BBSRC Funding Opportunities Dr Sophia Abbasi Birkbeck College

BBSRC Funding Opportunities Dr Sophia Abbasi Birkbeck College, Westminster University and London Southbank University 27. 01. 2010 1

• Introduction to BBSRC • BBSRC’s Strategy and Priorities • BBSRC Grant Funding and Peer Review • BBSRC Funding at Birkbeck College • Current Funding Opportunities 2

• Introduction to BBSRC • BBSRC’s Strategy and Priorities • BBSRC Grant Funding and Peer Review • BBSRC Funding at Birkbeck College • Current Funding Opportunities 3

Research Councils UK • Strategic partnership of the UK's seven Research Councils • Combined budget of £ 3. 4 billion in 2010/11 4

Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council Our Mission (Royal Charter) is: • to support high-class science and research training, and to promote knowledge transfer • in support of bio-based industries and public engagement in bioscience. BBSRC funding totals around £ 450 M p. a. (09/10) ACADEMIA INDUSTRY STAKEHOLDERS GOVERNMENT PUBLIC 5

• Introduction to BBSRC • BBSRC’s Strategy and Priorities • BBSRC Grant Funding and Peer Review • BBSRC Funding at Birkbeck College • Current Funding Opportunities 6

Cross-Government Grand Challenges • Environmental Change – Food Security – Bioenergy • The Science of Life – Healthy Ageing – Diet and Health • Tools and technologies, including software – Importance of new techniques – Virtualisation of science – Distributed information and modelling 7

Delivery of Multidisciplinary Cross-Council Programmes • Food Security • Bioenergy • Living with Environmental Change • Ageing • Global Threats to Security • Bio-nanotechnology • (Digital Economy) 8

BBSRC Strategic Planning Documents 10 years Vision 5 years 3 years Practical delivery 9

BBSRC’s new Strategic Plan 2010 - 2015 10

BBSRC Priorities • Restructured to enable Excellence with Impact • Historically, multiple priorities covering everything • Now fewer priorities • BBSRC-wide priorities 11

BBSRC Strategy Advisory Board and Strategy Panels Delivery Formulation Refreshment Committees Membership and Agenda for Strategy Advisory Board and Strategy Panels are on the BBSRC website 12

BBSRC Priorities 2008 -2011 Research Priorities Policy Priorities • • • • Ageing Research: Lifelong Health and Wellbeing Animal Health Bioenergy Crop Science (Food Security) Global Security Living with Environmental Change Nanoscience Through Engineering to Application: Bionanotechnology Synthetic Biology Systems Approach to Biological Research Technology Development for Bioscience • • Economic and Social Impact on Public Policy Increased International Collaboration Replacement, Refinement and Reduction (3 Rs) in Research Using Animals Welfare of Managed Animals (including Livestock and Companion Animals) Details of all these are on the BBSRC website 13

Food Security “when all people, at all times, have physical and economic access to sufficient, safe and nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for an active and healthy life” • Greater agricultural yields • with fewer inputs of nutrients and water • in the face of competing demands for land use • and in the face of continuing threats of diseases of both plants and animals, and with a need for microbiological and nutritional safety 14

Examples of BBSRC Food Security Work • Rinderpest – Close to global eradication – estimated to benefit Africa by over $1 billion annually • Striga (Witchweed) – BBSRC research has lead to management and reduction of striga weed 15

Bioenergy • BBSRC Bioenergy Review 2006 Clostridium New Biofuel? • Centre for Sustainable Bioenergy Research (launched in 2009) • Multi-disciplinary and systems approaches • International collaboration through Sys. Mo Courtesy of Nigel Minton 16

Systems Biology • Emerging research area • Predictive models of biological systems (pathways, cells, organisms, ecosystems) • Iterative cycles of modelling (dry) and biological (wet) experiments • 6 BBSRC Centres established (2005/06) and 6 SABR grants (2006/07) • International collaboration – ERASys. Bio (11 EU partners) – BBSRC: ANR (Fr) 17

