Academic research and innovation are important priorities under the EEA and Norway Grants. In addition to supporting individual projects within the priority sector ‘academic research`, eight funds to support research projects have been established in six beneficiary states. This far, some 120 research projects have received close to €20 million in project support through these funds. The research funds support a wide scope of project activities, from agriculture to chemistry, environmental studies, health sciences and life sciences. Environment, sustainable development and health make up the main areas of research, followed by human resource development and cultural heritage. The largest beneficiaries are public universities and research institutions, while private research entities also benefit from support from the fund.
Supporting young Hungarian researchers
One of the funds under the EEA and Norway Grants is the Hungarian fund for young researchers, which supports young scientists with international experience. In order to encourage their relocation to Hungary, the fund offers grants to young scientists carrying out basic research within the fields of environment, sustainable development, cultural heritage, human resource development and health and childcare.
The fund launched its only open call for proposals in August 2008, and the fund intermediary, the Hungarian Scientific Research Foundation, received more than 70 applications. Of these, 33 young researchers are now receiving grant support from the fund, carrying out their research at research institutions across Hungary.
Polish-Norwegian research cooperation
Poland is by far the largest recipient of grant support, also within the academic research sector. Two academic research funds have been established in Poland, backed by a €20 million contribution from Iceland, Liechtenstein and Norway. In total, the Polish HOMING programme and the Polish-Norwegian research fund have already supported close to 70 projects with over €15 million in grant support. Overall, the Polish-Norwegian research fund makes up one of the largest single contributions from the EEA and Norway Grants. The fund is set up to establish and strengthen the cooperation between Polish and Norwegian researchers, primarily within the areas of environment and health research. More than 50 different research institutions from Poland and Norway benefit from the fund through the 36 projects awarded support to date.