Flanders and ESFRI

Marc LUWEL Hercules Foundation

May 2014

Overview

• Why are EU RIs important• Background information• 1st ESFRI evaluation round• Flemish participation at 6 ESFRI-projects• 2nd ESFRI evaluation round and funding• The road ahead ...

Why are EU RIs important ?

• Access to very expensive and/or decentralised top RIs necessary to remain or become a member of the top league in many disciplines

• Membership of a consortium facilitates partnership in other consortia (EU-FP, industry, ...)

• Training of Ma and PhD-students

Background

• No large scale Flemish plan with a roadmap

• Step by step approach with a learning curve but based on the strengths of Flanders’ R&I landscape

• Bottom up meets top down

• Interplay between EU decision making, Flemish science and innovation policy and research management

• Under difficult financial circumstances ►additional funding

1st ESFRI evaluation round in Flanders (1)

• First ESFRI roadmap was published in 2006

• Dept. EWI and FWO made in 2006-2007 a small survey among universities about potential interest in ESFRI-RIs

• In 2008 the Flemish Minister of Science and Innovation preselected 8 ESFRI projects based on the outcome of survey and the emerging priorities in Flemish S&T policy to check the available scientific potential to participate

1st ESFRI evaluation round in Flanders (2)• Methodology:

– For each project – a Flemish consortium– Proposal for a Flemish participation (explaining

added value for Flanders)– Review similar to the scientific evaluation of

proposals for large scale RIs under calls form the Hercules Foundation

• Written review reports • Evaluation by Co Hercules-Science, the Hercules

Foundation’s evaluation commission but with criteria taking ESFRI context into account

• Advise to the Flemish Minister

1st ESFRI evaluation round in Flanders (3)

• Outcome– Decision by the Flemish Government to

participate at 5 projects : ESSurvey (KU Leuven), ICOS (UAntwerpen), LifeWatch (VLIZ), SHARE (UAntwerpen), PRACE (TIER1 - UGent)

– + INSTRUCT (VIB-VUB)

– Outstanding Flemish consortia – 3 participate at RI central unit (ESSurvey, ICOS & LifeWatch)

+ 1 reference lab (INSTRUCT)

Decision at EU level to set up an ESFRI RI

• ESFRI – member states and associated countries

• EU regulation on ESFRI (ERIC) – only countries

• For each ESFRI RI – a consortium of countries– Agrees to fund the construction and

exploitation– Creates a legal entity (mostly an ERIC)– (Often possibility to become member at a

later stage)

Decision at the Belgian level to participate at an EFRI RI

• In Belgium all competent authorities agreed on a framework for participating in an ESFRI infrastructure

– Only 1 entity ► notification

– 2 or more entities: collaboration agreement• Membership fee• Contributions (€ and in-kind)• Delegates sitting at the board and advisory

committees

Funding 1st round ESFRI projects• Federal Government: membership fees

• Flanders:– In-kind: ICOS, LifeWatch, INSTRUCT, PRACE

– Since 2012: Hercules Foundation gets funding to support participation at ESFRI projects (dedicated funding):• Annual grant to ESSurvey, ICOS, LifeWatch

and SHARE (in 2014: total 4 mio euro)• Objective: long-term contracts (3 to 5 years)

2nd ESFRI evaluation round

• In 2011 the Flemish Minister asked the Hercules Foundation and the dept. EWI to set up a 2nd ESFRI evaluation round

• Survey among universities and SOCs with 2 questions re RIs on the 2010 update of the ESFRI roadmap:– RIs: Flanders has scientific capacity and interest

to participate in their construction and exploitation

– RIs: Flemish researchers want access (access fee)

2nd ESFRI evaluation round – 1st list (1)

• 1st list: 12 RIs

• For 9 RIs a Flemish PI was identified and asked– to form a Flemish consortium– to draft a proposal for a Flemish

participation

• 8 proposals were submitted (not for ELIXIR)

• Evaluation similar to 1st round

2nd ESFRI evaluation round – 1st list (2)• Advice of the Commission Hercules-Science

– All 8 proposals could potentially contribute to ESFRI RI and they were ranked

– Different degree of maturity (partly explained by the early stage of preparatory phase at EU level)

– Top ranked: INSTRUCT, EMBRC, ANAEE and DARIAH (major review)

2nd ESFRI evaluation round – 1st list (3)• BBMRI, EATRIS & ECRIN: the Flemish minister asked to

postpone the preparation of a proposal till the decision making process re CMI was finalised

• May 2013 CMI was asked to take the lead in drafting a proposal for a Flemish participation at these 3 projects

► Only for BBMRI a full proposal► For ELIXIR and ECRIN a roadmap to prepare a proposal

• Hercules Foundation set up an Ad-hoc panel of experts to give an advice (December 2013)

2nd ESFRI evaluation round – 1st list (4)ELIXIR

– Since 1st round increasing awareness of importance of ELIXIR for Flemish research

– Interest of other Belgian entities– Hercules Foundation asked VIB to take the

lead in drafting a proposal– Proposal submitted April 28, 2014– Review in progress

2nd ESFRI evaluation round – 2nd list

• 12 ESFRI projects – demand for access on a user fee base

• Monitoring the creation of the legal entities because information about user fees and access policy (for non-members) in the statutes or documents in annex

• Important work in progress

Funding 2nd ESFRI-round (1)

• A proposal submitted under the 3rd call for large scale RIs for an ECOTRON (potentially in-kind contribution to ANAEE) (with excellent review but no funding) (UHasselt)

► the Flemish Government provided in 2013 additional funding

• In 2014 the Flemish Government provided 10 mio € additional funding for RI (a fraction earmarked for ESFRI)

Funding 2nd ESFRI-round (2)

March 19, 2014 the Hercules Foundation Board decided to allocate:

– 3 mio euro for an upgrade of INSTRUCT-Flanders (project operational)

– To prepare the Flemish participation at: • EurobioImaging (2.5 mio euro)• EMBRC (1 mio euro)• DARIAH (300.000 euro)(3 decentralised RIs – investments in Flanders)

Road ahead .... (1)

Next Flemish Government:

Hercules Foundation will provide an integrated advice on the participation in the period 2015- 2020 in ESFRI RIs (status of Flemish participation, proposals for additional participations)

Input →Input →– Thematic decisions– Allocation of additional funding

Road ahead ... (2)

Hercules Foundation together with the Europa Platform of Dept. EWI:

► Contact with firms – ESFRI possibilities for high tech companies

► Informing universities, SOCs, ...

► Evaluation of the Flemish participation at ESFRI RIs (in lock step with evaluation at EU level)

www.herculesstichting.be

http://ec.europa.eu/research/infrastructures/index_en.cfm?pg=esfri

Thank you

2nd round – ESFRI RIs - 1st list• INSTRUCT• EMBRC• ANAEE• DARIAH• INFRAFRONTIER• EUROBIOIMAGING• EU-OPENSCREEN• CLARIN

• BBMRI• EATRIS *• ECRIN *

• ELIXIR **

2nd round – ESFRI RIs – 2nd list ‘user fee’

• CESSDA - Council of Europe Social Science Data Archives• EURO-ARGO: Global Ocean Observing Infrastructure• EMSO - European Multidisciplinary Seafloor Observatory• SIOS - The Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing

System• ERINHA - European High Security BSL4 Laboratories• European XFEL (X-ray Free Electron Laser)• EMFL : European Magnetic Field Laboratory• EuroFEL (ex-IRUVX-FEL)• ELI - Extreme Light Infrastructure• SKA - Square Kilometre Array