The European Research Council is set to re-instate the Synergy Grant funding scheme next year. The news follows an assessment of projects funded through pilot calls in 2012 and 2013.
The grants aim to bring together researchers with complementary skills to address research problems in an unconventional way, hopefully leading to major breakthroughs.
Professor Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, President of the European Research Council (ERC), said: “The Synergy Grants awarded so far have shown that this funding fosters interdisciplinary research and can trigger unconventional collaborations, allowing for the emergence of new fields of study.
“These grants help to put European science at the global forefront. They will contribute significantly to fill a gap in the EU funding for frontier research.” The ERC opened two competitions for Synergy Grants in 2012 and 2013, and 24 projects were funded as a result.