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Dear Member of the Swiss polar and high-altitude science community,
Here are the latest SPI news and upcoming activities. We wish you a good read and a great summer!
The SPI Team
Latest SPI news |
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Results of the survey on leverage effect of SPI’s funding instruments |
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Carried out in February and March 2023 as an online questionnaire sent to recipients of SPI grants since 2016, the survey showed that, on average, for every CHF 1.- of SPI funding, more than 3 times this amount was generated in additional funding for SPI grantees’ projects, with a total project value exceeding CHF 26 million.
The qualitative impact was also positive as most SPI grant recipients gained non-financial benefits, such as networking, outreach and visibility, as well as international collaboration opportunities. We are pleased that nearly all the survey respondents rated their experience of working with us at 4 or 5 out of 5. We thank all the participants, and we look forward to continuing to work with you. |
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The agreement between Université Laval (ULaval), the Institut Nordique du Québec (INQ) and the Swiss Polar Institute (SPI) offers numerous opportunities for collaboration between researchers from their respective communities.
With the purpose to generate and facilitate collaborations between groups based in Switzerland and Quebec, Canada, the SPI and the INQ act in support of each other to create links and synergies, and to identify opportunities for collaboration. |
 Photo credit: © Julie Lattaud, all rights reserved |
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 Calls for proposals |
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The call for the SPI Exploratory Grants is now open. This funding scheme supports Swiss based scientists active in polar and remote high-altitude regions by allowing them to launch short-term new ideas, fund additional fieldwork or launch new collaborations with financial support for logistics. Collaboration with new teams or across disciplines are particularly encouraged, as well as participation in larger/international activities. The grants can be used to complement the funding of initiatives supported by larger funding schemes (e.g. SNSF, EU, etc.).
The deadline for submission is 6 October 2023, 12:00 (noon), Swiss time. |
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The call for the SPI Technogrants is now open. The funding scheme supports Swiss groups developing technologies relevant for research in polar regions and other extreme environments such as remote high-altitude regions. Technogrants can also serve the improvement and adaptation of technologies to extreme environments or support new technological developments to be used in the field for polar or remote high-altitude research.
The deadline for submission is 6 October 2023, 12:00 (noon), Swiss time. |
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The 2nd call for proposals for the Mertz Fellowship is now open. It aims to intensify collaboration and networking between Swiss and Australian polar and high-altitude science communities. It is dedicated to PhD students and ECRs (maximum 5 years after the PhD award at the time of the proposal submission) based in Switzerland or Australia. The fellowship supports their active involvement in polar and high-altitude research through short-term exchange visits and joint projects.
The deadline for submission is 31 October 2023, 11:00pm (CET). |
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A joint initiative of the Swiss Arts Council Pro Helvetia and the Swiss Polar Institute, PolARTS opens a space for new collaborative and explorative practices between the arts and science and supports the processes of transdisciplinary cooperation. For more information about the call, the criteria and the conditions, please visit the dedicated webpage.
In November, an online info-event will be held to provide more information and launch this year’s edition. Stay tuned for more information soon! |
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Our Swiss Polar Day takes place next month! The highlights include keynotes from Jan Schmutz (University of Zurich) on what makes an effective polar team, Ruzica Dadic (WSL) on how snow influences sea ice, a presentation on international collaboration opportunities with Japan and Canada, as well as visits to various labs, a networking lunch and drink.
As places are limited, register to secure your place. |
 Photo credit: © Thomas Stastny, all rights reserved |
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In the context of the recently signed Memorandum of Understanding between the Swiss Polar Institute (SPI) and the Alfred-Wegener-Institut (AWI), we are inviting Swiss-based scientists to express interest in participation in a collaboration workshop to take place in Bremerhaven on 6 December 2023.
Scientific topics include terrestrial ecology and permafrost, ice cores, glaciology, sea ice (Arctic/Antarctic), marine geology, paleo-oceanography, ice-ocean interactions (Southern Ocean), and green technologies for polar research. Suggestions for additional topics are also possible. |
 Picture credit: © Alfred-Wegener-Institut /Sina Löschke (CC-BY 4.0) |
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News from our network |
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SCAR Visiting Scholarships are for mid- to late-career stage scientists and academics (at least 5 years after completing their PhD) who are involved in Antarctic research, providing the opportunity for them to undertake a short-term visit (1 to 4 weeks) to an institute(s) in another SCAR member country, to provide training and mentoring.
The closing date for applications is Wednesday 30 August 2023. |
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The new call for proposals (only available in German) for the DFG Priority Program “Antarctic Research with comparative investigations in Arctic ice areas” of the German Research Foundation (DFG) for the upcoming funding period 2024/2025 is now open.
The related annual coordination workshop will take place between 18-20 September 2023 in Potsdam. |
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The 8th Students in Polar and Alpine Research Conference (SPARC) for early-career researchers in geosciences and biosciences will be held at the Department of of Geography, Masaryk University in Brno (CZ) mid-September. The event organisers will briefly join us on the Swiss Polar Day on 15 September to present the SPARC conference to our participants. |
 Picture credit: © SPARC, all rights reserved |
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Aiming to strengthen the cooperation between ESA and the EC, as part of the Joint RTD-EOP Earth System Science initiative, this workshop is a great networking and collaboration opportunity for scientists and EU-funded projects. It focuses on identifying major scientific challenges and research needs and on defining key scientific priorities for collaborative research and future project funding through ESA and the EC. The results of the discussions will be incorporated into future ESA funding programmes, which will also explicitly include funding for joint science consortia. |
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Outreach |
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 Photo credit: © Aurélie Hendrick, all rights reserved |
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