On December 9, 2014 the European Institute of Innovation and Technology's (EIT), a European Union agency based in Budapest,announced winners of the open recruitment into the next strategic public-private partnerships known as Knowledge and Innovation Communities – KIC.
The InnoLife partnership encapsulates the two essential principles of the EIT – excellence and innovation. It brings together 140 partners, who are the leading research centres, universities, companies as well as non-government organizations from 14 European countries. Among the participants of the partnership there are such global companies as: Roche, Sanofi Aventis, Philips Electronics or Karolinska Institutet, universities in Gent, Oxford and Cambridge. The aim of KIC InnoLife is to make use of the potential of all the partners within innovative enterprises and projects, mostly in the area of science and education, which in the end will result in improvement of the quality of life of contemporary society.
KIC InnoLife has formed six co-location centres across Europe: in London (UK/Ireland), Stockholm (SCAN), Barcelona (ES), Paris (FR), Heidelberg (GER) and Rotterdam (BENE). Next to them there has been created a network of regional clusters ‘InnoStars”, in which research, academic and medical institutions cooperate with business. In the thematic field – innovations for health and active ageing consortium KIC InnoLife, whose regional partner – InnoStar, includes: Medical University of Lodz, Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine and Ericpol company, has become a winner.
The projects performed as part of KIC Innolife are in 25% financed from the budget of EIT, and in 75% from the budget of EU, and all resources for the research and innovative projects are allocated through a competitive process.
The Director General of the Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, prof. prof. Konrad Rydzyński emphasizes that for Polish partners of InnoLife, the EIT’s decision means entering an elite group. ‘It provides access to enormous money, as it is estimated that in the first phase (till 2020) there will be 1 billion euro to allocate. These are really big amounts, but you need to know how to reach for them – there must be a good idea, a good way to present it and to perform and implement it’ – he points. Since the first competitions for specific projects will take place in the second half of 2015 NIOM already gets down to work.
Choosing NIOM is a great ennoblement and at the same time it is a tribute to the professional and comprehensive activities of our Unit. Since 2000, NIOM has realized 108 international programmes. 35 projects were funded within EU Framework Programmes (10 as part of 5 FP, 11 as part of 6 FP, 11 as part of 7 FP and 3 as part of Marie Curie Actions). Also 5 applications were submitted to the Horizon 2020 programme - one has already been granted (InnoLife), the rest is pending for decision in the nearest future. Within the EU Framework Programmes NIOM has coordinated 6 projects, including ECNIS over the years 2005-2012 (Network of Excellence aiming at recognition of the impact of environmental factors, diet and lifestyle on the incidence of cancer).
So far NIOM has also realized 13 projects within Life Long Learning Programme (including 2 coordinated ones), 21 projects within the Public Health (including 2 coordinated ones), 5 projects as part of Polish-Norwegian Financial Mechanism and 1 project as part of Polish-Swiss Cooperation Programme (all of them coordinated by the Polish side). Moreover, there are next 33 other programmes (bilateral agreements, project funded by PHARE and grants).
The InnoLife partnership encapsulates the two essential principles of the EIT – excellence and innovation. It brings together 140 partners, who are the leading research centres, universities, companies as well as non-government organizations from 14 European countries. Among the participants of the partnership there are such global companies as: Roche, Sanofi Aventis, Philips Electronics or Karolinska Institutet, universities in Gent, Oxford and Cambridge. The aim of KIC InnoLife is to make use of the potential of all the partners within innovative enterprises and projects, mostly in the area of science and education, which in the end will result in improvement of the quality of life of contemporary society.
KIC InnoLife has formed six co-location centres across Europe: in London (UK/Ireland), Stockholm (SCAN), Barcelona (ES), Paris (FR), Heidelberg (GER) and Rotterdam (BENE). Next to them there has been created a network of regional clusters ‘InnoStars”, in which research, academic and medical institutions cooperate with business. In the thematic field – innovations for health and active ageing consortium KIC InnoLife, whose regional partner – InnoStar, includes: Medical University of Lodz, Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine and Ericpol company, has become a winner.
The projects performed as part of KIC Innolife are in 25% financed from the budget of EIT, and in 75% from the budget of EU, and all resources for the research and innovative projects are allocated through a competitive process.
The Director General of the Nofer Institute of Occupational Medicine, prof. prof. Konrad Rydzyński emphasizes that for Polish partners of InnoLife, the EIT’s decision means entering an elite group. ‘It provides access to enormous money, as it is estimated that in the first phase (till 2020) there will be 1 billion euro to allocate. These are really big amounts, but you need to know how to reach for them – there must be a good idea, a good way to present it and to perform and implement it’ – he points. Since the first competitions for specific projects will take place in the second half of 2015 NIOM already gets down to work.
Choosing NIOM is a great ennoblement and at the same time it is a tribute to the professional and comprehensive activities of our Unit. Since 2000, NIOM has realized 108 international programmes. 35 projects were funded within EU Framework Programmes (10 as part of 5 FP, 11 as part of 6 FP, 11 as part of 7 FP and 3 as part of Marie Curie Actions). Also 5 applications were submitted to the Horizon 2020 programme - one has already been granted (InnoLife), the rest is pending for decision in the nearest future. Within the EU Framework Programmes NIOM has coordinated 6 projects, including ECNIS over the years 2005-2012 (Network of Excellence aiming at recognition of the impact of environmental factors, diet and lifestyle on the incidence of cancer).
So far NIOM has also realized 13 projects within Life Long Learning Programme (including 2 coordinated ones), 21 projects within the Public Health (including 2 coordinated ones), 5 projects as part of Polish-Norwegian Financial Mechanism and 1 project as part of Polish-Swiss Cooperation Programme (all of them coordinated by the Polish side). Moreover, there are next 33 other programmes (bilateral agreements, project funded by PHARE and grants).
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