NSERC RESEARCH PARTNERSHIPS

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1 NSERC RESEARCH PARTNERSHIPS Research generates knowledge that allows Canada to address complex challenges, to generate economic benefits, to contribute to Canada s long-term competitiveness, and to support decision-making. This knowledge is now generated across a broader range of organizations than ever before and requires the involvement of a greater number of actors to be translated into benefits for Canada. The nature of partnerships is evolving with more business models emerging. Innovative collaboration models are needed. The new Research Partnerships brings: An open approach to collaborative projects NSERC s Research Partnerships Program allows researchers to develop and scale up projects to best address the needs of the proposed research challenges. The Program will offer support for projects of different levels of scale and complexity, from new, short term, one-on-one collaborations, to larger multi-stakeholder research teams. With a broader set of partners The Research Partnerships Program is open to an array of non-academic partners: the private sector, non-profit organizations, government, and international companies with presence in Canada. The Program incentivizes research carried out in collaboration with small and medium sized enterprises, industrial value chains, and multi-sectoral partnerships, and also recognizes the necessity of supporting high-risk, early stage research carried out in collaboration with nonacademic partners.

2 With streamlined processes and faster decisions A simplified program with streamlined business processes offers Canadian researchers and their non-academic partners a single point of entry to develop and grow research collaborations. An open program without deadlines allows NSERC to be responsive to the community s needs, and allows for joint funding opportunities between NSERC and other agencies. The Program utilizes a risk-based approach to funding decisions recognizing risk as a function of project complexity and requested funding levels. This approach allows for reduced burden and delays for the user community. The Program offers funding decisions in as little as 4 weeks for smaller and simpler proposals, and within 16 weeks for larger and more complex proposals. And with an enhanced focus on outcomes. The Research Partnerships Program places emphasis on the added value of the collaboration between university researchers and their non-academic partners, and on research outcomes that generate benefits for Canada. NSERC welcomes your feedback; please send your comments to RPR@nserc-crsng.gc.ca by January 2,

3 Program Description An open approach to support different types of partnerships The Program emphasizes an open approach, allowing researchers and partners to put forth proposals which bring together all the necessary expertise and partners to best address their research challenges without being subject to restrictive or artificial program constraints. NSERC recognizes that some of the rules and parameters in place within our previous generation of programs could create unnecessary limitations. Moreover, rules were in some cases different from program to program. As examples: Engage grants did not allow for multiple partners or co-applicant researchers, and Collaborative Research and Development grants did not recognize the contributions of non-industrial partners when calculating cost sharing levels, despite these partners clearly informing and benefiting from the proposed research. The open model of the Program enables the research community the flexibility to construct projects that will yield strong outcomes and benefits for all parties. This flexibility also allows researchers to continue to structure their proposals in ways that are familiar in relation to some of the previous funding models: such as putting forth a proposal that resembles an Engage grant to start a new collaboration; or a Strategic grant-like project to support early-stage applied research; or an application that is similar to a Collaborative Research and Development grant to fund an in-depth collaboration. A broader array of partners and collaborators NSERC will support projects that involve all the partners required to achieve research outputs and to successfully mobilize research results to achieve impact. Partners can be from the private, public, and non-profit sectors. In assembling a collaborative research project for submission, the relevance and role of each partner needs to be clear. Those partners that have an active role in the project s research activities, are able to utilize research results, or are able to take an active role in knowledge mobilization will have their cash contributions considered in the calculation of the NSERC grant size. 3

