Supporting and training research managers will be the priority of Denmark’s Council for Strategic Research throughout 2013.
The council’s annual report, published in March, states that management is important for the interdisciplinary and international research the council seeks to promote.
Mette Thunø, the vice-chairwoman of the council’s board, said an independent panel that evaluated grants awarded by the council in 2005-2011 recommended better support for research management. The panel praised the council for promoting interdisciplinary projects, she said, while “recognising that these are extremely challenging in terms of their management”. As part of its efforts to support managers, Thunø said the council would be hosting a seminar this year for the managers of large projects funded by its grants.
The report highlighted two other priority areas for 2013. The council aims to continue promoting international cooperation and also to increase the involvement of the end users of research, to help maximise the applicability of research results.
In 2012, 82 per cent of the grants funded by the council included international partners. A total of 40 million Danish kronor (€5.4m) went to Danish participants working in bilateral partnerships Brazil, India and China. Another DKK 33m went to Danish participants working on joint European projects through ERA-nets or joint programming initiatives, the report states.
The report includes other overall figures for the council’s activities in 2012. It awarded grants totalling DKK 580m (€78m) to 33 research centres and projects and funded around 150 PhD students. The amount of funding granted relative to what was applied for varied between 13 and 28 per cent.
The Council for Strategic Research, established in 2004, aims to fund high-quality research with potential beneficial impacts for society. It is made up of a board and various programme commissions. In 2013, there are six programme commissions covering areas such as sustainable energy and environment; individuals, disease and society; and health, food and welfare.