French Presidency of the Council of the European Union (FPCEU): ANR actions and events

The French Presidency of the Council of the European Union (FPCEU), being held from 1 January to 30 June 2022, is a major opportunity to strengthen the exposure of the French and European Higher education, research and innovation (HERI) community. In this context, more than 70 labelled events by the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation (MESRI) are held by organisations, operators or institutions. The French National Research Agency (ANR) organises and takes part in several FPCEU-labelled events. This is an opportunity to review the actions and instruments implemented by the ANR to strengthen European scientific collaborations.

FCPEU labelled events organised by the ANR or involving the Agency:

• Paris Open Science European Conference - OSEC 2022, held on 4 and 5 February 2022 by the French Academy of Sciences, the French National Centre for Scientific Research (CNRS), the French National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm), the French High Council for Evaluation of Research and Higher Education (Hcéres), the French National Research Agency (ANR), the University of Lorraine, the University of Nantes and the Ministry of Higher Education, Research and Innovation, , brought together participants from all over the world. The programme included a presentation of the Paris Call to reform research assessment, debates on major issues such as health research transparency, the importance of bibliodiversity, or the access to codes and software produced in the context of research, along with the Open Science Awards. Find out more: ANR Open Science
   
• The symposium “For a Europe of Social Sciences and Humanities. Celebrating 15 years of Franco-German research, assessment and challenges” on 14 and 15 June 2022 at the Palais de la Porte Dorée and the Cité internationale in Paris. This event will celebrate the 15th anniversary of the ANR Franco-German call for proposals in Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) in collaboration with the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG). Presentation of funded projects, conferences and roundtables will be held. More information to come.
   

ANR actions and instruments to strengthen scientific cooperation in Europe

The ANR is working on strengthening International and European scientific cooperation by combining its programme with existing initiatives, and by following the guidelines set out in the international scientific strategy established by the MESRI.

The Agency is suggesting 3 funding instruments which are part of the implementation of the “National action plan to improve French participation in the European research and innovation funding schemes” – PAPFE, to support French research teams.

• The “Setting up European or International Scientific Networks” instrument – MRSEI, to facilitate French researchers’ access to European (Horizon Europe 2021-2027) and International funding programmes. It aims to strengthen France’s scientific position by coordinating a proposal submitted in response to a major European or International call for proposals.
   
• The “Springboard-ERC” instrument – T-ERC to enable young researchers attached to a French public research and knowledge dissemination organisation or institution to submit a new proposal in response to a European Research Council (ERC) “Starting grants” or “Consolidator grants” call for proposals, with the best chances of success. This instrument is open to all research disciplines.
   
• The new “Access-ERC” instrument, to be set-up in 2022, is intended to fund and welcome young post-doctoral researchers in a French laboratory, regardless of their nationality, wishing to strengthen their international exposure and apply for the ERC programme, particularly “Starting grants” and “Consolidator grants”. Under an experimental phase in 2022, the first call for “Access-ERC” will exclusively cover Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH).

In addition to these instruments, the ANR is taking part in specific multilateral calls with its counterparts, as part of European initiatives such as ERA-NET Cofund, EJP, Article 185, Joint Programming Initiatives (JPI) or the new European Partnerships through Horizon Europe, to support the participation of French teams in these calls. These actions are complementary to the other sections and funding of EU framework programmes.

The Agency is developing global or regional multilateral partnerships with its foreign counterparts beyond the scope of the EU, such as Belmont Forum calls in global environmental changes, the CRCNS programme in Computational Neurosciences, or the ORA programme in Social Sciences.

Ultimately, the ANR sets up dedicated calls for proposals as part of strategic bilateral collaborations for the State, to facilitate European and International collaborations. These are, on the one hand, the “International Collaborative Research Project” (PRCI) instrument for the Generic Call for Proposals (AAPG), dedicated to bilateral collaborations established between at least one French partner and one foreign partner, and, on the other hand, bilateral thematic calls undertaken independently of the AAPG, such as Franco-German FRDE calls in HSS. These agreements enable French researchers to propose projects with teams from one of the partner countries, and to build scientific communities without borders.