Expansion of funding agreement between DFG and RFFI
(12.03.12) On the occasion of DFG President Matthias Kleiner's visit to Moscow on 29 February 2012, the German Research Foundation (DFG) and the Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFFI) agreed to expand their collaboration. Under the expanded funding agreement, the two organisations will increase their support of International Research Training Groups (IRTGs) and Collaborative Research Centres (CRCs). The aim of the new agreement is to strengthen research cooperation in the DFG's coordinated programmes. To support early career researchers in Russia and Germany, an organisational framework has been defined for the joint funding of IRTGs. The framework now includes detailed agreements on the application and review process as well as the coordination of joint evaluation.
Matthias Kleiner (DFG President), Vladislav Panchenko (Chair of the RFFI Council)
The agreement, signed by Matthias Kleiner (DFG) and Vladislav Panchenko (RFFI), was also extended to include the possibility of co-funding of CRCs by the Russians. As far as CRCs are concerned, researchers from the Russian Federation are already among the most active visiting researchers in Germany alongside their peers from the USA.
The new framework was discussed last October during a multi-day visit to Bonn by a delegation from the RFFI led by director Vladimir Eliseev.
The DFG and the RFFI signed their first bilateral agreement on research funding in 1995. Since then, thousands of German and Russian researchers have benefited from joint funding through hundreds of projects and events.
Barbara Riesche (DFG Bonn), Jörn Achterberg (DFG Moscow), Matthias Kleiner (DFG President), Vladislav Panchenko (Chair of the RFFI Council), Aleksandr Sharov (RFFI International Affairs), Vladimir Eliseev (RFFI Director)
The Russian Foundation for Basic Research (RFFI) was established in 1992 in accordance with the principles of academic self-governance. It receives around €150 million per year to distribute as grants to Russian researchers on a competitive proposal basis. In addition to 150 full-time employees, about 300 researchers serve on the various committees of the RFFI. Each year, more than 3500 Russian researchers and over 1400 international researchers participate in the review process, writing some 65 000 reviews. Together with their German colleagues, Russian researchers can submit proposals in the following fields of basic research:
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Mathematics, mechanics and information sciences
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Physics and astronomy
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Chemistry and materials sciences
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Biology and medical sciences
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Geosciences
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Humanities and social sciences
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Infocommunication technologies and computing systems
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Engineering sciences