Call for Proposals 2020
Hebrew University of Jerusalem and University of Illinois
Research and Innovation Seed Grants Program
Purpose of the Program
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI) and the University of Illinois System (U of I) are launching a Joint Research and Innovation Seed Grants Program for university research scientists. This program aims to facilitate research and development cooperation and delivery of talent, innovations, and resources from these universities to the marketplace. The program will be interdisciplinary and the review process will assess innovation and commercialization potential. The goal is to promote economic development through R&D of innovative technologies, while facilitating cooperation between the two universities.
The Hebrew University International Office and the University of Illinois System Office of Vice President for Economic Development and Innovation (OVPEDI) will administer the program.
Priority Areas
Priority areas for the program include agriculture, artificial intelligence, data science, and medicine. Both universities’ worldwide reputations and standing in these areas – along with the strong potential for technology development and commercialization – made them clear choices for this program.
Interdisciplinary initiatives are being encouraged. The program intends to support both initial and more-advanced steps in a proof-of-concept collaboration.
Applications should address the commercial viability of the project; technical details and overall planning; clarification of intellectual property rights that are likely to be generated (position and strategy); plans for securing funding for the project at the end of this seed grant; and other forms of commercial discussion that are envisioned.
Funding
HUJI and the U of I will each invest $200,000 in the inaugural program, consisting of two funding periods of two years each. The $400,000 investment will be split evenly between funding periods and finance up to four teams per period with projects lasting two years each. Funding can be used for personnel expenses for postdocs and student workers (no faculty salaries), supplies, travel, meetings and for additional expenses that are necessary to move research forward.
Intellectual Property (IP)
For purposes of this program, intellectual property will remain with the university that generated it. In the event that new intellectual property will be generated jointly by the universities, they will agree to reach a mutually beneficial arrangemement regarding ownership, management, protection, and further development and exploitation of the IP.
Application
Proposals must be jointly submitted by faculty of HUJI and U of I. Participants are encouraged to include both senior and junior faculty/researchers. All teams will be interdisciplinary and have at least one participant from HUJI and one participant from U of I. HUJI applicants must be faculty members of that university.
The supported activities should have a clearly defined focus with scientific and technical merit, demonstrate innovation and economic impact, and serve as a catalyst for moving research forward to a path of commercialization (when relevant). The activities can take place at HUJI or the U of I. Inclusion of third parties is permitted, but the additional costs must be covered by these partners.
The proposal should clearly explain the motivation for conducting the activity , including how the relevant HUJI and U of I institutes or departments are involved, how they can benefit from this cooperation, and what synergies can be created.
Information and Partnering Webinar
Interested researchers are encouraged to participate in the optional webinar for information and partnering on May 4, 2020, 8 – 10 a.m. CDT (4-6 p.m. IDT). Please register by April 27, 2020. At the time of RSVP for the webinar, participants will have an option to provide a short description of their research areas of interest and to indicate their willingness to give a three-minute lightning talk on their research ideas during the webinar.
Selection Criteria
Funding for joint activities will be provided on a competitive basis, following the criteria below:
o Clearly formulated plan and goals of the activity for two years.
o Excellence of innovation potential.
o Suitable outline of how the commercialization or the generation of the listed benefits will be achieved.
o Plans to assess and validate the quality and effectiveness of the project’s outcomes.
o Description of the HUJI and U of I PI’s research profiles (interdisciplinary nature, excellence of project leaders, scope of the fields/labs represented in the proposed activity) and synergy between them. Information on how the cooperation can be sustained beyond the initial seed funding phase.
Evaluation
Evaluation will be conducted by a joint team consisting of two representatives each from Hebrew University and the University of Illinois System. Selection of representatives will be coordinated by the HUJI International Office and the U of I System OVPEDI.
Program Progress and Review
Selected teams will submit an annual technical and fiscal summary report/presentation.
Submission and Deadlines
The application will be submitted using the following link: https://go.uillinois.edu/HUJI-UI-Proposal
The proposal should include the following sections:
1. Executive Summary
2. Project description/narrative (up to seven pages) including:
a. Clearly formulated project plan and goals
b. Innovation and Commercialization potential and benefits
c. Plan to assess effectiveness of proposal outcome
3. Project timeline (maximum project duration two years)
4. Project Budget (in U.S. Dollars)
a. HUJI (USD)
b. U of I (USD)
5. Description of HUJI and U of I PI’s research profiles (interdisciplinary nature, excellence of project leaders, scope of the fields/labs represented in the proposed activity) and synergy between them.
6. Information on how the cooperation can be sustained beyond the initial seed funding phase.
7. How IP will be addressed
8. Written endorsement statement of respective HUJI/U of I faculty/department
9. Short CVs of project leaders on both sides and list of other HUJI/U of I participants
Timetable
Call for Proposals published April 6, 2020
RSVP for Information and Partnering Webinar April 27, 2020
Submit slides for optional three-minute talk during webinar April 30, 2020
Information and Partnering Webinar (optional participation) May 4, 2020, 8 – 10 am CDT (4-6 pm Israel)
Proposal submission deadline July 1, 2020
Announcement of awards August 3, 2020
Commencing the proposed activities On or before October 19, 2020
For further information please contact:
HUJI: Alma Lessing (almal@savion.huji.ac.il; +972-2-5880454)
University of Illinois: Jisu Hong (jisuhong@uillinois.edu; +1-217-300-6686)
