MSCA Researchers at Risk Call Opens for 2021
Marie Sklodowska-Curie actions (MSCA) are part of the Excellent Science pillar of Horizon Europe, which is designed to reinforce and extend the European Union’s excellent science base. The MSCA is the EU’s flagship programme to support scientific excellence and cooperation across countries, sectors and research fields. It aims to encourage more young people to make a career in research, promote its attractiveness for top talents from around the world, retain its own researchers and reintegrate those working elsewhere.
The MSCA provides ‘MSCA Support’ activities through calls for proposals to promote, support and complement the MSCA implementation. One such action is the support to European and national initiatives and programmes in support of researchers at risk.
The latest ‘Researchers at Risk’ Call has now launched, which builds on the results of the Researchers at Risk initiative ‘InSPIREurope’ launched under the MSCA in 2019. The call aims to provide further support for national and international organisations working with researchers at risk and to enhance and professionalise their activities.
The support action should take into consideration existing work and new challenges for researchers at risk, such as the consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic. It should further facilitate and strengthen cooperation and linkages between European, national and institutional initiatives and programmes, increasing awareness about why researchers are at risk, as well as identifying and delivering the best possible solutions.
The support action should be aligned with the general objectives of the MSCA, in particular scientific excellence, skills and career development, inter-sectoral mobility, equal opportunities and inclusiveness, attractive working conditions, work/life balance, while fostering open science, innovation and entrepreneurship. It should not duplicate other actions foreseen under Horizon Europe or other EU-funded programmes such as Erasmus+, but rather build synergies between these programmes.
The activities carried out under this support action should complement actions in Member States and third countries associated to Horizon Europe.
Projects supported through this Call Topic are expected to contribute to the following outcomes:
- A more consistent and sustained level of coordination and preparedness for supporting researchers at risk at European, national and institutional level.
- Improved support to researchers at risk through the provision of policy recommendations, as well as advice and assistance on their implementation.
- A more sustainable and professionalised support network/structure/system for researchers at risk across Europe, facilitating access to funding and networking opportunities, creating level playing field for applicants to European and national R&I programmes, and raising the quality of submitted proposals.
- More synergies between initiatives supporting researchers at risk funded by EU programmes (such as Horizon Europe and Erasmus+) and national or institutional actors.
- Increased exposure of researchers at risk to the industry and to the non-academic sector.
- Greater awareness in Europe and beyond on why researchers are at risk and ways to support them.
It is expected that an EU contribution of between €1 million and €1.5 million will be available through this Call Topic. The action is expected to last for 36 months.
Applications should be submitted via the Commission’s Funding and Tender’s Portal by 06 January 2022 deadline.