Report

Teaser, summary, work performed and final results

Periodic Reporting for period 1 - MoRE2020 (Mobility for Regional Excellence 2020)

Teaser

Mobility for Regional Excellence 2020 (MoRE2020) is the continuation of the successful MoRE programme, which was co-financed by the Seventh Framework Programme. MoRE2020 provides experienced researchers with the chance to develop their skills and gain valuable new experiences...

Summary

Mobility for Regional Excellence 2020 (MoRE2020) is the continuation of the successful MoRE programme, which was co-financed by the Seventh Framework Programme. MoRE2020 provides experienced researchers with the chance to develop their skills and gain valuable new experiences in internationally renowned research and innovation milieus with excellent working conditions and strong triple helix components. It aims to increase the attractiveness of research and innovation careers in Europe, to foster excellence across the Union through smart specialization and to increase international and sectoral cooperation. Region Västra Götaland’s (VGR) smart specialisation represents a strategy for global competitiveness through the identification of areas in which the region excels and has clear advantages over other regions. The strategy builds on existing strengths, but also prepares and paves the way for new areas that may arise with shifts in industry or society. MoRE2020’s alignment with VGR’s 13 areas of strength and development anchor the programme in a wider socio-economic context.

The Regional Development Committee of VGR works to ensure a sustainable future for its residents through economic and social development. Västra Götaland, classified as an Innovation Leader by the EU Regional Innovation Scoreboard, has the possibility to become a leading knowledge region in Europe and is already home to world-class universities and global knowledge-intensive companies. The MoRE2020 programme was designed to complement the environment of innovation and development present in the region, and shall contribute to the following regional objectives:

• Attract internationally experienced researchers to Västra Götaland and increase international exchanges.
• Promote researcher mobility and career development for researchers.
• Position internationally competitive research and innovation milieus.
• Stimulate international research and innovation alliances and collaboration.
• Strengthen research-driven clusters within prioritised areas.

The promotion of international mobility for researchers enables the exchange of knowledge and experience, which are key elements in the innovation process, especially when mobility encourages collaboration between academia and industry. Therefore, international mobility is an important factor in a well-functioning regional innovation system. With increased innovation comes increased competitiveness and economic growth, providing opportunities for the residents of West Sweden both inside and outside of the research laboratory. MoRE2020’s focus on utilisation of results and collaboration with end-users ensures that its fellows can make a lasting contribution to society, in Västra Götaland and abroad.

Work performed

The MoRE2020 programme is comprised of two components: the recruitment period and the project implementation period. The programme’s three planned calls for proposals were released in quick succession, with all 20 researchers having received grants by Month 21, January 2019. The period between Month 22 and Month 60 are therefore characterized by the completion of MoRE2020 projects by the recruited fellows.
Months 1 to 21 were comprised of the launching of the programme, as well as the three calls for proposals. In total, the programme has received 67 applications, and following the completion of the third call for proposals, all 20 researchers have been awarded MoRE2020 grants. Of the awarded proposals, 7 are outgoing and 13 are incoming from five of the region’s six universities and from one of the region’s research institutes. The thematic research areas represented by the fellows are urban development, life science, marine environment and the maritime sector, energy, information and communication technology, green chemistry, sustainable production, food production/agriculture and forestry and material sciences. The ratio of male to female researchers is 60-40 %.

The application, evaluation and selection process of the three calls for proposals were undertaken without incident, including thorough ethics checks performed by the MoRE2020 Ethics Board. Of the 21 applications received during the first call, 19 were eligible for evaluation, of which 17 received scores high enough to be considered for funding. Of the 21 applications submitted to the second call for proposals, all were considered eligible for evaluation, and 19 received scores high enough to be considered for funding. Of the 25 applications submitted to the third call for proposals, 22 were eligible for evaluation, of which all received scores high enough to be considered for funding.

24 of the 67 submitted applications were deemed Excellent (the highest possible category) by the expert evaluators, while 18 were deemed Good. Four applications were considered ethically unsuitable for implementation under the MoRE2020 programme and were encouraged to reapply with reformed ethical plans to the coming calls. The MoRE2020 Programme Board ranked the applicable proposals according to the scores given by the experts, considering the ethical evaluation, the gender distribution of the applicants, as well as the applying milieus and research areas. Following this ranking, the proposals were submitted to the Regional Development Committee of Region Västra Götaland for the final decision.

During the first year of the programme the MoRE2020 Management Team implemented various communications activities to promote the programme, ensuring that the most important target group of researchers and West Swedish research and innovation milieus were reached. Activities included direct outreach to research groups and faculties, targeted informational meetings organized with the help of the Grants Offices personnel at the milieus, as well as the usage of social media to reach an even wider network of potential applicants. The number of high-quality applications is a testament to these targeted activities.
14 out of the 20 granted fellowships has now begun their projects. The fellows that are yet to begin with their projects are expected to do so during 2019, at latest in January 2020.

Final results

The awarded projects have all been deemed by both the expert evaluators and the MoRE2020 Programme Board to illustrate the state of the art and to address various societal challenges in their respective fields of research. The implementation of the awarded projects will lead to a strengthening of Region Västra Götaland’s smart specialisation strategy, further contributing to an innovative and leading knowledge region. The programme is expected to increase international collaboration between the participating research and innovation milieus, adding value not only to the research groups but also to the public and private sectors through the participation of industry or public sector end-users in each project. Potential impacts may be seen through collaboration with large multinational companies such as Volvo Cars and Ericsson, on a Swedish national level with collaborating end-users such as the Swedish Transport Administration or on a smaller scale working with local electricity companies, the local fishing industry or municipalities.

Website & more info

More info: http://www.vgregion.se/more.