The aim of this project is to establish a new centre of excellence in the Lodzkie Region, Poland, by creative and collaborative efforts, i.e. TEAMING with Max Planck Society (MPS), Germany, as the internationally leading institution. The planned International Centre for Research on Innovative Bio-based Materials (ICRI-BioM) will focus on design, synthesis, characterization and practical implementations/applications of advanced materials, exemplified by biomaterials, bio-products, and multifunctional smart polymer systems. This program fits into the Regional Strategy of the Lodzkie Region as one of smart specialisations, represented in the regional strategic documents, as well as the national strategy. An added value will be the synergistic effect created by combining expertise and ambitions of main research institutes in this area from Lodzkie Region and MPS. During the first year, a strategic Action Plan will be created with teaming partners and other participants: industry, research, regional and national authorities. The proposed Business Plan will describe a vision for the establishment of the ICRI-BioM: (i) long-term science and innovation strategy; (ii) organizational and management structure; (iii) a legal form of independent, autonomous non-profit institution; (iv) all required operational regulations. At the first stage of its activities, ICRI-BioM will be supported by national and regional funds, European structural and investment funds, Horizon 2020 and research, innovation and competitiveness Union - related programs. Within several years, the ICRI-BioM will become the strategic interdisciplinary research centre and it will influence the economic development of the region and country. By teaming with MPS, as the best European research institution, we trust that ICRI-BioM will be able to mimic the best research practices, adopt them into Polish reality and re-invent and re-shape the Polish research landscape.

The objective of the proposal is to form Wroclaw Centre of Excellence (WCE), by a close collaboration of Wroclaw University of Technology with National Centre for Research and Development, and German partners - Fraunhofer Institute for Material and Beam Technology in Dresden and University of Würzburg, renowned science institutions. The vision of WCE includes innovative technology and device development on the state-of-the-art level, as well as economic activities through interactions with established Polish and European companies and the foundation of new spin-off companies. A special focus will be put on new materials, nanophotonics, additive laser-based technologies and new management organisation systems. Nanophotonics is chosen because it allows a wide variety of novel devices for e.g. sensing or optoelectronic applications. Developed materials allow for producing new products with novel functionalities, very often only possible with additive manufacturing technologies, including laser-assisted processes. Synergy between the nanophotonics and modern manufacturing technologies provides additional opportunities, e.g. for “smart” parts directly manufactured with embedded nanophotonic sensors. The objectives of the proposal will be achieved in two stages, first the detailed and robust Business Plan (BP) will be prepared, based on the expertise of all involved partners. In the second stage, the WCE will be established according to this BP. The Centre will be established in Wroclaw, Poland, eligible for participation in the programme as a low-performing country. The creation of the WCE will significantly enhance the Lower Silesia region in the respective fields of science in order to reach an internationally competitive level in the target areas, reducing research and innovation disparities within the European Union.

This Proposal aims to establish a new research Center of Excellence named CEZAMAT-Environment devoted to the fundamental study and practical implementation of self-organizing networks of chemical and biochemical sensors capable of massively parallel and spatially distributed sensing of environmental hazards and other parameters defining the status of natural resources (e.g., forests, or agricultural crop, aquatic ecosystems).The objective of the one-year action (covered by the CSA) is the development of a detailed and robust Business Plan for the setting-up the Center capable of attaining this long term vision.The goal will be achieved through joint management by the Teaming partners, i.e. The National Centre for Research and Development (Poland), CEZAMAT PW Sp. z o.o. (Poland), CEA-Tech (France), Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft (FhG, Germany), the two latter being Partners of Excellence.The Proposal responds to the work program “Spreading Excellence and Widening Participation,” which aims to reduce internal research and innovation disparities within the European Union by supporting research and innovation activities and systems in low performing countries. The Proposal addresses a specific challenge defined by the work program – namely, the presence of substantial disparities in the European Research and Innovation landscape, and also aims at establishing long-term and strategic partnership between Teaming partners. In the short-term perspective, we will actively seek the advice of the Partners how to best implement the operation and administrative protocols within our Center, especially how to foster cross-discipline collaboration while staying focused on the short-term milestones and long-term goals. In the long-term perspective, the Center will implement within its own structure and then promote to the entire region of Mazovia the best practices in research, innovation and management resulting in significant improvement of this Region’s research and innovation culture.

The overall objective of the NOMATEN project is to establish a Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Multifunctional Materials for Industrial and Medical Applications that will exploit unique nuclear research infrastructure and expertise from Poland and Europe. The long term vision for the NOMATEN CoE will be to provide world-class research and development of innovative multifunctional materials – materials combining advanced structural and functional properties – for industrial and medical applications. To achieve this vision, the CoE will be created by three consortium partners with complementary facilities and expertise: • Narodowe Centrum Badań Jądrowych (NCBJ), Poland; • Commissariat à l’énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA), France; • Teknologian Tutkimuskeskus VTT Oy (VTT), Finland. They will be supported by Narodowe Centrum Badań i Rozwoju (NCBiR) - an implementing agency of the Ministry of Science and Higher Education of Poland – which is the fourth consortium partner. The consortium partners will develop and execute a long-term science and innovation strategy for the CoE - based on a SWOT analysis of NCBJ - that focuses on two strategic research and innovation topics: • Novel high-temperature, corrosion and radiation resistant materials for industrial applications • Novel radiopharmaceutical materials for medical applications The consortium partners believe that leveraging their combined research and innovation capabilities will: • Enable more efficient usage of their research infrastructure and equipment • Create more attractive opportunities to educate and train young researchers • Foster an innovation ecosystem that increases technology-transfer for industrial and medical applications • Create the critical mass to win more competitive research funding.

The goal of INSPIRING ERA is to leverage and accelerate the valorisation of results from the ERA Policy Agenda 2022-2024 through a service-oriented hub that connects and supports Member State, Associated Countries and Stakeholders with regard to their joint implementation of the ERA actions in close collaboration with the European Commission. The project aims to create and support a culture of mutual learning, to build and strengthen a viable community of practice for ERA that thrives through from insights, and to maximize the broad uptake of valorisation of results stemming from the ERA Policy Agenda actions through the elaboration of recommendation and guidance for policy-makers.