Research schools for sustainable planning and built environment

WHAT CAN YOU APPLY FOR?

Interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and challenge-driven research schools that contribute to sustainable planning and built environment.

WHO CAN APPLY?

A group of actors where the main applying organisation is a Swedish higher education institution or research institute. Only multi-party applications, with a least two academic parties and at least one non-academic party, can receive funding.

HOW MUCH CAN YOU APPLY FOR?

Max 40 million SEK per research school. The total budget for the call is 120 million SEK.

Given decision: 2022-11-23 11:00

Fund­ed pro­jects

Preliminary decisions. Please note that only decisions published in Prisma is a guarantee of granted funding.

This call aims at strengthening the development of competencies and knowledges for a transformative sustainable planning and built environment. The call welcomes proposals for research schools with a clear interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and challenge-driven focus. The call is part of the national research programme for sustainable spatial planning.

Less than ten years remain until the Agenda 2030 goals are to be achieved. Now is the time to act, to translate knowledge into action and to ensure that research is put to good use in the transition to a sustainable spatial planning and built environment, that does not exceed the planet’s limitations. At the same time, new challenges must be problematized, and time must be dedicated for discovering new problems and solutions that we cannot even conceive of today.

Planning and building more sustainable societies require several structural shifts which compel us to change our socio-technical and socio-ecological systems. Such shifts imply a transformation that encompasses technological innovation, changes in behaviour, culture and norms, and changes in our governing institutions. Working towards this transformation requires continuous and integrated processes for innovation, knowledge production, and reflection.

A sustainable spatial planning and built environment requires individuals and organisations capable of understanding different scientific approaches and knowledges from planning and built environment practice and using this for concrete transformations. To achieve this there is a need to, within research and practice alike, develop new ways of developing knowledge and new competences characterised by interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and challenge-driven ways of working.

The concept of spatial planning and built environment addresses equally the processes of planning, construction, use and management of buildings, infrastructure, cultural sites, and natural environments, as well as the planning and promotion of inclusive, participatory, and safe communities where people want to live. Considering all these factors, sustainable spatial planning means readjusting to a socially, culturally, environmentally, and economically sustainable society. Sustainable spatial planning and built environment must take into account the links between all these dimensions, as well as explore tensions and conflicts of interest between them, for cities, hinterlands, urban areas, communities, and rural areas alike.

This call aims at strengthening the development of competencies and knowledges for a transformative sustainable planning and built environment. This requires individuals and organisations capable of taking on complex issues that cut across sectors and scientific domains.

In light of this, this call welcomes proposals for research schools with a clear interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and challenge-driven focus.

The research schools are required to take their point of departure in a clearly formulated challenge. The challenge must relate to one or more of the themes, thematic goals and perspectives that can be found in the strategic agenda for the national research program for sustainable spatial planning, Research for transformative and sustainable spatial planning.

Complex societal challenges within sustainable planning and built environment requires perspectives and solutions from multiple disciplines and approaches that cut across research and practice. The research schools are thus mandated to enable an interdisciplinary and practice-oriented knowledge production and research education. The research schools should have the potential to strengthen the recipient capacity for sustainable planning and sustainable built environment in the public or private sector.

Interdisciplinary knowledge production is here used meaning a knowledge production where researchers from different disciplines take on a jointly formulated challenge. Interdisciplinary research brings together research questions, perspectives, and methods from more than one scientific area. Interdisciplinary research can, but does not have to, aim at an integration of different disciplines. Practice-oriented research denotes a knowledge production carried out in close cooperation with practice and where challenges are explored by academic researchers and practitioners together. Practice-oriented knowledge production can aim at doing research on the practice, at doing research together with the practice, or at doing research embedded in the practice. In either case, practice-oriented research always aims at developing the practice and is thus sometimes also referred to as practice-developing research.

The research school should provide possibilities for a mutual exchange between academia and practice, for example through making it possible for people from planning and built environment practice to take part of research education.

A research school should, apart from positions for doctorate students, also include doctoral courses and other joint activities. To create a strong and dynamic environment in relation to the challenge in focus, there is a possibility to engage post-docs, researchers and practitioners from planning and built environment sectors in the research school and its activities.

