European Pilot Projects

Call for proposals for European Pilot project on knowledge partnerships

The Call for Proposals DG EAC No EAC/ S03 / 201 for European Pilot projects for the development of Knowledge Partnerships/Knowledge Alliances has been published, within the Europe 2020 Innovation Union flagship initiative, by the European Parliament.
Within the Europe 2020 Innovation Union flagship initiative, one of the key activities is "Promoting excellence in education and skills development" and it is foreseen that the Commission "will also support business-academia collaborations through the creation of \'Knowledge Alliances\' between education and business to develop new curricula addressing innovation skills gaps".

The general objective of the current European Pilot projects call for proposals is to support the implementation of Knowledge Alliances which should ensure stronger societal and economic relevance, and outreach in higher education, by strengthening the role of higher education institutions as engines of innovation and increasing the employability, creativity and innovative potential of graduates, professors and company staff.  Through this European pilot project, the grant from  the European Commission will support the implementation of Knowledge Alliances, helping the partner organizations implement  structured partnerships which should lead to innovative and collaborative approaches in their field beyond the lifetime of the project.

The current  call for proposals  European “Pilot projects for the development of knowledge partnerships/knowledge alliances” includes the following priorities:
-  Innovation 
-  Partnership
-  Bottom-up approach
-  Dissemination and outreach
-  New learning and teaching method
-  Fostering entrepreneurial skills and attitude
-   Structured mobility

The target groups of the “Knowledge Alliances” call for proposals are:
-  Higher education institutions

Eligible participants within this European “Pilot projects for the development of Knowledge Partnerships/Knowledge Alliances” call for proposal are:
-  Higher education institutions
-  Research institutes and training institutions
-  Public and private large, medium or small companies
-  Intermediaries and associations
-  National or regional organization

The actions that can be funded within the “Knowledge Alliance Programme” can include:
1) New learning and teaching methods;
2) Fostering entrepreneurial skills and attitudes;
3) Structured mobility.

The total budget available for the “Knowledge Alliance Programme” amounts to 1 million Euros. The financial contribution from the Commission for projects cannot exceed 75% of the total eligible costs. The grants are expected to be between 200.000 and 400.000 Euros maximum. It is estimated that up to three pilot projects will be financed

The deadline for submitting proposals in the framework of the current call for proposals within the Europe 2020 Innovation Union flagship initiative is 28 June 2012.

Further information on the current call for proposals “Pilot projects for the development of knowledge partnerships/knowledge alliances” is available on the European Commission’s web site at: http://ec.europa.eu/education/calls/s0312_en.htm