We are pleased to announce that between 14 November 2023 and 12 January 2024, a call for proposals will be open at the Slovenian agency ARIS within the framework of the Weave Programme, with the Slovenian agency acting as the lead agency.

Under the Weave-UNISONO call, if a joint proposal must be submitted to ARIS as the lead agency by 12 January 2024, an NCN proposal must be submitted electronically via the OSF submission system as soon as possible following the submission of the joint proposal to ARIS, by 19 January 2024, 23:59 p.m. at the latest.

PLEASE NOTE: Once the work on the NCN proposal has started in the OSF submission system, the Polish research team has 45 calendar days to complete the proposal and submit it to the NCN. After that, the proposal can no longer be edited, in which case a Polish research team that has not sent its proposal to the NCN must prepare a new proposal and complete it in the OSF submission system.

PLEASE NOTE: NCN proposals processed in the OSF submission system in 2023, with an exchange rate of 1 EUR = 4.7244 PLN, must be completed in and submitted via the OSF submission system by 31 December 2023, 23:59:59. Otherwise, the proposal can no longer be edited, in which case a Polish research team must prepare a new proposal (with an exchange rate of 1 EUR = 4. 5940 PLN) and complete it in the OSF submission system. If a joint proposal has already been submitted to the lead agency, with the budget of the Polish part of the project calculated according to another exchange rate, the NCN proposal will be inconsistent with the joint proposal and may result in the proposal being rejected on the grounds that it does not meet the eligibility criteria.

21 more Polish teams will conduct their research in tandem with German, Slovenian, Austrian and Czech partners under the OPUS 24+LAP/Weave scheme. The NCN has slated a total of more than 33.7 million zlotys in funding for their projects. Meet the latest winners.

Of all calls in the NCN portfolio, OPUS has the broadest formula, targeting researchers at all stages of their academic career. In its 24th round, researchers working at Polish research institutions could win funding not just for domestic research projects, but also wider international ventures based on the Lead Agency Procedure (LAP). Under LAP, they could plan their research in cooperation with teams from Austria, Czech Republic, Slovenia, Germany, Switzerland, Luxembourg or Belgium-Flanders.

As the Lead Agency in the programme, the National Science Centre was responsible for the full merit-based evaluation of all proposals, which then had to be approved by international partner agencies. The Polish teams will be funded by the NCN, while their partners’ funding will come from their respective institutions in Germany, Slovenia, Czech Republic and Austria.

Bi- and trilateral projects

The ranking list features 13 bilateral projects with Germany, 5 bilateral projects with Slovenia, and 3 trilateral projects: Polish-German-Austrian, Polish-Slovenian-Austrian, and Polish-Slovenian-Czech, in different research disciplines: 3 in Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, 5 in Life Sciences, and 13 in Physical Sciences and Engineering.

In Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, Dr hab. Anna Horolets from the University of Warsaw has teamed up with Prof. Alexandra Nadine Schwell from the University of Klagenfurt and Prof. Saša Poljak Istenič from the Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts to study the European policy of climate-neutrality for cities and its local interpretations. They will analyse which climate-change issues are seen as especially urgent in several cities that have joined the EU Mission 100 action, which aims to deliver 100 climate-neutral cities by 2030. The researchers will be following the process of transition toward climate neutrality in Warsaw, Klagenfurt and Lubljana. The NCN has awarded more than 1.2 million zlotys to the Polish part of the project.

In the Life Sciences panel, researchers from Poland and Slovenia will work on a project focused on the development of new therapies for inflammatory diseases. Chronic inflammation is involved in the pathogenesis of various disorders, such as arthritis, arterial sclerosis, irritable bowel syndrome, cancer and even depression. Dr hab. Anna Więckowska from the Jagiellonian University Medical College and Prof. Izidor Sosič from the University of Ljubljana will join forces to obtain the first-in-class anti-inflammatory PROTAC molecules that can degrade protein kinases TAK1 and IKKβ. The project was awarded more than 2 million zlotys in funding by the NCN.