Technology Development for the Biosciences • Need for improved technology from bioscience community • Multi-disciplinary (biosciences, physics, chemistry, engineering, computer sciences) • Engagement with industry, potential for spin-out 18

Synthetic Biology • Emerging area at intersection of biosciences and engineering • BBSRC-led UK Research Councils initiative to form networks to address Science and Engineering, Ethical, Legal, Societal Impacts • Need to form interdisciplinary and multidisciplinary partnerships • European Union – Transnational Roadmap for Synthetic Biology 19

Excellence with Impact • What do we mean? • • Excellent science Strategic focus Capturing outputs Demonstrate benefit 20

The Funding Cycle Partnership BBSRC Make Case for Continued Funding Government Spending Review Stakeholder Inputs Various Impacts Money for Bioscience 21

Examples of high impact projects Bluetongue research at BBSRC’s Institute for Animal Health saves £ 485 M in 2008 through prevention of outbreaks, and protected 10, 000 jobs Tools and models which reduce leaching of nitrate from farmland by 38% Food safety: improving techniques to chill foods; extended shelf life; reduced food poisoning contribute > £ 100 M pa to the economy 22

Impact is very broad 23

Key Messages • Responsive Mode will be the major vehicle to deliver our priorities • We need to deliver more inter-disciplinary and strategically focussed science with greater impact • We must deliver excellence science with demonstrable impacts 24

• Introduction to BBSRC • BBSRC’s Strategy and Priorities • BBSRC Grant Funding and Peer Review • BBSRC Funding at Birkbeck College • Current Funding Opportunities 25

Responsive Mode Must Deliver: • • Higher impacts Strategic priorities Interdisciplinary science Grants of all sizes e. g. Lo. Las • Needed to refresh old system to deliver this 26

To Clarify Responsive Mode Research = Fundamental Research = Blue Skies Research • If there is no hypothesis it can be fundable • Applied research can be excellent research • We fund technology, resources and databases This has not changed 27

Research Committees A: Animal animal welfare Systems, Health animal physiology & Wellbeing diet & health A animal disease applied plant science soil science basic plant science evolutionary biology applied microbiology food borne pathogens behaviour population biology genome analysis neuroscience ageing developmental biology immunology systems biology 3 Rs Stem Cells genetics/genomics bioinformatics molecular biology cell cycle B agricultural systems crop science environmental change bioenergy environmental biotechnology mathematical tools for biology metabolic engineering structural biology synthetic biology food technology biotechnology chemical biology D: Molecules, Cells & Industrial Biotechnology D recombination drug delivery tissue engineering biological chemistry gene action & regulation bioprocessing cell biology B: Plants, Microbes, Food & Sustainability basic microbiology biochemistry enzymology/biocatalysis C bionanotechnology bioimaging technology development biomaterials bioinformatic tools methods development biophysics C: Technological & Methodological Development 28

New Flexible Membership CORE Deputy CHAIR POOL • To serve on BBSRC Committees – Check BBSRC website – subscribe to our monthly alert for opportunities to apply 29

Criteria for Peer Review Scientific Excellence Economic and Social Impact Cost Effectiveness Ethical Animal Data & Social Investment in People & Skills Impact Usage Sharing Concerns Timeliness and Promise Industrial/Stakeholder Relevance to BBSRC Strategy 30

The Peer Review Principles Application via Je. S Assessment by Referees Response to Referees Assessment by Committee Recommendation 31

Committee Input into Strategy Assessment Responsive Mode Proposals & Reported Outputs Evidenced Based Input Council Strategy Advisory Board Strategy Panels Strategy Development 32

Responsive Mode Schemes • New Investigator Award – early-career researchers alan. harrison@bbsrc. ac. uk • Industrial Partnership Award – must have at least 10% of the full economic cost of the project (cash only) phil. holliday@bbsrc. ac. uk • Applications in these schemes receive an uplift in the rankings - significant increase in likelihood of funding 33

