The EU's funding efforts.

The European Union continues to lag behind Asia and the US in research funding, a fact that many observers warn is crippling the region's economic competitiveness. Efforts to correct the inbalance are underway. New organizations and fundings are expected to increase the EU's scientific presence

Next year, the European Research Council (ERC) will be launched with a seven-year 7.5 billion [euro] ($9.3 billion) budget. The mission of the ERC is to fund "frontier research" and to award grants based solely on research quality. In its first year, the ERC will fund young scientists not yet established in their fields. Applicants may receive grants of up to 1 million [euro]. In subsequent years, funding will be opened to all researchers.

The ERC is funded by the EU's Seventh Framework Programme (FP7), which covers 2007-13 and has a proposed budget of 50.5 billion [euro] ($63.1 billion). Last month, the European Commission adopted the latest amendment to FP7. The FP7's nine themes are health (6.0 billion [euro]) ($7.5 billion); food, agriculture and biotechnology (1.9 billion [euro]) ($2.4 billion); information and communication technologies (9.1 billion [euro]) ($11.4 billion); nanosciences, nanotechnologies, materials and new production technologies (3.5 billion [euro]) ($4.4 billion); energy (2.3 billion [euro]) ($2.9 billion); environment (1.9 billion [euro]) ($2.4 billion); transport (4.2 billion [euro]) ($5.3 billion); socio-economic sciences and the humanities (607 million [euro]) ($759 million); and security and space (2.9 billion [euro]) ($3.6 billion). This fall, the European Parliament will conduct a second review of FP7.

In other EU funding news, last month, the private European Science Foundation (ESF) announced a new initiative to coordinate European life science research. Founded in 1974, the ESF consists of 78 organizations in 30 countries. In coordination with FP7, the EuroBioFund will commence in January. Budgeted at 50 billion [euro] ($63 billion), the EuroBioFund consists of three programs. EuroBioForum aims to promote joint research by creating networking opportunities and the brokerage of research alliances. EuroBioGenerator seeks to organize researchers and assist in the development of ground-up research programs. EuroBioAccess will create new funding for joint research. The first EuroBioForum will be held in Helsinki, Finland this December.

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