NSERC-German Research Foundation (DFG) call for proposals on Sustainable Processes and Chemistry

Eligibility

Who can apply?

If you are a Canadian university researcher who is eligible to receive NSERC funds, you can apply on your own or as a team with co-applicants who are also eligible academic researchers. You must also include at least one academic collaborator from Germany who meets DFG’s eligibility requirements. For this collaborative call for proposals, collaborators and partner organizations from outside academia are not permitted. You are limited to one application as either Canadian principal applicant or co-applicant.

German Collaborators

Your German collaborator(s) must be from the academic sector and must meet DFG’s eligibility criteria.

For this collaborative call for proposals, collaborators and partner organizations from outside academia are not permitted.

Summary

Overview

Canada and Germany enjoy long-standing cooperation in science and technology. Recognizing the importance of international collaboration in promoting scientific discoveries, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada (NSERC) and the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) have signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) on research cooperation. The MOU provides an overarching framework to enhance opportunities for collaborative activities between Canadian and German research communities and sets out the principles for developing jointly supported activities.

To facilitate the support of collaborative work between Canadian researchers and their German counterparts under this MOU, NSERC and the divisions of Physics and Chemistry (PC) and Engineering Sciences (ING 1) at the DFG are pleased to announce a call for proposals focused on Sustainable Processes and Chemistry. The proposed Canada-Germany collaborative research projects must focus on basic and fundamental research and are expected to generate new knowledge and address one or more research challenges related to environmental sustainability. Typical, but not exclusive, examples include

• sustainable polymerizations
• novel types of catalysts or catalytic reactions
• separation and purification technologies
• sustainable chemistry and engineering
• tools for life-cycle assessment

Applicants are encouraged to incorporate multi- and interdisciplinary approaches in their research and to look at systems and processes as a whole rather than one component of a system or process. Collaborative research proposals will be accepted to DFG subject areas 321 to 327 and 403 and 404 (refer to DFG’s subject classification).

Submission Process

This competition will be run through Research Management System (RMS).

1. Complete your application in the NSERC On-line system following the steps mentioned here. Once the application is complete (including required attachments and your CCV), verify each section, and then press "Submit". Your application will be sent to the Research Services Office. Please ensure your application is final and complete; Research Services will not review drafts, and, once received, your application may be submitted to NSERC without further notice. 

 2. Complete the Pre-Award/Application record in RMS (login at https://research.ucalgary.ca/rms) and “Submit for academic approvals” (Under Save & Progress) in good time to allow for approvals from your Department Head and/or ADR prior to the Research Services deadline. Consult your department and faculty for more information on their approval processes and timelines.  

Both the RMS record and the application in the portal must be received by RSO by the internal deadline of Dec 2, 2022 at noon. 

• Please note, your application will not be considered submitted and will not be reviewed until both the application is submitted in the Research Portal (a paper copy is not required) and the RMS Approvals have been received. As Alliance is a rolling intake, once we have received both the completed RMS record and the NSERC application in the NSERC portal, please indicate if you would like a basic (allowable turnaround time is 3 days) review or a detailed (allowable turnaround time is 2 weeks) review.

• The detailed review includes a detailed review of the application, checking for eligibility and UofC commitments and risk, compliance with program guidelines, completeness of application, and the opportunity for feedback to improve the application.

• The basic administrative review involves a minimal check of the application for eligibility and any UofC commitment or risk.

Stage 2: Submission done by German Collaborator (UCalgary RSO is not involved in this process)

NSERC will provide an Invitation to submit letter to Canadian applicants, which must be appended to the joint Canada-Germany collaborative research proposal as a supplementary document. Only proposals that have been invited to submit will be accepted by DFG. The collaborative proposals must be submitted by German principal investigators to a participating DFG program using the appropriate DFG submission process. Full applications are not submitted to NSERC. Proposals must be submitted to DFG by June 6, 2023, 5 p.m. (CEST) German time. 

Resources

• Application instructions
• Merit Evaluation criteria
• Eligibility
• Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
• Policy on Intellectual Property
• How to complete 100A

Relevant Documents

edi-trainingplan_e.pdf

proposal_template-alliance_international_grants_e.docx

aichecklist_e.pdf

Application deadlines

RSO final internal review deadline

Program application deadline

NOTE: Consult your Faculty Associate Dean (Research) (ADR) regarding Faculty-specific deadlines and submission processes.

Principal Investigators: Complete a Research Management System (RMS) record, including a copy of your complete application, and submit this for approvals in RMS.

Postdocs, students, and trainees: For fellowships and externally-sponsored research training awards or opportunities, you must complete the Research Funding Application Approval (RFAA) Trainee PDF form, and submit it, along with a complete copy of the application, to Research Services at rsotrainee@ucalgary.ca. Trainees should not use RMS at this time.

Approvals: The University of Calgary requires that all funding applications be approved prior to submission. Approval requires signatures via either RMS or the RFAA Trainee form, in the following order:

• Principal Investigator
• Department Head
• Faculty ADR/Dean
• Research Services (on behalf of the Vice-President Research)

Read the Meaning of Grant Signatures policy to understand what your approval means. Please see the agency guidelines for details about which signatures are required on your application, as it may differ from internal requirements.

Late submissions: Late submissions will only be accepted in cases of medical or family emergencies, or other exceptional circumstances. If you submit your RMS record to Research Services after the internal deadline has passed, you must secure additional approvals. Please read: Late Applications Process.