The call gives a lot of freedom for the applicants to define challenges, identify and engage relevant partners, as well as to design the research school and its activities.

The research school must be developed by academic and non-academic actors together. Academic actors include higher education institutions and research institutes. Non-academic actors include all other types of organisations, such as actors from the business, public or civil sectors.

This call for proposals is thus directed at a group of actors where the main applying organisation must be an academic actor that that meets Formas’ requirements for administrating organisations. Only multi-party applications, with the participation of non-academic partners, can receive funding.

To ensure an inter-disciplinary and practice-oriented research education all parties should be actively engaged in the design of the research school from start. This includes the formulation of the research school’s focus (what challenge is at the core) and the framing of questions, the formulation of specific doctorate projects, as well as forms for practice-oriented knowledge development and for exchanging experience. All parties should also actively contribute to the activities of the research school and the knowledge production taking place within its frames.

The research school must bring together researchers from at least two academic parties (higher education institutions or research institutes), and from at least two disciplines, for example social sciences, humanities, engineering sciences, natural sciences, design and architecture, and artistic research.

Doctorate students funded through the research school must have an assistant supervisor with their main employment with one of the non-academic parties. Parts of each individual doctorate project should be carried out at or together with one of the non-academic parties.

Taken together this means that a research school is comprised by at least three parties, of which at least two academic parties and at least one non-academic party.

Before you apply

All information about what the application must include, how you go about to apply, and about the review process is described in the text below.

Note that this application procedure and application form differ from Formas’ regular calls for research projects. In this call, the main applicant is an organisation, and you need organisational permissions to initiate and submit an application. Learn more under the heading “How to apply”.

Any changes to the call text will be listed below Revision history.

This call for proposals is thus directed at a group of actors where the main applying organisation must be an academic actor that that meets Formas’ requirements for administrating organisations. The main applying organisation becomes the administrating organisation, should your application be awarded a grant.

The research school must bring together researchers from at least two academic parties (higher education institutions or research institutes). Only multi-party applications, with the participation of non-academic partners, can receive funding. This means that a research school is comprised by at least three parties, of which at least two academic parties and at least one non-academic party.

The research school must have a well-considered and firmly established organisation where all participating parties are actively involved. The research school must have a coordinator with the responsibility for keeping together the different parties, projects, and activities in the research school, as well as for supporting an exchange of ideas and experiences between them.

A project agreement must be established between the parties of the research school, should your application be awarded a grant.

A written statement specifying the support and commitment of the host organisation must be attached to the application (letter from the president, dean or equivalent). Similarly, a letter of intent from participating parties must be attached to the application. The letter of intent must be signed by the head of department, or equivalent. See also “Mandatory appendices”.

Co-funding is not required in this call. When relevant, co-funding can take part via inkind or cash (see also “Budget and other information”).

Companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity that wish to apply for funding from Formas are covered by State aid regulations, see also “Costs that qualify for funding”. Sole proprietorships may not participate as a party in projects that are applying for a grant from Formas. Applications including one or more parties that are sole proprietorships will be rejected.

Formas’ grants can be used to finance certain parts of activities that are conducted outside Sweden, but the research should be initiated and led from Sweden. The administrating organisation must be located in Sweden and approved by Formas, and is responsible for employing foreign staff or, if necessary, reimbursing costs for activities or services outside Sweden in accordance with the administrating organisation’s guidelines.

Companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity that do not have a Swedish corporate identity number cannot be receive funding in this call but can participate inkind.

Research schools that are awarded funding must, together with other research schools funded through this call, develop a joint plan for dialogue and, where relevant, coordination across the research schools. This to enable synergies and sharing of knowledge and experience.

Doctorate courses developed through the research schools should be made available for other doctorate students, nationally and/or internationally.

Research schools that are awarded funding are also expected to participate in conferences and networks within the national research program for sustainable spatial planning.

Funding is sought for a five year-period (60 months). Funds may be used 12 months after the end of this period, but no new funds will be disbursed.

It is not possible to apply for less than five years, and it is not possible to apply for more than 40 million kronor in total.

