the way in which environmental enrichment and aerobic exercise improve the condition of patients with neurodegenerative disorders and test a hypothesis that the key role in the process is played by epigenetic changes in brain cells. The project will also produce computer models of regulatory and epigenetic processes underway in two brain areas affected by the diseases in question.

NEURODIET: Mechanizmy molekularne terapeutycznych podejść żywieniowych w neurodegeneracji/Molecular Mechanisms of Dietary Intervention on Neurodegeneration. Principal investigator: Thorsten Schmidt, Eberhard Karls Universitaet Tuebingen, Germany. Polish team coordinator: Dr hab. Maciej Figiel. Host institution: Institute of Bioorganic Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences. The project will be carried out in cooperation with partners from Germany, Portugal and Turkey.

Within the framework of the project, experienced researchers specialised in neurodegenerative diseases will join forces with a dietary expert in order to provide a detailed description of the molecular events triggered by dietary intervention in neurological patients. The study will focus on spinocerebellar ataxia type 3, also known as Machado-Joseph disease (SCA3/MJD), as a model disease with a well-understood aetiology. The data will be combined with special bioinformatic analysis techniques to determine the dietary intervention mechanisms at play not only in SCA3, but in neurodegenerative disorders in general.

The projects will start in the first quarter of 2023.

Detailed call results can be found online on the website of the JPND network.

As many as 194 research tasks were selected for funding in the last round of the MINIATURA 6 call. Successful researchers will carry out preliminary and pilot research projects, complete internships and go on research trips worth a total of more than 7.7 million zlotys.

Problems addressed by the new batch of successful proposals include climate mitigation and environmental protection strategies, a subject that has galvanised recent public debate. In the field of physical sciences and engineering, the issue will be tacked by two out of the 67 selected researchers. In her pilot study, Dr Emilia Baszanowska from the Gdynia Maritime University will test the quantum efficiency of fluorescence as a tool for distinguishing between sea pollution with oil-derivative emulsions and natural fish oils. Dr inż. Karolina Migdał from the University of Agriculture in Kraków will work on a model to study the phytoremediation properties of selected plant species and their possible application in hydrophytic waste treatment facilities.

78 proposals were also selected in the life sciences panel. Within this field, environmental protection will be addressed by a pilot study conducted by Dr Ewelina Olba-Zięty from the University of Warmia and Mazury in Olsztyn, which will perform an economic analysis of the environmental externalities of growing giant miscanthus as a raw material for energy production, while Dr inż. Waldemar Studziński from the Bydgoszcz University of Technology will assess the ecotoxicology of selected emerging micropollutants in the presence of various oxidizing and chlorinating factors in the water environment.

In art, humanities and social sciences, NCN experts selected a further 49  applicants, some of whom will also tackle environmental issues. One such researcher is Dr inż. Marta Szejnfeld from the Adam Mickiewicz University in Poznań, who will assess the adaptive potential of spatial and functional urban structure to climate change.

To find out about all the research proposals selected for funding and their subjects, consult the ranking list.

MINIATURA 6 ranking list

MINIATURA 6 ranking list no. 6 (.pdf)

Funding per panel:

• art, humanities, social sciences – 1,357,456 PLN
• physical sciences and engineering – 2,723,752 PLN
• life sciences – 3,632,585 PLN

The total budget of proposals selected in the MINIATURA 6 call exceeds 7.7 million zlotys.

About MINIATURA 6

The main objective of the MINIATURA call is to fund research activities conducted in preparation for a future research project, which will then be submitted to an NCN call or another domestic or international call for proposals. The sixth edition offered grants ranging from 5,000 PLN to 50,000 PLN, which can be used to fund preliminary or pilot studies, library and archive research, fellowships, research visits or consultations over a period of up to 12 months. The total budget of the call was close to 20 million PLN and the call was open to researchers who earned their PhD no earlier than on 1 January 2010, have never conducted an NCN-funded research project, and met all the requirements of the call.

Decisions

The positive and negative decisions for calls submitted under MINIATURA 6 in July 2022 were dispatched on 8 November 2022.

The justifications are available in the OSF system. Please check the status of your proposal in the OSF system.

Remember that decisions are sent to the ESP ePUAP address indicated in the proposal. If you have not received a decision, please make sure that the address listed in the proposal is correct. If not, contact the person in charge of handling the proposal, as indicated in the OSF system.

The Weave-UNISONO programme is designed to fund bilateral and trilateral projects carried out by teams from Austria, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg, Belgium-Flanders and Poland.

