International Opportunities Fund
Aims and objectives
Successful awards will have substantial international partnerships at the core of their approach, to deliver outputs that cannot be achieved by the UK alone. NERC encourages international partnerships as part of its usual funding schemes. Therefore the IOF Scheme is not aimed at supporting typical research or knowledge exchange projects with international partners. Applications to the IOF Scheme should go beyond the approach that is usually allowed, seeking to add value to existing UK capability, through leadership of significant international initiatives.
Activities are expected to be outcome focused and have lasting impact beyond the duration of the award (ie exchanges, networks, workshops, and such will not be supported as an end in themselves).
The specific IOF Scheme objectives are as follows:
- to fund high impact, outcome focused, collaborative activities in areas of NERC strategic themes and challenges as expressed in the NERC Strategy 2007 - 2012, Next Generation Science for Planet Earth ( KB)
- to fund activities that require international collaboration at the centre of their approach, supporting UK leadership internationally, adding value through collaboration to UK capability and delivering outcomes that cannot be delivered by the UK alone
- to fund activities that have lasting outputs that are expected to have benefits beyond the duration of the IOF award (eg establishing long-term collaborations, pump-priming for ongoing, self-sustaining activities, and/or developing high-impact knowledge)
- to fund activities that are not typically supported through other NERC funding schemes
- to promote collaboration between UK researchers and those from NERC target countries as represented in the Belmont Forum of Global Environmental Change Research Funders and RCUK Overseas Offices1. (Collaborations with countries not represented on the Belmont Forum or with RCUK Overseas Offices will be considered, but a clear rationale for their prioritisation should be given.)
1. Belmont Forum members are from the following countries/regions: Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, China, European Commission, France, Germany, India, Japan, Norway, South Africa, UK, and USA. Additionally, there are RCUK Overseas Offices in Europe (Brussels), China, India and USA.