France Canada Research Fund+

Eligibility

The FCRF+ eligibility criteria are the following:

• Both PIs must be former winners (selected anytime from 2001 to 2023) of the FCRF “New research collaboration program” competition. The application must be submitted by the FCRF winning duo.
• The Canadian researcher must be affiliated with a member of one of the 23 FCRF consortium member universities listed below.
• The French researcher must be affiliated with a research institution under the supervision of the French Ministry of Higher Education and Research.
• The 2 PIs must be in permanent or tenure-track positions.
• PIs must have identified an external call for proposals.

Summary

The France-Canada Research Fund (FCRF) is launching a new funding program for 2025, entitled FCRF+, to support existing research partnerships between France and Canada.

The objective of the FFCR+ competition is to support France-Canada teams that have been successful in obtaining a previous FCRF grant and wish to continue their collaboration by setting up ambitious research projects, with a view to submitting joint applications to external calls for proposals (non-exhaustive list: Horizon Europe, the French Agence nationale de la recherche (National Research Agency), Canada’s three federal research funding agencies, NFRF – Exploration and Transformation streams).

The FCRF+ competition is open to all fields of research. Funding of up to $5,000 CAD will be awarded to around fifteen projects in 2025 to cover mobility costs according to the needs expressed in the application. This grant will facilitate meetings between the two partners, which may include travel by one partner to the other partner's location or any other activity that helps develop the future joint project. Funding is intended for principal investigators (PIs), not students.

Funds will be managed by the Canadian university to which the project is affiliated and will be available for one year. 

Please note that indirect costs are not eligible to be covered by these funds.

Overhead

Not allowable.

Application deadlines

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.

Application to the FCRF+ competition

The English version of the application form is available at this LINK. The French version is available
at this LINK.

The form must be completed by both PIs. They must:
• answer the preliminary questions and specify the research theme(s)
• identify the two FR/CA PIs and their respective institutions
• present previous and current joint work, preliminary results, the complementary nature of the teams and, if applicable, the novelty of the partnership
• give details of the call for proposals targeted by the two researchers (funding agency, key dates, success rate, theme, amount of the potential funding)
• describe the activities leading up to the submission of a proposal to the targeted external call for proposals, including the involvement of each partner
• detail the budget items that add up to $5,000 CAD from the FCRF would be used to cover (possible co-financing)

Both researchers must provide their respective short CVs.

The application must be sent as a single PDF file. The name of this electronic file must include the surname of the French PI, followed by that of the Canadian PI, and “FCRF+” (e.g.:
FRname_CAname_FFCR+.pdf).

The application must be submitted electronically to the Embassy of France in Canada at:
assistant.science@ambafrance-ca.org 

Candidates selected by the executive committee agree to complete a short survey.
The selected candidates will also be expected to match expenditures with the submitted budget and to provide a financial report within 30 days of the end of activities to the University of Ottawa’s Finance Department at: Finances.Recherche@uOttawa.ca

In order to promote the FFCR community, the selected candidates are encouraged to share information on team travel between Canada and France, as well as feedback, with their FCRF correspondent. Candidates may also be asked individually to share their experiences.

If you have any questions about the program, please contact The Embassy of France in Canada at:
assistant.science@ambafrance-ca.org 
Tel.: (+1) 613-562-3794

Additional Resources

Using RMS:

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award LOI

RMS: Creating a Pre-Award Application

Support for projects involving Indigenous Research:

Support with the development of your grant application is available internally through the Indigenous Research Support Team (IRST). Applicants can reach out by email to IRST at IRST@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information about IRST, please visit the IRST webpage.

Support for Knowledge Engagement:

Support for knowledge mobilization/engagement/translation is available internally through the Knowledge Engagement Team. Applicants can reach out by email to the KE team at knowledge.engagement@ucalgary.ca in advance of the RSO internal deadline. For more information, please visit the KE team webpage.

Support for Research Data Management:

For information on research data management plans, processes, or best practices for your research program, please contact research.data@libanswers.ucalgary.com and/or visit https://libguides.ucalgary.ca/researchdatamanagement.

Support for EDI in Research:

RSO can provide resources and support to research teams on the integration of equitable and inclusive practices in research design and research practice. Contact Erin.OToole@ucalgary.ca for more information.