Read on to see the results of the Weave-UNISONO call for proposals submitted to the German agency Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG) in its capacity as the lead agency in 2021.

Prof. Dr hab. Jerzy Bański from the Institute of Geography and Spatial Planning, PAS, will work on a project entitled “Social and Political Consequences of Spatial Inequalities: A Case Study of Central and Eastern Europe”, which represents an important contribution to the current political and scientific debate on the social and political repercussions of spatial inequality. Professor Bański argues that growing regional differences in the European Union pose a major risk to social cohesion, as well as new social and political movements, and act as a source of perceived injustice and marginalisation. The phenomenon contributes to a general sense of dissatisfaction among the residents of regions that are worse off, who often feel “left behind” by economic transformation and neglected by central governments. This, in turn, creates a “geography of discontent”, which will be investigated by Professor Bański within the framework of his Weave-UNISONO grant.

Full ranking lists

Simplified procedures

Weave-UNISONO aims to simplify submission and selection procedures for research proposals that bring together researchers from two or three different European countries in any discipline of science. The selection process is based on the Lead Agency Procedure (LAP), under which only one partner institution is responsible for merit-based review.

Under Weave, partner research teams apply in parallel to their relevant domestic institutions. Their joint proposal must include a coherent research plan and clearly spell out the added value of international cooperation.

The Weave-UNISONO call accepts proposals on a rolling basis. Polish teams wishing to partner up with colleagues from Austria, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Switzerland, Germany, Luxembourg and Belgium-Flanders are encouraged to carefully read the call announcement and submit their funding proposals.

In cooperation with the CHIST-ERA European Coordinated Research on Long-term Challenges in Information and Communication Sciences & Technologies, the National Science Centre opens a call for international research proposals in the following fields:

1. Security and Privacy in Decentralised and Distributed Systems (SPiDDS)
2. Machine Learning-based Communication Systems, towards Wireless AI (WAI)

Funding is available to international research consortia composed of at least three research teams from three different countries: Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Estonia, Finland, France, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Lithuania, Latvia, Luxembourg, Poland, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey and the United Kingdom.

ANNOUNCEMENT

CHIST-ERA Call 2022 grants can go toward funding research team salaries, wages and scholarships for students and PhD candidates, research equipment and any other necessary project expenses.

The National Science Centre will only accept basic research proposals. The total budget put aside for Polish research teams under the call equals 500,000 euro.

How to apply?

• International level: in cooperation with their foreign partners, Polish research teams should write a joint proposal in English, which must then be submitted via the CHIST-ERA (ESS) electronic submission system.

• Domestic level: a domestic proposal focused on the part of the project to be carried out by the Polish team should be submitted to the NCN electronically, via the OSF system, within 7 days from the deadline for international proposals.

There is only one evaluation stage under the CHIST-ERA call; only full joint proposals will be accepted on the international level.

Call schedule:

• Deadline for the submission of joint proposals in the ESS system: 2 February 2023, 17:00 CET
• Deadline for the submission of domestic proposals in the OSF system: 9 February 2023
• Call results: July 2023
• Project start dates: October 2023

“Research under pressure – How do research institutions and funding organisations react to crisis?”. This is a subject of the third Polish-German Scientific Meeting held in Berlin on 27 and 28 October with the participation of 17 research institutions and research funding agencies as well as embassies from Poland and Germany.

The current global political crises and their impact on science and research in Germany and Poland, as well as possible coping strategies, were discussed at the third Polish-German Science Meeting held in Berlin that brought together 17 research institutions and funding organisations from both countries. The meeting was organised by the German Research Foundation (DFG), the National Science Centre (NCN) and the Foundation for Polish Science (FNP). The institutions emphasised the importance of bilateral cooperation, especially in view of climate crisis, coronavirus pandemic and war in the Ukraine:

“Our close Polish and German relations rely on a common approach to science and belief that support for science and research is crucial for the future and well-being of our countries. It is also the reason why we have organised the Polish-German Scientific Meeting in which we participate as scientists and citizens of the united Europe. Therefore, we have strongly condemned the Russian aggression against Ukraine. Together with our Polish partner organisations we will continue supporting persecuted Ukrainian and Russian researchers and in close cooperation we will support the reconstruction of the Ukrainian science system” says Katja Becker, President of the DFG.

“No global problem can be solved alone, therefore it is crucial that researchers and decision-makers from various countries cooperate. Cooperation between Polish and German research institutions is also a great chance for Polish science that opens many doors. For me personally, as someone who has worked as a researcher in Germany for some time (including at two Max Planck institutes) and has managed a Polish grant agency, scientific cooperation is also an investment in the future, bringing the two countries closer together.” says Zbigniew Błocki, Director of the National Science Centre. 