Applications with a requested amount or a project duration that does not fall within the above range will be rejected by Formas at an early stage and will not proceed to review.

The project start is 1 January 2023 in Prisma and cannot be changed. The project is expected to start during first quarter of 2023 and the research school is expected to enter an operational phase, with doctorate students employed and/or admitted, during the autumn of 2023.

The budget in your application must clearly state how you plan to use the funds over time, and applicants should record the budget based on how the actual costs are expected to be incurred for each financial year. For administrative reasons, Formas can apply a pay-out plan that differs from the application’s allocation of the budget over time.

Co-funding is not required in this call. For more information on funding of companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity, see State aid regulations and “Costs that qualify for funding” since the regulations affect the aid intensity that Formas can offer.

The parties can apply for a grant to cover both direct and indirect costs. Direct costs include for example salary costs or costs for consultants and licenses. Indirect costs are costs that are shared with other parts of the organisation, for example administration, IT and renting of premises. Indirect costs are sometimes referred to as overhead costs.

Grants can be sought for costs associated with developing and completing the research school, such as coordination, research activities, doctorate courses, activities for exchanging experiences, and other research school activities. This can involve salary funding for coordinator, doctorate students, supervisors in academia and practice, key persons with essential competences, and subcontractors, operating costs (for example travel costs, conference fees, fees for open access publishing, and printing costs), and depreciation costs for necessary equipment.

Eligible staff expenses at companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity can be estimated at a maximum of 800 kronor per hour. Higher education institutions or research institutes are not subject to this limitation.

The total salary amount received for an individual researcher, doctorate student or other participant must correspond to the activity level in the research school and must not exceed 100 percent of full-time employment. This means that additional salary funding cannot be granted to researchers, doctorate students or other participants who already receive grants or contributions with full salary funding. Participants who receive a full-time pension cannot receive funding for their own salary without first decreasing their level of retirement with the corresponding degree. Grants cannot be used for scholarships.

Formas grants funds for annual salary increases, and for doctorate students in accordance with agreed pay scales for doctorate students, should that exist.

Salary for doctorate students, including licentiate students, can be granted for up to four years. Doctorate students funded through the research school should, by the time they commence their doctorate studies, have their employment with one of the project parties. Doctorate projects funded through the research school must be developed by the project parties jointly and should include parts that are carried out at or together with one of the non-academic parties. This applies both for doctorate students with employment at a higher education institution or research institute and for doctorate students with employment at a non-academic organisation, sometimes referred to as industrial doctorate students or municipality doctorate students.

To promote a practice-oriented research education we demand that every doctorate student funded through the research school has an assistant supervisor with their main employment with a non-academic actor. Such supervisors can get their salary funded through the project or participate inkind.

Funds for developing and coordinating the research school can amount to a maximum of 2 million kronor per year, on an average. The total costs for development and coordination can be higher than an average of 2 million kronor per year through co-funding. In development and coordination of the research school is included salary costs for a coordinator and for administrative staff working for the research school, costs for doctorate courses, as well as costs for other research school activities that are not tied to specific doctorate research projects.

Higher education institutions and research institutes may charge a markup for indirect costs according to the applicable full-cost pricing method. Other project parties may charge a markup for indirect costs of up to 30 percent of their eligible staff expenses. See also “Budget and other information”.

Private companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity that want to apply for grants from Formas must follow specific regulations on state aid. The regulations are based on the principle of EU law, which states that aid to private enterprises normally distorts competition but that certain exemptions are allowed.

The aid intensity that Formas can offer depends on the size of the organisation and the type of activities in the project. The organisation’s size is assessed using the EU definition of small and medium-sized enterprises. Activities will primarily be assessed based on Article 25 of the General Block Exemption Regulation (GBER) EU 651/2014.

Sole proprietorship businesses cannot participate as a party to projects that are applying in Formas’ calls.

Companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity that do not have a Swedish corporate identity number cannot be receive funding in this call but can participate inkind.

The Formas website contains more information about state aid regulations.

If you have questions about state aid to companies and other organisations, contact operations developer Johan Hansson.

