It’s official: UK to associate to Horizon Europe
After more than two and a half years of uncertainty and negotiations, the UK government and the European Commission (EC) have reached a landmark agreement to enable the UK's association with Horizon Europe. This momentous announcement brings a sigh of relief to UK and EU scientists who have been in limbo since 2021, uncertain about their future in collaborative research endeavours. This article explores the significance of this agreement, its implications for UK scientists and researchers, and the rocky road that led to this crucial decision.
A Milestone Agreement
The joint statement released today (7th September 2023) by the UK government and the European Commission marks a turning point in UK-EU relations, particularly in the realm of scientific cooperation. EC President Ursula von der Leyen aptly described this agreement as proof of the EU and UK's status as key strategic partners and allies. This collaboration reaffirms their commitment to being leaders in global science and research.
Under the terms of this deal, UK scientists will regain access to European Research Council (ERC) grants and will be able to coordinate academic-industrial consortia within the Framework program. This move ends the period during which UK researchers had to rely on UK equivalent grants and funding, and it paves the way for seamless integration into Horizon Europe.
Addressing Past Uncertainties
While UK academics have been able to participate in industrially-focused Pillar 2 projects of the Horizon program, the uncertainty surrounding the UK's long-term involvement caused UK participation in the program to decrease significantly. This reduction raised concerns that UK scientists might be excluded from vital European academic networks that had been cultivated over decades.
UK-based winners of ERC grants faced a difficult choice between relocating to the EU to maintain their awards or settling for UK equivalent schemes. This decision was fraught with uncertainty and implications for both individuals and the broader scientific community.
The Long and Winding Road to Association
The journey to re-associate with Horizon Europe has been characterised by twists and turns, and it has been far from straightforward. Initially, the Horizon association was agreed upon in principle at the end of 2020, as part of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement that outlined post-Brexit relations between the UK and the EU. All that was required to formalize this association was the signature of both parties.
However, 2021 saw relations sour over the Northern Ireland issue, as the UK government threatened to suspend parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol. This protocol was designed to prevent customs checks on the island of Ireland and to ensure continued peace. The EC, in response to the unresolved Northern Ireland dispute, withheld its approval for the Horizon association.
The Horizon association became intertwined with broader political disputes, remaining elusive until February of the following year when the Windsor Framework addressed the Northern Ireland issue. Despite this progress, negotiations continued to stall, with the UK seeking assurances to prevent substantial financial losses from its late entry into the program.
Details of the Agreement
While today's announcement does not explicitly detail how negotiators resolved these financial concerns, it does mention a "temporary and automatic mechanism" designed to address any significant financial underperformance by the UK. If the UK contributes 16% more than its scientists receive in grants, this mechanism would activate. The UK is set to contribute "almost €2.6 billion" annually for its participation in Horizon Europe.
Additionally, the agreement confirms that the UK will remain part of the EU's Copernicus satellite system, despite initial concerns that the UK had already missed significant calls under the program. Copernicus plays a crucial role in understanding and addressing environmental and climate change-related challenges, making the UK's continued association valuable.
Euratom and ITER: The Missing Pieces
One notable absence in the UK's renewed association with European research initiatives is Euratom, the EU's nuclear research program. As a result, the UK will not participate in ITER, a multi-billion euro collaborative project located in France aimed at building a prototype fusion reactor. The decision not to re-join Euratom was guided by the UK's assessment that its industry's long absence from Euratom and ITER programs could not be reversed.
Instead, the UK will pursue a domestic fusion energy strategy with international collaboration, including partnerships with European counterparts. This alternative program is supported by substantial funding, up to £650 million until 2027, to ensure the UK's research interests and taxpayer funding align with its priorities.
Future Steps
The association deal reached between the UK and the EU will need to be ratified by member states through the Council of the EU, adding another layer of complexity to the process. However, this agreement signals a moment of reconciliation between the UK and the EU after the divisive Brexit debates that followed the 2016 Leave vote.
Conclusion
The UK's re-association with Horizon Europe is a significant milestone for the scientific community on both sides of the Channel. It marks a renewed commitment to collaboration, innovation, and scientific excellence. While challenges remain, including the ratification process, the agreement provides a glimmer of hope for UK scientists who can once again fully participate in Horizon Europe, ensuring the country remains at the forefront of global science and research. This development underscores the enduring power of science to bridge political divides and foster international cooperation for the greater good of humanity.
A Digital Platform to Transform School Sustainability
RedKnight is delighted to announce it has supported iAM Compliant Ltd with its successful application to Innovate UK’s Innovation Loan competition, securing the Chester-based SME £592,860 of innovation funding.
iAM Compliant was established in 2016 to provide schools and businesses with a one stop shop for premises, health and safety compliance, and cut through the red tape. The company’s novel platform offers a seamless interface and cloud-hosted solution that brings all the information users need into one central place. Having pushed the innovation boundaries from the outset, the platform is used by over 500 state schools around the UK.
iAM Compliant will use the innovation loan funding to extend the platform's functionality to provide the world’s first digital tool for schools to guide them through the process of creating their own Climate Action Plan and help them become more sustainable. The platform will be supported by the development of best in class, accredited learning content.
Tom Moore, Founder & Chief Operating Officer at iAM Complaint said:
“We’re incredibly excited to continue the innovation of iAM Compliant, none more so in the space of sustainability. We know that school leaders have a lot of responsibility, and we’re keen to simplify and support that wherever possible. Having been through the Innovate UK process twice, the difference between our applications came down to RedKnight’s expertise in helping us best present our solution and satisfy the criteria of Innovate UK.”