Strategic Lo. Las • Run on an annual call • Applications must be over £ 2 M and up to 5 years in duration • Support research projects requiring "big" science approaches: longer timescales, intensive resources or multidisciplinary approach • 2 stage application process via Je-S – Outline (CLOSING DATE 10 MARCH) – Full proposal • All applications must address BBSRC's strategic priority areas – Ensure scientific excellence – Focus on the impact and quality of the research team 34

Simple pre-submission checks • • • Is your Institution eligible? Is the research within BBSRC’s remit? Which research committee? Is it a resubmission? Are the PI/ Co-Is eligible? Has all the paperwork been done and submitted correctly? • Are the f. EC costs correctly inputted to the form? 35

Make the case properly • A worthwhile and reasoned aim: what, why, how • Appropriate, measurable, achievable objectives with realistic timelines • Well-written, concise & well-presented • Supported: evidence of skills, knowledge, preliminary data etc • Risks and contingencies • Context: awareness/appreciation of current activity • Justify costs, related to case. Get the costs checked – appropriate admin help needed • Think about impacts: say what will be done to address them - links and contacts 36

Help is at Hand • Talk to us: – Prior to submission - submit 1 -2 page research summary – After submission - read the feedback • Help the Office by: – – Explaining your science (to intelligent non-experts) Peer reviewing (refereeing) when asked Reading the Je-S guidance notes and BBSRC grants guide Treating the Office staff with respect 37

• Introduction to BBSRC • BBSRC’s Strategy and Priorities • BBSRC Grant Funding and Peer Review • BBSRC Funding at Birkbeck College • Current Funding Opportunities 38

General Trends in Funding 39

BBSRC funding at Birkbeck College • Total number of live BBSRC grants = 10 • Value of BBSRC grants = £ 2. 7 M Year Applications Successful % success rate 2005 -2006 6 4 67 2006 -2007 5 1 20 2007 -2008 10 4 40 2008 -2009 5 1 20 • Overall HEI success rate =21% 40

• Introduction to BBSRC • BBSRC’s Strategy and Priorities • BBSRC Grant Funding and Peer Review • BBSRC Funding at Birkbeck College • Current Funding Opportunities 41

Application Closing dates • Responsive Mode – 14 April 2010 – 14 July 2010 • Strategic Lo. Las Outlines – 10 MARCH 2010 • Fellowships – Next call announced soon – simon. culter@bbsrc. ac. uk • Studentships – Next call announced soon – avril. ferris@bbsrc. ac. uk • International Schemes – Next call September 2010 – andy. boyce@bbsrc. ac. uk • Business and Innovation Schemes – See Donald’s talk 42

Highlight Notices • Will Deliver Timely Strategic Focus • Relate to BBSRC Strategic Aims • Time-limited • Focused 43

Systematics & Taxonomy (Syn. Tax) Scheme • BBSRC & NERC committing £ 250 k per year for research with a substantial systematics/ taxonomy component • Additional £ 20 k Defra funding available for applications focusing on UK Biodiversity Action Plan Priority Species • Further Information/to apply: Systematics Association website [Awards] – http: //www. systass. org/awards/syntax. shtml • Closing Date: 31 January 2010 44

Useful email contacts • BBSRC remit queries remit@bbsrc. ac. uk • Specific queries about grant applications: – Research Committee A ctteeapm@bbsrc. ac. uk – Research Committee B ctteebpm@bbsrc. ac. uk – Research Committee C ctteecpm@bbsrc. ac. uk – Research Committee D ctteedpm@bbsrc. ac. uk • Help with Je. SHelp@rcuk. ac. uk • Details on Science Outreach Visits andy. boyce@bbsrc. ac. uk • Sophia Abbasi sophia. abbasi@bbsrc. ac. uk 45