“For the past decades, German and Polish academics have formed a strong and successful collaboration. We believe that equal potential lies in the cooperation of organisations supporting science. In view of the current crises, we have to make every endeavour to trust each other. Furthermore, our continuous bilateral activities have a positive impact on the academic environment in the neighbouring countries, with Ukraine needing our helping hand right now”, says Maciej Żylicz, President of the Foundation for Polish Science.

The DFG has organised a series of Polish-German Science Meetings in Berlin for the third time. The previous meetings took place in Munich in 2017 and in Krakow in 2019. Over 50 representatives from almost all Polish and German science and research organisations and Embassies of both countries met in the capital of Germany. The meeting began with a number of scientific lectures and a panel discussion. On the second day, the discussions focused on the experiences, perspectives of individual institutions and organisations as well as ways in which they dealt with the current crisis.

Attendees of the 3rd Polish-German Science Meeting, DFG/Bildschön, Peter Lorenz Particular focus was paid to the activities undertaken by individual Polish and German institutions to support Ukraine. Moreover, it was even more obvious which special options for handling crises lie before cross-border cooperation. A series of Polish-German Science Meetings will be continued due to the growing importance of German-Polish relations.

“Nature” has published an article co-authored by Dr Mateusz Tałanda from the University of Warsaw, which sheds new light on the evolution of lizards in the era of the dinosaurs.

Artystyczna wizja wyglądu Bellairsia gracilis. Source: E. Panciroli/National Museum of Scotland In 2016, scientists from the University of Oxford and the National Museum of Scotland discovered a six-metre skeleton on the Isle of Skye. Known as Bellairsia gracilis, the fossil is 166 million years old and dates back to the Middle Jurassic Period. It is the most complete lizard skeleton from that era.

A major role in its investigation was played by Dr Mateusz Tałanda from the Faculty of Biology of the University of Warsaw. The Bellairsia specimen was shown to possess both ancestral traits and derived traits, which originated through evolution over time. The paper, which presents new data on the early evolution of lizards in the era of the dinosaurs, was published in “Nature” on 26 October 2022.

The project brought together scientists from the University of Oxford, University College London, the European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, the Natural History Museum in London, Oxford University Museum of Natural History and the National Museum of Scotland.

It was co-funded from the resources of the Mobility Plus programme of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education.

This is not the first article that Dr Tałanda has published in “Nature”. In 2018, the journal featured a paper on the skeleton of Megachirella wachtleri, the oldest known squamate specimen, currently kept at a museum in the Italian Alps. Tałanda was one of its co-authors, and the research was completed within the framework of an NCN PRELUDIUM. grant.

We invite researchers and host institutions interested in participation in the last POLONEZ BIS call 3 to watch the dedicated webinars. We also encourage you to take a look at the presentations and answers to questions from the Q&A sessions: 

• webinar and presentation/Q&A for host institutions (in Polish)
• webinar and presentation/Q&A for applicants (in English)

We would like to remind you that the deadline to submit proposals in the POLONEZ BIS 3 call is 15 December 2022.

Following the decision of one of the applicants not to carry out the project funded under POLONEZ BIS 1 call, the National Science Centre launched the procedure to fund proposals placed on the waiting lists. The funding decision was issued to one project representing the domain of Physical Sciences and Engineering.

Additional ranking list

The waiting lists under the POLONEZ BIS 1 Call were approved by the Expert Teams and include proposals which were awarded at least 70 points, but fell outside the limit funds allocated by the Council for research projects within specific groups of disciplines. The Centre refused to grant funds to implement the proposals placed on the waiting lists, with a reservation that a project placed on the waiting list may receive funding if another applicant resigns.

Between 24 and 26 October, the EOSC Festival – the National Tripartite Event Poland was held at the National Science Centre and online under the theme Open Science for Better Science. The purpose of the festival was to, inter alia, present the European Open Science Cloud (EOSC) and strengthen collaboration and dialogue between EOSC’s key stakeholders.

On the first day held under the theme “EOSC for Open Science”, panellists discussed the idea of the EOSC initiative, goals and challenges in the context of Open Science development in Poland and best practices for its implementation.

Over the next few days, guests discussed the practical aspects of Open Science implementation: funding, infrastructure, skills, competences, tools and services.

Photo gallery

Photos: Michał Łepecki