Winners in Physical Sciences and Engineering include a Polish-German project to be hosted by the Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center, PAS, headed by Dr. hab. Rodolfo Henrique Smiljanic, in cooperation with Prof. Norbert Christlieb from Heidelberg University.  Entitled “The old Milky Way: a holistic approach for the accurate analysis of metal-poor stars”, this innovative project will try to identify the precise atmospheric parameters of metal-poor stars and their chemical composition. These findings will then help them reconstruct the properties of the first sources of chemical elements of stellar origin in the Universe. The budget of the Polish part of the project is more than 2 million zlotys.

Lead Agency Procedure – LAP

In the latest OPUS 24+LAP/Weave call researchers could request funding for projects conducted without international partners, as well as bilateral or trilateral LAP projects involving foreign cooperation or access to large international research equipment. The call was open to researchers at every stage of their academic career. LAP is a new proposal evaluation standard adopted by European research-funding institutions, designed to facilitate the funding proposal process for international research teams and streamline proposal review.

The domestic part of OPUS 24+LAP/Weave concluded in May. Ranking lists for partner countries under the LAP procedures are being successively published as their funding-agencies approve the results.

Decisions and their delivery

All the positive and negative decisions for OPUS LAP proposals recommended for funding under OPUS LAP in cooperation with German Research Foundation (DFG), Slovenian Research Agency (ARIS), DFG and the Austrian Science Fund (FWF), ARIS and the Czech Science Foundation (GACR) and ARIS and FWF were sent out today. The decisions of the NCN Director are served on the applicant electronically, to the e-mail address indicated in the proposal.

If the applicant is an entity referred to in Article 27 (1)-(7) and (9) of the Act on the National Science Centre, the decision will only be delivered to the Electronic Delivery Inbox (ESP ePUAP) provided in the proposal. If the applicant is a natural person and has listed an ePUAP address in the proposal, the decision will be sent to that address. Otherwise, a message will be sent to the applicant’s indicated e-mail account, containing a link from which the decision of the NCN Director can be downloaded.

The funding decisions of the Director of the National Science Centre are also communicated to the principal investigator and, if the applicant is a natural person, to the host institution indicated in the proposal.

If you do not receive a decision, please make sure that the address (ESP, ePUAP, e-mail) listed in your proposal is correct. If not, contact the person in charge of the proposal, as indicated in the OSF system.

Europe is strong-willed to boost European scientific advantage and excellence in Quantum Technologies (QT), and to expand a competitive European industry in QT creating environment where quantum innovation can thrive attracting investments in this field. National policies act as the foundation upon which Europe's quantum future is built. They provide the necessary framework for countries to invest strategically, collaborate effectively, and contribute to the European leadership in QT.

The QuantERA research funding programme, which brings together the scientific community, funding agencies, and industry representatives to leverage transnational cooperation in QT, continuously monitors the evolving landscape of national quantum programmes and approaches.  

In 2023 QuantERA mapped and illustrated developments in QT programming in the second edition of the report Quantum Technologies Public Policies in Europe. The publication delivers a snapshot of the European policies, as well as funding instruments provided by relevant Research Funding Organisations. It gives a comprehensive view of the current quantum landscape, offering valuable data and analysis, which can serve as a reference and toolkit for policymakers to shape the future development of QT at national and the European level.

The report is the result of the joint efforts of the QuantERA Consortium partners, supported by the EC and the QT Flagship. It summarizes the findings from an inventory conducted among 31 European Union member states and associated countries. In addition to an overview of national and regional policies for QT, the publication includes information on new developments with regard to the previous publication –  Quantum Technologies Public Policies in Europe, 2020.

While providing an overview of the current state of QT in Europe, QuantERA’s report points also the readers to the horizons of the field’s landscape enabling them to look beyond and identify the next steps forward to increase European potential in QT.