We recommend that you write your application in English, since the review panel that will assess your application is international. If an application is written in Swedish, only the research school description will be translated into English for assessment. In such cases, it will not be possible for applicants to view or make linguistic adjustments to the application after it is translated. However, the popular science description must be written in Swedish, while the abstract should be in both Swedish and English. Budgets, budget specifications, CVs, lists of publications and other attachments will not be translated. Thus, we recommend that you write these in English, even if you write the rest of the application in Swedish.

According to Swedish law, the application and its appendices are considered as general public documents after they are submitted to us. This means that anyone can request and read your application. Formas can only hide information as legislated for in the Public Access and Secrecy Act (2009:400).

Since Formas has limited possibilities to keep personal data confidential, your application should not contain personal data that is not needed for the application.

The popular science description and project abstracts will, if the project is awarded funding, be published in open-access project databases without a confidentiality review. Therefore, the contents of these fields should not contain sensitive information.

Formas is eager to fund projects that maximise the positive and minimise the negative impacts on the environment and climate. We therefore encourage grant applicants to design their projects so that collaboration takes place as climate-friendly as possible and that any necessary travel takes place in a climate-smart way. We also suggest that you already at the stage of project planning identify and include measures that minimise energy use and other resource consumption, emissions, and waste. This will however not be part of the assessment of your application. Read more about Formas’ own sustainability work External link..

How to apply

You apply for a grant in our application system, Prisma. For all parties, the application must be completed by the main applying organisation (the administrating organisation). At the time of applying, the main applying organisation must have an organisational account. See “Organisational account”.

If the person who is to enter the information needed for the application does not have organisational permissions, they must have a personal account in Prisma and be invited to the application by the organisational account manager. See “Personal account”.

Please note that it is only the person with organisation/manager permissions can register (submit) an application. Make sure that the person who is authorised to register and submit the application is available when the application is to be submitted and that this is done well in advance before the call closes.

Plan ahead and fill out your application well in advance before the call closes. If mandatory fields lack the required information when the application is submitted, it will not be possible to register (submit) the application. It is possible to register an application and then re-open it and register it again any number of times before the call closes. Once the call is closed, you cannot submit or add information to the application.

The call closes May 19, 2022, at 14.00 CET. All applications must be registered before this deadline. No additions or post-registrations are allowed (unless specifically requested by Formas).

Organisation account

The organisation that will receive and administer the awarded funds that Formas pays out, if the project is granted funding, is called the administrating organisation (medelsförvaltare in Swedish) in Formas’ application system. At the time of applying the administrating organisation needs to have an organisation account.

Higher education institutions, most research institutes, government agencies with research assignments and other organisations primarily engaged in research that are approved as an administrating organisation for all Formas calls already have organisation accounts that allow the organisation to initiate and register applications.

If your organisation lacks an account in Prisma a suitable representative (organisational account manager) must apply for an organisation account on the website for Prisma. Apply well ahead before the call closes. When you apply, state that you are planning to apply in Formas’ call Research schools for sustainable planning and built environment, what type of organisation you are, and your corporate identity number.

Apply for an organisation account in Prisma External link..

If you do not know whether your organisation has an account or not, contact research officer Pernilla Hjert Elgström.

Personal accounts

If you do not have organisational permissions, you must be invited to the application by the organisational account manager to fill out information for the application. To be invited you need to have a personal account in Prisma. Do not wait with creating your personal account.

Apply for a personal account in Prisma External link.

All limits for the maximum number of characters refer to characters including spaces. We recommend that you choose the font Arial in size 12 for the information you enter, this applies to all text boxes.

A list of all references used in the description of the research school should be provided in a separate textbox.

Your application must include a clear description of the research school under the following sections:

Basic information

  • Number of months applied for: 60 months
  • Starting month: January 1, 2023. This is pre-selected in Prisma and cannot be changed.
  • Title of research school in Swedish and English (max. 200 characters each, including spaces).
  • Popular science description in Swedish (max. 4,500 characters including spaces). If the project is awarded a grant, the popular science description will be published in open-access project databases without a confidentiality review. The contents of this field should therefore not contain sensitive information.
  • Abstract in Swedish and English (max. 1,500 characters each including spaces). Project abstracts for awarded projects will be published in open-access project databases without a confidentiality review. Therefore, the contents of these fields should not contain sensitive information.