4 The following table outlines types of non-academic partner organizations the Partnerships Program will consider in cost-sharing calculations, and those partners whose contributions may enhance the project s potential for success, but will not be considered in calculating the NSERC grant size. Examples of non-academic partner organizations whose contributions are considered in cost-sharing calculations. Private Public Canadian private companies Multinationals with presence in Canada Foreign companies (but not as a sole partner) Municipalities and local or regional governments established by or under provincial or territorial statute Provincial/Territorial Government Departments (excluding funding agencies) Federal Government Departments (excluding funding agencies) Indigenous communities Public Utilities Crown Corporations Producer Groups Industrial associations Registered charities that have a mandate to carry out and apply research (within the natural sciences and engineering). Museums and libraries Indigenous groups Community groups Examples of other collaborating organizations that can contribute to the project (not considered in cost-sharing). Private Public Nonprofit Nonprofit Venture capital / Angel investors/ Seed funds Holding companies Companies with less than two full-time employees Organizations whose primary mission is to fund or to perform R&D and are funded or controlled primarily by government Foreign governments Non-profit organizations whose primary mission is to fund R&D and are funded or controlled primarily by government Universities Incubators/accelerators Non-incorporated non-profits Foreign non-profits Other registered charities Hospitals and medical/clinical research institutes 4

5 A more flexible contribution scale for different types of projects The Program incentivizes research carried out in collaboration with small and medium sized enterprises, industrial value chains, and multi-sectoral partnerships, while also recognizing the necessity of supporting high-risk, early stage research carried out in collaboration with non-academic partners. The Program incorporates a three-tiered cost-sharing structure, wherein NSERC will provide for 50% of the cash costs (a 1:1 leverage ratio), 66% of the cash costs (a 2:1 leverage ratio), or 90-to-100% of the cash costs, depending on the type of research to be performed and the partners assembled. In order to increase the likelihood that research results are used to generate benefits for Canada and to increase the impacts of the knowledge generated through research, the Program offers increased support, at a 2:1 cash-leverage ratio, for proposals that involve: small and medium enterprises, since they face significant hurdles while also being a driver of employment and economic growth in Canada; industrial value chains, as such arrangements facilitate the adoption of knowledge and technology; multi-sectoral (private, public and/or non-profit) combinations of partners, as there is an increased probability that research results will be used or applied to generate benefits for Canada. In recognition that starting new research collaborations, embarking on high-risk research, or involving partners with limited resources can be challenging, NSERC may also provide between 90 and 100% of the cash costs of a project. Placing cash cost burdens on non-academic partners limits the ability of Canada s academic sector to collaborate with industry, non-profits, and government alike. Initially, NSERC will limit the proportion of funding dedicated to projects with a 90%-100% cost share to approximately 33% of Research Partnerships total budget envelope. 5

6 NSERC contribution to project CASH costs NSERC Contribution Partners Parameters 50% (1:1 leverage) Large organizations (> 500 employees) Applications per year: no limits Grant size: $20,000 to $1M per year Duration: one to five years 66% (2:1 leverage) Small and medium enterprises Value-chain partnerships Multi-sectoral partnerships Applications per year: no limits Grant size: $20,000 to $1M per year Duration: one to five years 90% - 100% All partner sizes and types Partnership must have at least one organization that is considered for NSERC cost-sharing Projects with any private sector partners necessitate a 10% cash contribution from the combination of partners Projects with exclusively non-profit and public partners can be supported at 100% Applications within a 12 month period: Two for non-academic partners Two for applicants (one as the principal investigator, one as co-applicant) Grant size: $20K to $200K per year Duration: one to five years Though NSERC will not consider the financial value of in-kind contributions when determining NSERC s contribution to the project cash costs, in-kind contributions are a crucial part of the assessment of a proposal. These non-monetary contributions represent much of the added value of the collaboration with the non-academic partners. (This approach to in-kind contributions is consistent with the practice in place in most of NSERC s previous Research Partnership grants). The Program will allow for joint funding opportunities between NSERC and other funding agencies, and other governments internationally, bringing together researchers and resources from different organizations to support research through joint calls. The program parameters for each such targeted calls will be published at the time of launch of the call for proposals. 6

