International CollaborationsBuilding links with Brazil:

A personal perspective

Rhian M Touyz MD, PhDInstitute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, BHF GCRC, Univ of Glasgow

Internationalization Workshop, Univ of Glasgow, March 2012

Summary• Introduction to Brazilian Scientific

Community.• Brazilian contacts – an expanding network.• International opportunities for Brazilian

students and scientists.• Mechanisms for partnering:

- students- researchers

RT 8 month PhD student

(Sandwich program) in 2003

2003 – beginning of my Brazilian partnership

BeloHorizonte Ribeiro

Preto

Rio

Prof. RT

Brazilian collaborations:an expanding network.

Stud 1 Stud 2 Stud 3 Stud 4 Stud 5 Stud 6 Stud 7 Stud 8

Stud 9

Remained in Canada

195 millionPeople

>3 million University students

Universities in Brazil• Public and private• Public - higher quality, 100% -

government funded• University education is free, highly

competitive.• 127 public and private universities and

growing.• >3 million university students; 65%

graduate.

Academia and research:Strengths and weaknesses

• Strengths;- higher education is free (merit).- high quality teaching

Weaknesses- resources for research- resources for graduate and post graduate students- Positions in academia and research

NUMBERof PhD/Year

547 720 10051750 2050

29504000

57006894

10616

81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05

0.42 0.49 0.480.62 0.72 0.80

0.95

1.301.51

1.80

81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90 91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04

PERCENTAGE OF WORLD PUBLICATIONS

SECTORAL FUNDS

One of the most creative recent ideas is that of :One of the most creative recent ideas is that of :

• National sectoral funds in which a percentage of corporate taxes are targeted to funding high quality indigenous Research and Development - R&D in sectors of strategic importance for the country (agriculture, biotechnology, energy and oil, health, informatics, telecommunications and others). Close interaction of the academic community, industry and government is forged in creating, setting priorities and managing the Funds, under the umbrella of the Science and Technology Ministry. InterAcademy Council

1. CNPq is a Federal agency

2. FAPESP supports only salaries/projects from the State of Sao Paulo

Major funding agencies

Brazil promises 75,000 scholarships in science and technology.

3-billion-real investment aims to support students at home and abroad.

•More than 34,000 scholarships will go to students in doctorate programmes. •Aid will be also provided for researchers in postdoctoral positions, six-month internships and training for international companies. •Just over one-third of the scholarships will be awarded to undergraduates undertaking one-year study-abroad programmes. •The government also hopes to attract foreign scientists to Brazil, offering 390 three-year grants to visiting researchers

2011 announcement:

Opportunities for internationalization

CNPq = Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico(National Council for Scientific and Technological Development)

CNPq is an organization of the Brazilian federal government under the Ministry of Science and Technology, dedicated to the promotion of

scientific and technological research and to the formation of human resources for research in the country.

Open Call for Proposals: 2012PhD fellowships for Germany (República Federal da Alemanha 2012/2013) DAAD - CAPES – CNPqDeadline: 26/01/2012 a 15/03/2012

CNPq/GSK Nº 01/2012GlaxoSmithKline, UK, USA, Spain. (http://www.gsk.com). Deadline: 18/01/2012 a 02/03/2012

Chamada de Projetos MEC/MCTI/Capes/CNPq/Faps Nº 61/2011 Programa Ciência sem Fronteiras – Bolsas no País Modalidade Pesquisador Visitante Especial Aim: Support for scientific projects (via exchange of researchers)Deadline: 21/12/2011 a 15/02/2012

Chamada de Projetos MEC/MCTI/Capes/CNPq/Faps Nº 60/2011 Aim: Support for scientific projects (via exchange of young investigators) Deadline: 21/12/2011 a 15/02/2012

Chamada de Projetos CNPq/Structural Genomics Consortium-SGC N º 29/2011 - Programa Ciência sem FronteirasAim: To select candidates that would like to develop part of their PhD thesis at the University of Toronto (Canadá) e Oxford (UK). Deadline: 19/12/2011 a 06/02/2012

FAPESP (São Paulo Research Foundation = Fundacao de Amparo a Pesquisa do Estado de Sao Paulo) is one of Brazil’s major funding agencies for scientific research. Its mission is to foster scientific research in all fields of knowledge by awarding scholarships, fellowships and grants to investigators linked with higher education and research institutions in the state of São Paulo, Brazil.

Over its 50 years, FAPESP has granted 105,000 scholarships and fellowships and provided financial aid to 92,000 individual and thematic research projects.

The foundation fosters research in areas considered strategic for the country, and at the same time crucial for the advance of science at home and abroad.

In addition to the projects financed exclusively by FAPESP, the foundation maintains cooperation agreements with national and international research funding bodies, with leading institutions of higher education and research, and with private companies.

FAPESP resources are guaranteed by the state constitution through allocation of one percent of the state tax revenue. The foundation has complete administrative and financial autonomy.

Investment in scientific research

in 2010, FAPESP’s expenditures were around US$ 500 million to support scientific research in São Paulo State. It will invest some US$ 556 million in 2011.

One third of the foundation’s annual outlays are earmarked for scholarships and fellowships, more than 50% for academic research (mostly fundamental) and 10% in research for application in small companies or in partnerships formed between universities and industry as well as research for application in public policy.

Support for academic research is provided by means of Regular Research Awards, submitted by individual researchers, and Thematic Project Awards, which are longer in duration and are submitted by individual researchers or groups. FAPESP also maintains a special academic research support program, the Young Investigators Awards. This program aims to create new research groups led by highly promising early-career scientists in any field of knowledge and from any country. There are also programs for the improvement of research infrastructure inside institutions.

Support for research aimed at applications is given by means of programs focused in areas and topics considered strategic for Brazil: biodiversity, bioenergy, global climate change, brain research, public policy, research for technological innovation in partnerships between academia and industry and research in small businesses.

At the moment, Grant Proposals are being accepted by FAPESP via the following agreements

BIOTA-Dimensions of Biodiversity Deadline: 28/03/2012Grants for collaborative research between the programs BIOTA-FAPESP andDimensions of Biodiversity (National Science Foundation, USA)

FAPESP-Universidade de Surrey Deadline: 26/03/2012Exchange of researchers from São Paulo State and United Kingdom .Apoio: FAPESP e Universidade de Surrey 

FAPESP-BBSRCDeadline: there is no deadlineThe aim is to support collaborative research between groups from São Paulo State (financial support by FAPESP) and those supported by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council, UK.

FAPESP and Columbia UniversitySupport: FAPESP, Universidade Columbia, Fulbright e Capes  FAPESP-Universidade de Surrey (texto em inglês)Support: FAPESP e Universidade de Surrey (Reino Unido) FAPESP-CONICET(Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas de La República Argentina da Argentina).Support: FAPESP e CONICET FAPESP-CNRS (France) Support: FAPESP e Centro Nacional de Pesquisa Científica (CNRS), da França

FAPESP-BRASKEM/IDEOMChamada FAPESP 11/2010Support: FAPESP e Braskem

FAPESP-AUFSupport: FAPESP e Agence Universitaire de la Francophonie (Canadá)

 FAPESP-InsermSupport: FAPESP e Instituto Nacional de Saúde e da Pesquisa Médica (France) FAPESP-MITSupport: FAPESP e MIT

FAPESP-King’s College LondonSupport: FAPESP e King’s College London

BeloHorizonte Ribeiro

Preto

Rio

ProfRT

Brazilian collaborations:an expanding network

and a very rewarding personal

experience.

21 publicationsBrazil:Canada grant