Description of research school

The description of the research school should include the following information:

Purpose and goal (max 15 000 characters, including spaces)

Describe the vision and goals for the research school and how it contributes to meeting the purpose of the call.

Describe the challenge that the research school takes on and how this relates to themes and perspectives in the strategic research agenda, Research for transformative and sustainable spatial planning.

Describe the overarching questions the research school will address and how these relate to relevant research areas. Describe how the questions will be addressed through interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and challenge-driven ways of working.

Implementation (max 20 000 characters, including spaces)

Broadly, describe the plan for how the research school will be carried through and coordinated.

Describe the process through which the research school and the activities it comprises are formulated, planned, and carried through, and how different parties and actors are involved in this.

Shortly, describe the planned doctorate projects, including preliminary questions.

Describe the educational offer of the research school. Describe doctorate courses developed through the research schools as well as existing doctorate courses intended to be part of the course offering of the research school.

Describe any other planned research school activities, their purpose and connection to the goals of the research school.

For the research school and for planned doctorate projects, describe the plans for interaction and communication with stakeholders and users during the continuation of the research school.

Organisation and actors (max 15 000 characters, including spaces)

Describe the participants that are part of the research school, their roles and contributions, and motivate the activity level of each participant. Describe how the participants complement each other and how this contributes to meeting the goals of the research school.

Describe how the different parties have been involved in formulating the design of the research school and its different parts.

Describe how the carrying through and organisation of the research school take their point of departure in previous experiences in the project group and in research concerning possibilities and challenges with interdisciplinary and practice-oriented research.

Describe how the research school deals with issues relating to equality, equal opportunities, and diversity, when relevant.

Societal relevance (max 10 000 characters, including spaces)

Describe how the research school is designed to contribute to an exchange of experiences, the development of competencies, and new ways of working within the field of planning and built environment.

Describe the potential of the research school to contribute to transformative change and a sustainable planning and built environment.

References (max 5000 characters, including spaces)

References included in the text above is provided in a separate textbox.

Budget and other information

The main applying organisation registers the budget for each participating party based on how the actual costs are expected to be incurred for each financial year. Funds are typically paid monthly. Funds may be used 12 months after the end of the project time, but no new funds will be disbursed during this time.

We recommend that you write the budget and the budget specification in English. The budget specification is not translated but will reviewed by the international review panel as written.

In Prisma you write out the total amount in kronor using digits. For example, 1 million kronor should be written as: 1 000 000 kronor.

The following information should be included in the budget for the project:

Information about the main applying organisation and each project party

This is mandatory information and must be completed for each party in the project. The information is collected and filled out by the main applying organisation. The main applying organisation should be the same as the administrating organisation (medelsförvaltare, in Swedish).

  • Name of the organisation
  • Corporate identity number
  • Address, postal code, city, country
  • Annual turnover (the total sales or turnover of the higher education institution, research institute, company, or organisation during the previous fiscal year), stated using digits. Example: 3 500 000.
  • Balance sheet total (the sum of either the assets page or liabilities and equity from the company’s or organisation’s balance sheet), stated using digits. Example: 5 500 000.
  • Number of employees
  • Contact person
  • E-mail of contact person
  • Name of the workplace, address, postal code, city, and country where most of the work will be carried out.

Costs

  • Personnel costs: Salary costs for researchers, doctorate students and other participants. Social security contributions and other mandatory charges associated with salaries should be included. Eligible staff expenses at companies and other organisations engaged in economic activity can be estimated at a maximum of 800 kronor per hour. Higher education institutions or research institutes are not subject to this limitation. The amount that employees of higher education institutions or research institutes may be awarded must not exceed 100% of full-time employment. This also means that someone who is already receiving full salary funding from any other funder cannot receive additional funding for salary. Participants who receive a full-time pension cannot receive funding for their own salary without first decreasing their level of retirement with the corresponding degree. Grants cannot be used for scholarships.
  • Equipment, buildings, and land: The total maximum amount you can be granted for equipment and equipment depreciation costs is 500,000 SEK.
  • Consultancy and licensing costs: For the costs of consultancy services to be eligible for funding, they must be purchased or licensed from external actors at market prices, and their services and scope must be stated in the project description, for example in the budget specification.
  • Other direct costs: Other direct costs can include the cost of consumables, travel, conferences and publication fees for open-access journals and databases.
  • Indirect costs: Higher education institutions and research institutes may charge a markup for indirect costs according to the applicable full-cost pricing method. Other project participants may charge a markup for indirect costs of up to 30 percent of their eligible staff expenses. Formas does not grant funds for overhead on costs that you write off for equipment or for premises.

