Proactive work with external funding
Last changed: 24 February 2023
At the Grants Office, we continuously monitor future funding opportunities suitable for SLU researchers, with a focus on SLU’s major external funders, particularly the European Framework Programme. We provide summaries of this information on the staff web, and in email newsletters, and also aim to match upcoming calls which are of strategic importance for SLU with relevant researchers or research groups. To ensure SLU receives early information about future funding strategies and has the chance to offer feedback, we actively seek opportunities to engage with funders, in Sweden and internationally. We report on all of our work in these areas to SET (the Strategic External Funding Team), a group that represents all four faculties at SLU.
Matchmaking
The Grants Office is the initiator and driving force behind a centrally organised SLU Matchmaking Group, with the aim of stimulating external funding applications at SLU. By creating a forum in which Grants Office staff regularly interact with Research Officers from the faculties, SLU Global and SLU Holding the matchmaking group functions as a powerful tool for identifying future funding possibilities and matching them with SLU researchers. Our focus is on the European Framework Programme, as well as larger national funding calls with direct connections to SLU’s research strategy. We aim to:
- Identify topics relevant for SLU in the funders’ work programmes and connect them with researchers we can encourage to initiate applications as coordinators. We include draft work programmes in this process, to give our potential coordinators the chance of an early start.
- Monitor opportunities to comment on draft work programmes and respond to consultations for future funding programmes. We inform relevant research groups, platforms, university leadership etc. of such opportunities.
To find out more about the work of the matchmaking group, or if you would like to discuss opportunities to initiate a similar matchmaking process in your department, faculty, platform etc., please get in touch:
Fiona Reid, SLU Matchmaking Group coordinator.
Brussels Office and strategic monitoring of EU funding programmes
SLU is a member of Universities in South Sweden (Lärosäten Syd), a long-standing collaborative initiative between six universities and university colleges in southern Sweden. The other members are Blekinge Institute of Technology, Halmstad University, Kristianstad University, Lund University, and Malmö University. Since August 2018, Lärosäten Syd has had a shared office in Brussels, very close to the heart of the European Commission. The objective of the Brussels Office is to increase the visibility and profile of the Lärosäten Syd members at EU level. By employing joint staff positioned in Brussels, Lärosäten Syd has thus launched an efficient means to improve the monitoring and influencing of EU policy programmes, stimulate increased participation in the EU framework programmes and support the formation of stronger international partnerships.
The Brussels office is a complement to the services provided by the Grants Office, offering support for SLU researchers and leadership, and they can help you by:
- Monitoring EU research and innovation policy and programmes
- Seeking opportunities for SLU to advocate for the inclusion of our research areas in future funding programmes
- Networking in Brussels to raise the profile of SLU and our research priorities at the European Commission
- Helping you to arrange visits to EU institutions in Brussels
- Providing access to meeting rooms and working space within their office in Brussels
Contact us
If you are interested in finding out more about the Brussels Office and how you can make use of their support, please get in touch with
Fiona Reid & Ulf Westerlund at the Grants Office / Brussels Office liaison