Research Newsletter - Issue 102: Information and Updates

The European Research Executive Agency (REA) are seeking newly qualified experts with a relevant professional profile (e.g., holding a PhD, actively engaged in research, with recent publications, etc.)  to join the Social Sciences and Humanities (SOC) pool of evaluators.  If you are interested in evaluating MSCA Postdoctoral Fellowships 2025 applications as part of the SOC panel, please respond to the EU Survey - Call for Expression of Interest here.  

NOTE: this EU Survey/Call for Expressions of Interest is intended solely for experts in the social sciences and humanities, who are new to MSCA PF evaluation.

 Deadline to respond to this survey is March 24, 2025.

The Sustainable Authority of Ireland (SEAI) is currently preparing the 2025 Research Development and Demonstration (RD&D) funding call and carrying out a SEAI RDD Call Survey to review the programme in order to improve its reach and impact.

This short survey has two sections and should take around five minutes to complete. (Please note, questions will open as you proceed, as they are tailored to your specific answers as you progress through the survey).  The survey is open to SEAI RD&D awardees and applicants, PhDs, Postdocs & Research Support and Development Staff. 

The survey will close on 31st March.

The European Commission (EC) currently has a consultation open on the budget for the next multiannual financial framework (MFF) through which R&I programmes like Horizon Europe are funded. In order to ensure that the next MFF appropriately funds the right kind of research, DCU academics and research staff are encouraged to contribute to this process highlighting how their research could be better served by the EC’s support mechanisms. 

The consultation is open to anyone and runs until 6th May. You can fill out the survey here.

The DCU Research Ethics Committee (REC) has recently updated the templates for Participant Information Sheets and Informed Consent Forms.  New templates have also been designed for obtaining informed consent in anonymous online surveys with adults and children.  They are available in the REC Application Form, Amendment Form, and Templates section of the Research Ethics webpage and on the Research Ethics Application Portal on Loop.  Researchers are advised to use these templates when preparing research ethics applications to facilitate the review process. 

Enterprise Ireland introduced a number of updates in relation to their Horizon Europe Coordinator, Travel and ERC Support grants. Please see below for details:

• Time extensions no longer exist on Travel, Coordinator or ERC Support grants. The Horizon Europe proposals must be submitted within the 24-months timeframe of the grant and any unspent funds will need to be returned to EI
• In the case of maternity/paternity leave or long-term sick leave where a proposal is not submitted within the 24-month timeframe of the grant, EI will allow a PI to close the grant without requesting a refund. The PI may be asked to provide documentary evidence of their leave in a technical report

ERC Synergy Support Grants:  EI will now allow two PIs from the same Irish HEI to apply for two separate ERC Support grants to help prepare an ERC Synergy proposal. Previously, the rule only allowed PIs from two different Irish HEIs to apply.  

The European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) is a European intergovernmental framework which funds interdisciplinary research networks (not research).  These networks, called COST Actions, provide open spaces where researchers and innovators can connect, collaborate, and build their ideas together.

There are currently 33 ongoing COST Actions with available Management Committee (MC) seats for nominees from Ireland..  The MC is responsible for the coordination, implementation and management of an Action. 

For a full list of the COST Actions and more information on getting involved please email Christina Rushe: christina.rushe@dcu.ie

Examples of some actions with open seats include:

• CA23129: Peace Research Community Europe

• CA23124: Social, biological and climatic impacts of salt ages

• CA23115: Relativistic Quantum Information

• CA23149: Democratization at stake? Comparing Anti-Gender Politics in CEE and NME countries

DCU Research Development and Support are holding an online information session on the EU COST Action funding opportunity.  COST National coordinator David Flood and DCU call manager Christina Rushe will present giving a broad overview of the call and how to join.  

Click here to register for the session. 

The new Vitae website is now live and ready for use.  It has been designed especially for members and researchers, with features including:

• Easier navigation - a simpler site map means that you can access professional development, career planning, and skills resources all in one place.
• Comprehensive Vitae RDF resources - quickly access new resources and information about the Vitae Researcher Development Framework and how to help you with implementation in 2025.
• Clear access to membership benefits - access benefits for members such as details on events, the HR Excellence in Research Award, Vitae Three Minute Thesis, and more!

We’d love to hear your thoughts.  If you have feedback or spot any issues, please get in touch at membership@vitae.ac.uk.

The first of a new series of video interviews on research ethics matters with experienced researchers can be found here. In this video, Dr Michał Wieczorek, IRC Government of Ireland Fellow at the DCU Institute of Ethics, explains the rationale for ethics review of research projects.