Funding

There are four types of funding an applicant can specify in the application:

  • Applied funding from Formas: Indicates the amount requested from Formas under the call. The amount cannot exceed the total costs. If the amount sought is less than the total costs, the remaining amounts will be automatically calculated and reported under “Self-funding”.
  • Other funding (state): If Formas or another public funder contributes funding for related projects.
  • Other funding (private): If another private company or organisation contributes funding to the project.
  • Self-finance: If the project party contributes its own funding, this is calculated automatically and displayed in the field for self-funding.

Justification of budgeted personnel costs

Here, you specify the average hourly cost for budgeted staff expenses. Staff expenses refer to salaries including social security contributions and other mandatory charges associated with salaries. (Maximum 500 characters including spaces.)

Budget specification (maximum 9 000 characters including spaces.)

Here the main applying organisation provides additional information that clarifies and motivates the budget in their own words. Also, the overhead costs included in the application should be described here.

You should also specify any consultancy costs and the scope of the consultant’s or consultants’ participation. Also specify which project party or parties will pay for each consultancy cost.

The main applying organisation is encouraged to clearly describe all costs related to the research school activities.

Classifications

Formas uses the project’s classifications in analyses and supporting documentation on a general level. The classifications are made by the applicant stating the subject area, research topic (SCB code), at least one sustainable development goal the project can contribute to, and keywords.

  • Subject area
    Select the project’s subject area and add a sub-heading.
  • Research topic (SCB code)
    Select at least one research topic and two sublevels that together form the entire code.
  • Sustainable development goals
    Select up to three sustainable development goals (SDGs) the project can help to achieve, in order of relevance.
  • Keywords
    Enter at least one and a maximum of three keywords describing the project.

Appendices

Mandatory appendices

Planned doctorate students

A table summarising planned employments (where each of the planned doctorate student will have their employment), admissions (at what higher education institution and in what subject each of the planned doctorate student will be admitted), and supervision from academia and practice. Save the document as a single PDF file (max 4 MB) and upload it under the mandatory appendices in Prisma. You can only upload files in PDF format in Prisma.

Participants

State all project participants in a table with their name, organisation, and role in the project. Save the document as a single PDF file (max 4 MB).

Statement from main applying organisation

A statement from the main applying organisation that confirms the hosting of the research school, the priority and relevance of the research school to the organisation and that necessary resources will be made available must be appended (maximum size 4 MB). This statement must be signed by the president or equivalent.

Letters of intent

Letter of intent from all participating parties (academic and non-academic) that proves the organisation’s active participation and involvement in the research school, as well as describes any co-funding, must be appended (maximum size 4 MB). The letter of intent must be signed by the head of department, or equivalent.

CV

CVs for key participants are added to the application as a single PDF attachment (max size 10 MB). This means that you cannot use the CV function in Prisma. This is done to enable an equal assessment of the applications and CV from different types of organisations.

The recommended length for each CV is a maximum of 2 A4 pages. The CV should include those experiences and merits that are relevant in relation to the challenge and questions that the research school is taking on, as well as in relation to the research school’s organisation and planned activities. This could include education, work experience, docentur, experience of supervision, etc.

Publication lists

Publication lists for key participants are added to the application as a single PDF attachment (max 10 MB). This means that you cannot use the publication list function in Prisma. State no more than 10 publications per person. Make sure to clearly state what party and what key participant each publication list belongs to.

Optional appendices

Illustrations, images, or sketches

You can, but are not required to, upload maps, figures, tables or illustrations that are relevant to the application (max. 4 MB).