7 Emphasizing the added value of partnerships The Program will place emphasis on the synergistic added value of the collaboration between university researchers and their non-academic partners, and will place emphasis on the research outcomes of NSERC s research investments. NSERC will make greater efforts to showcase these collaborations. Proposals will need to demonstrate the value-added aspect of the partnership: how the contributions of the partners are essential to the execution of the research project and how knowledge mobilization and utilization will be accelerated. This will include strategies for achieving the stated outcomes, for example, novel partnership approaches that accelerate research towards new knowledge and/or incorporating all relevant partners whose mission or mandate is to use the research results. The criteria have been designed to favor projects with a strong likelihood that the research results will be used and lead to impact for the partners and for Canada. In addition to examining the strength and potential for impact of the partnership, proposals will be reviewed based on the relevance and anticipated outcomes of the proposed research, the calibre of the proposal, and the opportunities for enriched training experiences. Emphasis is also being placed on equity, diversity and inclusion. (Please see the attached Appendix.) Applicants will also be asked to consider sex, gender and diversity in the project s research design as well as among the group of co-applicants, collaborators and trainees. Project plans will be encouraged to promote and support a variety of forms of mentoring to ensure trainees equitable participation and growth. Activities and eligible expenses The Program provides grants of a minimum size of $20,000 per year, up to $1M annually, for up to five years. Shorter projects can be scaled up or extended within a five years period. The Program will continue to support the direct costs of research, in line with NSERC s longstanding policy on the Use of Grant Funds. This includes expenses related to research training, knowledge mobilization and technology transfer activities, and connection-development activities to expand the scope of a research collaboration. 7

8 Other costs, not to be paid by NSERC or considered in cost-sharing calculations can be included in the project and will be considered in the assessment of a proposal's overall merit. Non-eligible salary expenses include any form of compensation to applicants, co-applicants and collaborators on the grant regardless of their eligibility to apply for grants (e.g., chair holder salaries). A simpler process The Program will accept proposals at any time in order to respond to partner timelines. It also incorporates streamlined business processes, an improved user experience and reduced times to arrive at funding decisions. NSERC will adopt a risk-based approach to funding decisions, to allow for reduced burden and delays for the user community, recognizing risk as a function of project complexity and financial resources requested. Low-risk projects are to be evaluated internally by NSERC, mirroring current practices (e.g., as with Engage grants). As the risk profile of the project increases, NSERC will seek input from external referees and others with expertise related to the proposal. By using a risk-based review, NSERC will reduce the time to reach funding decisions. The Program service standards aim to provide a funding decision within four weeks for low risk projects, while the review of higher risk projects would aim at a decision within 16 weeks. A single program offers an opportunity to scale up projects that are able to grow in terms of their potential impact based on recent past performance and the increased engagement of partners. The Program will support the growth of a project as the research partnership yields successful outcomes, progresses and evolves. NSERC will offer a simplified process for increased funding or additional years of funding (for a maximum of five years), with corresponding increased financial support from partners. 8

9 APPENDIX: Evaluation Criteria 1. Relevance and Outcomes 1.1. Economic, social and/or environmental importance of the topic to Canada (could be local, regional, provincial, national) The need for original research to address the topic Significance of the intended outcome(s) and longer-term impacts; extent to which the strategy of the partner(s) to progress the translation and practical application of the research results is likely to achieve the intended outcomes. 2. Partnership 2.1. Appropriateness of the partnership to achieve the intended outcomes; leveraging of different types of organizations and interdisciplinarity in the project as appropriate Clarity of each partner s role in the collaboration with respect to defining the challenge, co-designing and implementing the research and using the results to achieve the desired outcomes Appropriateness of the level of cash and non-monetary contributions from each partner. 3. Calibre of the Proposal 3.1. Clarity of the objectives and deliverables; appropriateness of the scope and size of planned activities to achieve the expected outcome(s); justification for the planned expenditures Suitability of the proposed research and related activities to address the topic and to achieve the objectives; relationship to the state of the art; feasibility; potential for generating new scientific knowledge Appropriateness of the identified indicators and methods for monitoring progress during the project and for assessing outcomes afterwards Appropriateness of the team expertise (academic and partner(s)) to carry out the planned activities; leadership capabilities of the principal investigator to manage the project Consideration of sex, gender and diversity in the research design. 4. Training 4.1. Opportunities for enriched training experiences for research trainees (undergraduates, graduates, postdoctoral fellows) to develop relevant skills as well as horizontal skill such as leadership, communication, collaboration, entrepreneurship, etc Consideration of diversity and gender equity in the training plan. 9