NEWS

SOUTH AFRICA – FRANCE

SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY RESEARCH COOPERATION

 JOINT PROTEA CALL FOR PROJECT PROPOSALS

Protea has been created to develop the relationship between the French and South African scientific communities through joint research.

The purpose of the co-operative programme is to encourage an exchange between researchers and to develop a synergy between the two scientific communities, thereby developing a durable network.

The co-operative research projects funded under this agreement are developed and submitted in both countries by French and South African researchers, working as partner teams and headed by two team leaders, one French and one South African, who bear the main responsibility for the project, including its technical and administrative coordination as well as scientific and financial reporting.  In South Africa this call is open to MSc-holding (preferable PhD) researchers residing in the country and affiliated with a recognised higher education or research institution such as a university, university of technology or science council.

Each co-operative research project will run for a maximum duration of two years. Each project will aim to fulfil well-defined contractual objectives and will have to dispose of the necessary means to ensure that these objectives are effectively achieved.

Particular emphasis is to be placed on the training of students and young researchers achieved through research and the transfer of knowledge and know-how aimed at socio-economic community development.  Industrial and institutional partners involved in the projects or in the communication of its results should be officially mentioned and recognised. The integration of young researchers and students, and the exchange of post-doctoral researchers are encouraged, as is the involvement of students and researchers from previously-disadvantaged communities.

Each project financed will undergo a final evaluation in order to examine its outputs and compare the results achieved with the objectives set out at the beginning of the project.

Note that both scientific and financial reporting on the project is an obligatory condition for continued funding.

Sciences Po French Summer Programme

Sciences Po French Summer Programme is being launched this July 2012 in our Paris campus.

This programme is an intensive French language programme, tailor-made to improve your students' ability to talk about Social Sciences in French prior to the begining of their studies at Sciences Po. It relies on two pilot programmes organized in 2010 and 2011 in our regional campus of Le Havre, and on exchange students' needs, which have been evaluated all over the years .

It is a 4-weeks programme, which will took place from July 2 to 20, in our historical campus based in the heart of the city of Paris. Students who will be on exchange in one of our other campuses (Nancy, Dijon, Poitiers, Le Havre, Menton, Reims) are of course most welcome to attend  the programme and enjoy the summer in Paris !

Overall, 66 hours of French language lessons will be delivered, by a team of experimented teachers, all with a solid international background, making the teaching well-adapted to the needs of students coming from all over the world !

Application is easy, and will be done through our exchange online nomination system, from March 5 to April 15, 2012 

Call for proposals - Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Research (PEER) - USAID and NSF

The Partnerships for Enhanced Engagement in Research (PEER) program is now accepting proposals from developing country researchers interested in collaborating with their U.S. counterparts. We would like to request your help in circulating this information to scientists and engineers in your country so they can prepare and submit their proposals to meet the application deadline of November 30, 2011.

PEER is a new partnership between the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and the National Science Foundation (NSF) that is designed to address development challenges through international research collaboration. This competitive grants program will allow scientists in developing countries to apply for funds to support research and capacity-building activities in partnership with their NSF-funded collaborators on topics of importance to USAID. Areas in which both NSF and USAID have strong mutual interests include, but are not limited to, the following:

·         Food security topics such as agricultural development, fisheries, and plant genomics

·         Global health issues such as ecology of infectious disease, biomedical engineering, and natural/human system interactions

·         Climate change impacts such as water sustainability, hydrology, ocean acidification, climate process and modeling, and environmental engineering

·         Other development topics including disaster mitigation, biodiversity, water, and renewable energy

Proposals are being accepted from researchers in 79 eligible developing countries. Complete eligibility details, proposal submission instructions, and the application form are available at http://www.nationalacademies.org/peer. PEER is being implemented by the National Academies on behalf of USAID, and potential applicants with questions are invited to contact the program’s staff at peer@nas.edu.