Coordinating project party

Fill in information about the coordinating project party

    1. Enter the company/organisation and the associated information for the organisation
    2. Indicate the workplace, the place where the main part of the project will be carried out, and the associated information for the workplace
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    Fill in the costs for the coordinating project party

    1. Click on Edit
    2. The columns for years come from the project time specified in Basic Information. Go back to Basic Information in your application if you want to edit this.
    3. Fill in costs for each type of cost and year.
    4. Click on Save and Close.
    5. Total costs are automatically calculated in the summary fields.
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    Fill in financing for coordinating project party

      1. Click on Edit
      2. Fill in the applied funding from Formas, per year
      3. If applicable, fill in other funding received from another public funder
      4. If applicable, fill in support received from another private financier
      5. Self-financing is calculated automatically based on what is stated in the cost and financing sections.
      6. Click on Save and Close.
      7. Total financing is calculated automatically in the aggregated fields.
      8. Enter the name of the funder if other funding (public or private) is received.
      9. Funding (aid) density is calculated automatically in percent.
      10. Degree of co-financing is calculated automatically in percent.
      11. In the motivation field, state how the average hourly cost for budgeted personnel costs has been calculated.
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      Project party

      Click on Add project party for the project party or the project parties that will participate in the project, in addition to the coordinating project party (administrating organisation).

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      Fill in the sections for information, budget and financing for each project party in the same way as described for the coordinating project party. See section Coordinating project party above. Information for the project parties is to be filled in regardless of whether the project party is applying for a grant, ie. financing, from Formas or not. If project parties do not apply for funding from Formas but only participate In-kind, budgeted project costs must be stated for these project parties but enter SEK "0" in the field "Applied funding from Formas" under financing for these project parties.

      Note that a subcontractor to the applicant does not constitute a project partner in the application.

      The project total specified costs and financing

      Following the budget charts for coordinating project party and other project parties, total specified cost of the project and total specified financing respectively are calculated automatically.

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      Control how you have completed the budget charts in good time before you register your application. Applications with incorrectly completed budgets may be rejected. Control all budget charts per project party including the coordinating project party and charts for Total specified costs and Total specified financing respectively as follows:

      • You have entered all project partners who participate in the project.
      • You have specified applied funding from Formas for all the project parties that intend to receive funding from Formas.
      • You have stated other funding for those project parties who, if applicable, have it.
      • You have the self-financing required by state aid regulations for companies and other organisations, where relevant.

      After submitting your application

      First, Formas verifies that the application meets the procedural requirements set out in the call. If the application does not meet the procedural requirements, it is rejected and does not proceed to review.

      The following procedural requirements will be verified in this call:

      • The focus of the application falls within Formas’ areas of responsibility.
      • The focus of the application falls within the scope of the call.
      • The application is complete and contains all mandatory information stated under the heading “Information your application must include”.
      • The requirements for project managers, project participants and organisations under “Requirements for applying organisations” are met:
        • The main applying organisation is an academic actor that complies with Formas’ demands on administrating organisations.
        • The research school is comprised by at least three parties, of which at least two are academic parties (higher education institutions or research institutes) and at least one is a non-academic party.
        • Sole proprietorship businesses do not participate as a party.
        • A statement that describes and confirms support and engagement from the host organisation is appended the application.
        • Letters of intent from participating parties are appended the application.
      • The project time is five years (60 months)
      • The funding sought does not exceed 40 million kronor in total.

      All applications are assessed by an external review panel. The application is assessed based on its contents. It is therefore important to write the application as clearly as possible and include all important and relevant information.

      The review panel is comprised by active researchers in the relevant areas as well as non-academic stakeholders with competence to assess the relevance of the application. The review panel is established by Formas. Every application is read and assessed by at least four reviewers.

      Each application is assessed based on its own merits. Thereafter a portfolio perspective will be applied by the review panel. A portfolio perspective means that we aim at funding research schools that complement each other. In other words, we want to avoid funding research schools that to a large extent are overlapping. This also means that we do not want to fund research schools that to a large extent overlaps with other, already existing, research schools and research school investments.

      The applications are assessed based on the following criteria

      The applications are assessed using the following criteria on a scale from 1 to 7, where 1 is the lowest grade and 7 is the highest.