The JPI Urban Europe Network has concluded its BTC ENUTC Call 2023. The winners include two international research projects involving researchers from Poland. PLN 1.3 million will be awarded for research. 

The JPI Urban Europe supports researchers pursuing international interdisciplinary research projects responding to the challenges of cities and urban areas. The call launched this year (Building transformation capacity through arts and design: Unlocking the full potential for urban transitions) was focused on urban development and development of urban areas. 

The BTC ENUTC call was open to researchers working in the Polish research institutions and intending to pursue international research projects in partnership with researchers from Belgium. Bulgaria, Latvia, the Netherlands, Romania or Sweden.

The winning applicants included five international research projects, two of which involved researchers from Poland. They will be awarded over PLN 1.3 million.

• unLoc – Exploring the synergy of human and machine creativity in architecture. Redesigning urban space through machine learning, artistic expression, and community collaboration.

  Jacek Złoczowski from the Pedagogical University of Krakow is the principal investigator of the Polish research team. The project budget is over PLN 900,000.

  The project aims to develop a method of redesigning cities and buildings with a difficult history by using post-communist architecture as an exemplary manifestation and redefining their form and meaning. Researchers will recommend new functions and strategies of transformations of buildings to adjust them to the needs of their residents. In the project, they will use the machine learning algorithms that will help them create alternative pictures of urban areas. 

• The Urban Food Factory (Miejska Fabryka Żywności) – A web-based decision support manual to reuse inner-city multi-storey carparks for controlled environment agriculture.

  Monika Anna Szopińska-Mularz from the z Rzeszów University of Technology is the principal investigator of the Polish research team. The project will be awarded funding of nearly PLN 415,000.

  The project aims to demonstrate how adaptive reuse of car parking structures for controlled environment agriculture can strengthen urban social, economic and environmental resilience. A web-based decision support manual will be developed for the creation of Urban Farming Living Labs. Interactive 3D models will be created to improve understanding of the concept.

NCN within the JPI Urban Europe network

The National Science Centre has cooperated with the JPI Urban Europe Network since 2015 in the organisation of calls for proposals aimed at researchers pursuing international research projects in the area of urban issues and challenges. So far, Polish researches have had an opportunity to apply for funding in seven calls of JPI Urban Europe.

The MINIATURA 7 call for research activities was open to researchers employed at the Polish research institutions who were conferred their PhD degree after 1 January 2011. The NCN funding will allow the early-stage researchers to get their first grant implementation experience and to prepare the basis for research projects that will be later submitted to the NCN calls or other national or international calls for proposals. 

Sixth ranking list 

Research activities under MINIATURA 7 can be carried out in the form of preliminary/pilot studies, library and archive searches, fellowships, research visits and/ or consultations. The winners of the sixth and final round of the call address a variety of research subjects important and relevant for the societies and the environment of the 21st century. The subjects include human existence in virtual reality, optimisation of disease therapy or innovative methods of counteracting the negative impact of civilisation development and human activity in nature.

The largest group of winners on the ranking list represents Life Sciences. They will carry our 98 research activities worth a total of over PLN 4.5 million, including activities oriented towards improving or seeking new therapies for human diseases, including cancer. Paweł Hikisz from the University of Lodz will carry out a preliminary/pilot study as part of the activity entitled “Pyrazoline derivatives condensed with chromanone or flavanone in colorectal cancer therapy: analysis of molecular anticancer activities”. Joanna Bogusławska from the Medical Centre of Postgraduate Education will address the impact of probiotic strain L. lactis on gene expression in keratinocytes, looking for therapeutic potential in the treatment of psoriasis.

