| Line of action | : | Science for society |
| Part of NWO Theme | : | Sustainable Earth |
| Secretariat | : | ALW |
| Apply | : | Yes, but at a later stage |
ZKO’s mission is to strengthen our understanding and knowledge of coastal development, the role of cycles and particle flows in relation to water quality, the carrying capacity for a sustainable yield of the ecosystem, changes in the biodiversity, the roles of the sea and ocean in climate change and the effects of climate change on the marine system. This understanding must provide the basis for possible predictions. ZKO wants to facilitate the cooperation between the different research institutes.
The aim of the national research programme is to generate a framework in which the full spectrum of Dutch sea and coastal research can take place. Efforts shall also be made to indicate how the institutes involved can jointly contribute to answering current research questions. The first two calls (principle lines 2 and 3) within the start programme were targeted at research proposals that contributed to the scientific analysis of a changing capacity of the Dutch marine system. With this current call, researchers are invited to submit proposals aimed at answering policy questions.
Principle line 1 is further specified in two research questions:
Funding proposals can be submitted by researchers from Dutch universities, NWO and KNAW institutes, Wageningen IMARES, Deltares and the KNMI. Employees of other research institutes can only submit applications if, in the opinion of the ALW Divisional Board, the following criteria are satisfied:
Proposals should be jointly submitted by researchers from a least 3 groups, from a least 2 different institutes and preferably with a combination of research focused on the natural sciences and research focussed on the humanities and social sciences. Each main applicant can submit one proposal. A grant is applied for by a single main applicant who acts as the contact person.
Applicants should possess documentary evidence from which it is apparent that the institute shall give the applicant the opportunity to satisfactorily supervise the research for the duration of the grant period. A statement from which it is clear that the applicant holds a tenured appointment at the institute where the research shall be conducted, or shall hold an appointment at the institute for the duration of the research, is sufficient evidence.
The research data shall be made freely available and applicants should be willing to cooperate in activities aimed at the exchange of knowledge such as the North Sea days, and meetings organised by the Wadden Academy and NWO.
Applicants are expected to assume responsibility for the scientific, organisational and financial aspects of the research for which a grant is applied for. If the grant is awarded then this shall mean, for example, that applicants shall be responsible for the progress reports and the scientific report at the end of the grant period.
Funding can be requested to cover all reasonable, additional costs that conducting the research entails, such as personnel (gross salary costs), material facilities (equipment, consumables, travel costs, etc) and fieldwork. Each cost category should be explained separately. No grant can be requested for the costs of supervision, student assistants, bench fees, overheads, general laboratory equipment, congress visit and publication costs, and maintenance and insurance costs. Main applicants may not request a position for themselves. The maximum grant is 500,000 euro per application funded.
Arguments as to why these expenditures are necessary for this research should be provided. Personnel: In the table you should state the number of man-months for which a PhD student or postdoc is requested. PhDs are requested for a period of 4 years and postdocs for a maximum of 3 years. The costs of consumables shall only be reimbursed if these are very specifically for the research and therefore cannot be integrally charged to the institute’s own budget. Standard office or laboratory items are not reimbursed. The maximum amount that can be requested for consumables is € 10,000 per annum per PhD/postdoc. Unless indicated otherwise, the rules and guidelines of the ALW Open Competition apply to the drawing up of the budget.
For each project awarded, a bench fee of € 5,000 shall be paid. This amount is for congress visits and publication costs.
After the deadline, applications can no longer be improved or added to.
The call for full proposals is only open to applicants who have submitted a preproposal by 3 November 2009. Further instructions shall be given regarding the recommendations related to the preproposals.
The application has two parts: a fact sheet and the research proposal. The fact sheet can be filled in electronically via Iris, NWO's electronic grant application system. The research proposal should be submitted using the application form which can be downloaded from the website. A copy of the form in PDF format should be sent with the electronic submission via Iris. Both the fact sheet and the research proposal should be completed in English.
The applications shall be evaluated according to the following criteria:
An international panel shall evaluate the full proposals and advise both the ZKO Programme Board and the Wadden Academy. The panel shall be appointed by the ALW Divisional Board based on a joint recommendation from the ZKO Programme Board and the Wadden Academy. At the end of June 2010, the ALW Divisional Board shall take a decision about the funding of full proposals based on the panel's evaluation, responses from the applicants and the recommendation of the ZKO Programme Board and the Wadden Sea Academy. Once per year throughout the course of the project, the submitters of funded proposals shall report to a joint meeting of the ZKO Programme Board and the Wadden Committee about the progress and direction of the project.
An international panel shall evaluate the full proposals and advise the ZKO Programme Board and the Wadden Academy. The panel shall be appointed by the ALW Divisional Board based on a joint recommendation by the ZKO Programme Board and the Wadden Academy. The international panel shall be made up of independent experts in the area of the social sciences and humanities, and the natural sciences.
For principle line 1 of the start programme, 1 million euro is available from ZKO. The Wadden Academy has made 0.5 million euro available for principle line 1, making the total amount available 1.5 million euro.
Contributions have been guaranteed by the Ministry of Education, Culture and Science, Ministry of Agriculture, Nature and Food Quality, Ministry of Transport, Public Works and Water Management, NWO and the NAM. Participating institutions have also promised contributions (in kind).