In April 2022, the UK Government published its policy paper titled Sustainability and Climate Change: A Strategy for the Education and Children’s Services Systems. The policy supports a drive for all UK schools to be “zero carbon” by 2030 and announces long term and consistent policies and funding to enable this (in line with wider Government targets for the UK to be carbon neutral by 2050). The policy ensures there will be investment in training teachers in education for sustainable development across the curriculum, and in equipping colleges and schools to give all learners a connection to nature. The Government also commits to investing in adapting and retrofitting the school estate and the Department for Education commits to improving their building specifications, so that all new school buildings from 2022 onwards will be net zero carbon.
To support these ambitions, by 2025 every school is mandated to have a Climate Action Plan that will result in zero carbon status. Each school will have a trained staff member who acts as a Sustainability Lead and Climate Literacy Training will be offered to every school with sustainability embedded as a statutory feature of careers guidance.
The sustainability responsibility will ultimately rest with site managers (referred to as School Business Managers in schools), many of which manage their current compliance responsibilities disparately across many different spreadsheets. The biggest challenges for those managing compliance is that they are often reactive, limited by budget, resource, and time. There is also often a lack of safety mindset, not necessarily driven by the individual but by the myriad of regulations and legislation they need to interpret and understand. The additional sustainability requirements outlined above will add further weight to the challenge.
The technology and training material to be developed through this innovation loan project will provide a much needed, easy-to-use, cost-effective digital tool to support schools in complying with the new UK Government’s strategy and helping them in becoming more sustainable.
#innovation #education #sustainability #compliance #InnovateUK #iAMCompliant #RedKnight
EIC Pathfinder: nearly €170 million to support novel technologies
The European Innovation Council (EIC) has selected the next set of proposals under the 2023 EIC Pathfinder Open call. 53 new projects will receive up to €169.5m to develop cutting-edge technologies throughout a wide range of fields, including health, artificial intelligence, computing, environment, and energy.
A total of 783 applications were submitted (6.77% success rate), with the highest number of selected applicants coming from France, Spain, Germany, Italy and the United Kingdom. Participants mostly come from higher education and research organisations, with SMEs accounting for around 18% of participants.
In addition to the grant funding, selected proposals will receive bespoke coaching under the EIC Business Acceleration Services.
Examples of selected projects are:
- E-COOL - A holistic approach of electric motor cooling: E-COOL develops a holistic cooling technology for electric motors, maximising heat transfer through direct-contact spray cooling optimised with the aid of new Machine Learning (ML) algorithms. The project aims to provide unprecedented cooling rates at local temperature hot spots. The proposed cooling system will significantly contribute to reduce the excess of heat generated during power-demanding operations, making the employment of electric motors in commercial or heavy-duty vehicles possible, for example in earth-moving machines and aircrafts.
- ICONIC - In-situ and operando organic electrochemical transistors monitored by non-destructive spectroscopies for organic CMOS-like neuromorphic circuits: The ICONIC project will develop ultra-flexible, conformable and implantable artificial intelligence organic electronic devices which hold promise to revolutionize the real-time monitoring and treatment of chronic diseases. ICONIC will combine macromolecular synthesis with in-situ and operando non-destructive spectroscopic methods in an innovative way to investigate with unprecedented accuracy ion-to-electron transduction in organic electrochemical transistors (OECTs), from the molecular to the micrometre scale. In a long-term vision, healthcare devices will enable signal recognition with body-friendly electronics and administer medication without the risk of human error.
- 4TunaTES - For tunable thermochemical energy storage: 4TunaTES will unlock the potential thermal energy storage by delivering a ground-breaking flexible Thermo-Chemical Energy Storage (TCES) technology that can be easily adapted to different applications (variable in- and output temperatures) and thereby reduce the development costs by 90%. 4TunaTES will develop a TCES-prototype that can be also used for domestic use and addresses different challenges in terms of materials used, heat exchanging components with a high degree of manufacturing flexibility, and revolutionary systems with electricity adapted thermodynamic cycles.
- FASTCOMET - Future Data Storage Using Colloidal Memory Technology: Fastcomet will develop a new concept for low-cost, high-storage-density memories which are urgently needed to keep storage capabilities in line with the growing demand. It is based on a colloidal memory concept in which colloidal nanoparticles are considered data carriers. The long-term aim is to develop an integrated device that is able to store data using nanoparticles smaller than 15 nm. This would ultimately result in ultra-high bit densities exceeding 100 Gbit per square millimetre and potentially reaching 1 Tbit square millimetre at a lower cost than existing data storage technologies.
Background information
The EIC Pathfinder scheme supports the exploration of bold ideas for radically new technologies. It welcomes the high-risk/high gain and interdisciplinary cutting-edge science collaborations that underpin technological breakthroughs.
Grants of up to €3m (Pathfinder Open call – fully bottom-up) or up to €4m (Pathfinder Challenges call – with thematic priorities) support early-stage development of future technologies (e.g. various activities at low Technology Readiness Levels 1-3), up to proof of concept. EIC Pathfinder projects benefit from interactions with EIC Programme Managers and can receive additional funding for testing the innovation potential of their research outputs or for working across projects for portfolio actions. In addition, promising results can receive substantial follow up funding through the EIC Transition scheme to create a commercial venture or use the Fast Track scheme to access the EIC Accelerator to bring innovations to the market.
The EIC Pathfinder Challenges 2023 call opened on 20 June 2023 and will be closed on 18th October 2023 at 4.00pm BST/5.00pm CET.