82 researchers selected in Physical Sciences and Engineering will tackle, inter alia, the problems of natural or man-made disasters disasters. One of the funded activities is a fellowship of Piotr Kopka from the National Centre for Nuclear Research who will travel to Japan where he will be involved in the reconstruction of the source term from the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Accident using the JRODOS system and measurement data at the Fukushima University. Emilia Karamuz will research the application of novel measurement methods to improve the description and modelling of drought at the Institute of Geophysics, Polish Academy of Sciences. Nearly PLN 3.2 million will be spent on research activities in the field of Physical Sciences and Engineering. 

In Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences, the MINIATURA grants will go to 58 researchers, including Marcin Rządeczka from the Maria Curie-Skłodowska University in Lublin who will go on a research visit to analyse the therapeutic chatbots bias in artificial intelligence mental health technology algorithmic fairness bias mitigation strategies. Dagmara Gałajda from the University of Silesia in Katowice will carry out a preliminary/pilot study on Generation Z, group dynamics, communicative competence, willingness to communicate, digital body language, well-being, Danish higher education, and Polish higher education. Over PLN 1.6 million will be spent on research activities in the field of Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences.

The sixth ranking list – funding per panel

• Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences: 58 research activities, PLN 1,642,014  
• Physical Sciences and Engineering: 82 activities, PLN 3,193,840
• Life Sciences: 98 activities, PLN 4,563,147

The total value of research activities on the MINIATURA 7 ranking list is exactly PLN 9,399,001.

About MINIATURA 7

The main objective of the call is to finance research activities carried out in preparation for future research projects that will be submitted to NCN calls for proposals, as well as other domestic and international calls. Researchers can apply for funding from PLN 5,000 to PLN 50,000 for a research activity planned over a period of up to 12 months.

Funds for research activities carried out under the MINIATURA 7 call were divided proportionally between the months during which proposals were accepted. In this edition, the submission deadline was 31 July 2023.

Funding 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.

Karolina Ćwiek-Rogalska, Łukasz Opaliński and Katharina Boguslawski will deliver lectures in the “Science at the Centre” series launched by the Copernicus Centre and the National Science Centre. The first meeting will be held on 14 November.

The first “Science at the Centre” lectures were delivered by the 2020 NCN Award winners. Together with the Copernicus Centre for Interdisciplinary Studies, we have already hosted nine meetings which had over 246 thousand viewings.  

The first lecture this year will be delivered by Karolina Ćwiek-Rogalska, 2023 NCN Award winner in Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences. She specialises in cultural studies, Czech studies and ethnology at the Institute of Slavic Studies, Polish Academy of Sciences. Her lecture is entitled: “Things acting as “ghosts”. Displacements and emergence of new cultures in Central Europe”.

This is how she announces her talk: 

“We often think about ghosts as the spirits of the dead haunting the living. But what if we understood them as material remains, bringing to light overlooked past and enabling us to grasp the experience of the otherness? I propose such an approach in research on the effects of displacement associated with the end of WWII when territories previously inhabited by German and German-speaking communities were forced to migrate from today’s Poland, Czechia and Slovakia, and replaced by new inhabitants. What was the settlers’ experiences with things and spaces the previous inhabitants had left behind? How was it remembered and how does it live on in the memory of the next generations? I will answer these questions using the research tools of cultural anthropology (in particular, participant observations and field interviews) and archive material analysis, and will discuss the new cultures of Poland’s “Recovered Territories” and Czech "pohraničí.”

The lecture will be streamed online on the YouTube Channel of the Copernicus Center, on 14 November at 6 p.m. and will be followed by a discussion. Participants are welcome to ask questions.

The next lecture will be delivered on 28 November by Prof. Łukasz Opaliński, 2023 NCN Award winner in Life Sciences and the last lecture will be given by Prof. Katharina Boguslawski, 2023 NCN Award winner in Physical Sciences and Engineering.

More information:

NCN Award ceremony

NCN podcast on NCN Award, featuring K. Ćwiek-Rogalskiej and Prof. Joanna Golińska-Pilarek, NCN Council member.