      With “research school” below is meant the research school in its entirety, that is including coordination, management, doctorate projects, supervision, research activities, doctorate courses, activities for exchanging experiences, and other activities within the research school. When nothing else is state in the criteria these addresses the research school in its entirety. With “project group” and “key persons” is meant those persons from participating parties that are engaged in the design and carrying through of the research school, except for not yet employed and/or admitted doctorate students and other personnel.

      Purpose and goal

      • The research school can substantially contribute to develop individual and organisational competence for interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and challenge-driven knowledge production and change.
      • The research school can substantially contribute to dealing with a challenge of major relevance to sustainable planning and built environment and relates to themes and perspectives brought up in the strategic agenda for the national research program for sustainable spatial planning.
      • The overarching questions addressed by the research school contributes to rethinking in relation to relevant research areas.
      • The overarching questions addressed by the research school are approached using a relevant combination of disciplines and research areas.

      Implementation

      • The plans for coordination and carrying through with the research school are concrete, realistic, and appropriate.
      • The planned educational offer of the research school, doctorate projects and other planned activities are concrete, realistic, and appropriate.
      • The plans for interaction and communication with stakeholders and users during the continuation of the research school are concrete, realistic, and appropriate.

      Organisation and actors

      • The organisation and management of the research school support a research education and knowledge production that is interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and challenge-driven.
      • The project group has the competences and experiences needed to carry through the research school in line with its purpose and goals.
      • The project group has a well combined set of competences and experience of interdisciplinary, practice-oriented, and challenge-driven knowledge production. The participating parties and key persons complement each other well and all participants contribute to achieve the purpose and goals of the research school.
      • The research school is designed so that equality, equal opportunities, and diversity can be addressed in relevant ways.

      Societal relevance

      • The research school can substantially contribute to an exchange of experience, development of competencies, and new ways of working in the field of planning and built environment.
      • The research school holds good potential to contribute to transformative change and sustainable planning and built environment.

      Formas’ Research Council is expected to decide which projects will be awarded funding November 23, 2022. Decisions will be announced the following day at the latest on the Formas website. Notification that a decision has been made will be sent out via email from Prisma. Grant award decisions cannot be appealed.

      All awarded research schools must submit financial reports and a report on project results to Formas in accordance with the agreement signed following a decision. The research schools will be followed up and evaluated. The follow-up and evaluations are there to support the research schools in their development so that they can meet the expectations expressed in the purpose and scope of the call. A detailed plan for financial reports, follow-ups, evaluations, and final reporting will be included as an appendix to the decision, should the application be awarded funding.

      Final reporting of financial and project results must be submitted within three months of the end of the availability period. All reports are submitted via Prisma.

      Read more about the reporting requirements.

      Formas may specify how the research schools should report content and results in order to enable dissemination and impact. In such cases, the award decision will contain more information about this.

      All research schools funded through this call are expected to participate in seminars and dialogue with other research schools funded through this call, as well as in conferences and networks within the national research program for sustainable spatial planning. Formas may also require you to participate in conferences and similar events to create synergies and platforms for learning and knowledge sharing.

      Results from research funded by Formas must be published using open access. Read more about our requirements for open access to research results and data External link..

      The research schools that are granted funding are responsible for developing data management plans for each individual research project included in the research school. These plans do not need to be submitted to Formas but should be presented on request. By signing our grant terms and conditions, you certify that the data management plans will be available before the research begins and that they will be kept maintained.

      SweCris

      Formas shares information about awarded grants to SweCRIS, a national database of grant-funded research that was instituted by request of the government.

      Apply

      You apply for a grant in our application system, Prisma, where you add the information you need for your application.

      Revision history

      May 4, 2022: A link to the strategic agenda in English was added to the call text: Research for transformative and sustainable spatial planning

      April 7, 2022: The following parts have been removed from “Verification of the application”:

      • The administrating organisation has signed the application. This must be done within seven calendar days after the call closes.
      • The application has not been denied by the administrating organisation.

      Contact information

      For questions about the content of the call

      For administrative questions and questions about Prisma

      For questions on budgeting and funding for companies and other organisations engaged in economic activities

      Updated:23 November 2022