UFFICIO RICERCA
Responsabile:
Annalisa D'Agostino
T: 0685225989
Viale Romania, 32
00197 Roma
ricerca@luiss.it
Progettazione
Chiara Sganga
T:0685225994
Sara Mangoni
T: 0685225740
Licia Gallo
T: 0685225958
Rendicontazione
Roberta Pellicano
T: 0685225440
Research funds are a fundamental expenditure for Italian universities. In this respect, Luiss aims to attract diverse external funding sources in order to enhance competitivity and internationalisation as well as to favour the transformation of knowledge into human and social capital. Below are reported the main national, European and international sources of funding which can be accessed by Luiss' researchers to obtain funds for their research projects.
National funding
In Italy, resources allocated to universities, research institutions and businesses come from the ministries or the regions.
National funding for scientific and technological research are provided mainly by the Ministry of Universities and Research (MIUR), by the Italian National Research Council (CNR), by public bodies and by other ministries (of productive activities, of Economics and Finance, and of Health).
National policies to support research and development are implemented through the following types of funds:
- Regional: Regions have the right to allocate their own funds and participate in the management of the so-called Structural Funds, using the Regional Innovation Strategies (in Italian).
- National: awarded by the ministries, to support projects and activities that fall within the framework of national policies for research; these are implemented with various operational tools, and divided into programs.
The main ones are:
- PRIN – Research Projects of National Interest (in Italian)
- FAR – The Fund to Benefit Industrial Research (in Italian)
- PNR – The National Research Program (in Italian)
European and international funding
The European Union offers several funding opportunties for scientific research. The Framework Programmes for Research and Development are the main source of funding and are managed by the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Research.
Research activities financed by the European Union must have a clear “European added value”. One fundamental aspect of European added value is the transnational character of many of these activities: research projects must be conducted by consortia made up of participantes that come from different countries, both within and outside of Europe, while individual research grants require mobility beyond national borders.
Horizon Europe
Horizon Europe is the research and innovation framework programme which succeeds Horizon 2020 and whose duration will be from 2021 to 2027. The strategic plan recently adopted by the European Commission defines the research and innovation funding guidelines at European level for the next years. In particular, the plan sets out 4 key strategic orientations towards which the EC intends to direct the funding, supported by 15 impact areas in line with the Commission's priorities, namely digitalisation and EU Green Deal. In turn, the 15 impact areas are linked to 32 expected impacts - i.e. long-term benefits that R&I activities will bring to several societal sectors (e.g. science, economy, academic field, etc.) - which are structure in 6 clusters of the the second of the three pillars in which Horizon Europe is structured (table).
The three pillars are as follows:
1. Excellent Science
- European Research Council: Frontier research through a bottom-up approach
- Marie Sklodowska Curie Actions: Cross-sectoral training and mobility opportunities for researchers
- Research Infrastructures: Enhance cooperation between research infrastructures to extend frontiers of knowledge
2. Global Challenges and Industrial Competitiveness, structured into 6 macro-areas (clusters):
- Clusters: Health; Culture, Creativity and Inclusive Society; Civil Security for Society; Digital, Industry and Space; Climate, Energy and Mobility; Food, Bioeconomy, Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment
- Joint Research Centre: Support EU decisional processes
3. Innovative Europe
- European Innovation Council: Support to cutting-edge technologies and groundbreaking innovations
- European innovation ecosystems: Development of favourable environments to encourage R&I in Europe
- European Institute of Innovation and Technology: Promote innovation and entrepreneurship at EU level
Other programs, promoted by other European Institutions and Directorates General of the Commission (DG Environment; DG Enterprise and Industry; DG for Health & Consumers, etc.) contribute to broadening the spectrum of possibilities for scientific research in specific sectors. Examples in the field of the social sciences include, among the others:
- ESPON - This programme is the observation network for European territorial planning and cohesion
- EIB programme - The European Investment Bank's initiatives to support universities
- Ambient Assisted Living Joint Programme (AAL) - Programme to improve the quality of life of elderly people
- Citizens, Equality, Rights and Values (CERV) - Programme to promote active European citizenship and to increase understanding of the European Union, its history and its values
- Erasmus + - Programme to support activities in the areas of education, training, youth programs and sports
- Creative Europe Programme - Programme to support the audiovisual, cultural and creative sector
- European Cooperation in Science and Technology (COST) - Programme to support the cooperation among researchers over any scientific and technological sector
Role of the Research Office
The Research Office supports Luiss' professors and researchers in presenting new applications and managing their funded research projects. In addition, the Office promotes scientific research through multiple channels and communicates the research funding opportunities.