Department of Industry, Innovation, Science and Research (DIISR) (scheme formerly funded by DEST)

International Science Linkages - Competitive Grants (Round 13)

NOTE: Please check with your Faculty Office for Faculty deadlines as Monash contributions must be signed off by the Head of Department/School and the Faculty ADR. 

Scheme Aim and Objectives

The Competitive Grants element of the ISL program provides support, on a competitive basis, for Australian participation in leading edge, researcher-initiated, international science and technology projects which meet the objectives of the ISL program.

Competitive Grants supports:

• international collaborative scientific and technological research projects and related activities;
• the staging of major international scientific conferences in Australia (funding up to $50,000 per conference may be sought).

From 2008, Competitive Grants will focus on support for collaborations with specific countries and in specific fields of research.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for funding under the Competitive Grants component of the ISL program the application must satisfy the following criteria (‘Eligibility Criteria’).

• Seek support for either:
• - for a joint scientific research project with the primary partner being from one of the following specific countries  and for activities in one of the corresponding specific eligible field of research:

OR

• Major international scientific conference in Australia - in one of the following eligible subject areas:

Scientific collaborations, particularly those addressing global issues, are often best undertaken through multilateral partnerships.  For this reason, Competitive Grants can support multilateral projects, including those involving countries not listed above, provided that the primary project partner satisfies the country and field of research criteria.

Note that applications must not extend beyond June 2011 as funding for the ISL program does not extend beyond this date. 

Funding

DIISR support is available up to a maximum of 50% of the Australian component of eligible project costs. Matching contributions to the Australian component of any project costs may be in cash and/or in-kind from the applicant, collaborative participants and industry contributions.

In-kind contributions will be required to be detailed and costed:

• principal researchers’ salaries may only be included in the in-kind contribution;
• in-kind costs must be directly related to costs of delivering the activities of the project and can include salaries of staff for the time they are involved and other costs incurred for the duration of these activities.

Competitive Grants will support the following:

a) the direct costs of international collaborative scientific research and technology projects and related activities including:

• contribution to international travel and living expenses for Australian researchers travelling overseas to participate in international collaborative science and technology projects, and to bring internationally renowned researchers to Australia to participate in international collaborative science and technology projects and alliances;
• salaries (and on-costs) of additional Australian staff employed specifically for the project;
• contribution to costs of project-specific workshops and meetings with international partner(s) conducted in Australia and overseas;
• project reporting; and
• other costs such as bench fees, consumables and on-line access to overseas facilities;

b) costs of staging major international scientific conferences in Australia, including:

• contribution to international travel and living expenses for international speakers;
• venue costs; and
• project management and reporting;

c) costs of showcasing Australia’s scientific research and technology capabilities, including:

• contribution to international travel and living expenses3 for the project manager;
• venue costs;
• design and construction of showcasing facilities;
• project management and reporting; and
• marketing and event promotion;

d) costs of participation in international strategic planning activities for major international collaborative scientific projects, including:

• contribution to international travel and living expenses for Australian researchers travelling overseas to participate in pre-establishment planning meetings and participation in design activities, and to bring internationally renowned researchers to Australia to participate in project planning and report writing activities;
• salaries (and on-costs) of additional Australian staff employed specifically for the project; and
• other costs such as bench fees, consumables, computer modelling to create designs, administrative expenses, and on-line access to overseas facilities.

Other Requirements

Australian applicants must provide written evidence of collaborative research or other support from Australian sources. This should include evidence of the extent to which the project has the support of industry, State Governments, institutions, and other non-government sources, financially, in-kind and through collaborative arrangements.

Applicants must also provide written agreement from their proposed International Partner(s) to project activities and applications should include clearly defined levels/parameters of support that will be provided by them towards the project.

Registration

To apply for Competitive Grants online, applicants must be a registered user of the ISL internet system. To register applicants must complete and submit the online registration form available on the 'logon' screen at www.dest.gov.au/science/isl. Applicants will then be provided with a personal logon ID and computer generated password (case-sensitive) in order to access the ISL internet system.

Guidelines and Other Instructions

• DIISR ISL Competitive Grants Information 
• Online application form
• Advice regarding applications to DIISR (doc 38kb, pdf 25kb)

Submission Requirements

• Research Office Cover Sheet
• Certification of Funding Form (if any Monash cash contributions are required)
• Signed original print out of the application is to be sent to the Research Office  prior to electronic submission of application.
• All parts of your application (including claims against the Assessment Criteria, and Project Plan and Budget) are to be entered via the online application form.  The only exceptions are: written evidence of support from Australian and international partners;  curriculum vitae(s) of key personnel; and documentation for Assessment Criteria   The applicant must upload these documents as attachments to the application.
• Note -Two referees reports are due within two weeks of the round closing date