The Berlin Institute of Health (BIH) and Berlin Health Innovations (BHI) – the joint technology transfer office (TTO) of the BIH and Charité – Universitätsmedizin Berlin (Charité) – together with SPARK-Berlin are pleased to announce their first call for proposals in the newly established validation fund. We invite scientists and clinicians from BIH, Charité and Max Delbrück Center for Molecular Medicine (MDC) to submit applications.
Scope and Eligibility
All projects in the validation fund must aim at the validation of research findings with the goal of translating these into therapies, products or services. Applicants can submit their application in two different tracks. Track 1 projects are typically earlier in the development timeline, while Track 2 projects are further along. In order to qualify for Track 2 funding, strict requirements regarding intellectual property rights and market access strategies need to be met. For further details, please see “Guide for Applicants – Track 1” and “Guide for Applicants – Track 2”.
Every researcher or clinician at the BIH, Charité and MDC can apply for funding, including principal investigators, postdoctoral researchers, and graduate students. However, each application must be signed or co-signed by a principal investigator (Arbeitsgruppenleiter*in) who needs to be an employee of BIH, Charité or MDC.
All applicants who are unsure of which track is suitable for their project are encouraged to contact the validation fund team before submitting a proposal to ensure that their project meets the requirements of the call.
The BIH seeks to increase the diversity of its funding programs. Women scientists, individuals from underrepresented racial and ethnic groups, as well as individuals with disabilities are especially encouraged to apply for BIH programs.
Budget and Duration
Track 1 covers projects with a budget of up to 50K EUR. Track 2 covers projects with a financial need of more than 50K EUR. Projects in Track 1 should not exceed a duration of 1 year. Highly successful Track 1 projects can be chosen by the validation fund management for additional funding in a second year. The duration of Track 2 projects depends on individual project needs, but should generally not exceed 2 years. Project funding in both tracks is strictly milestone-based. If it is determined at any point that the project goals cannot be met anymore, the funding will be terminated.
Selection Procedure
We invite eligible applicants to submit their Track 1 proposal/Track 2 pre-proposal before January 16, 2018 using the BIH portal. The applicants of selected Track 1 projects will be invited to pitch their proposals in February 2018. Applicants of selected Track 2 pre-proposals will be asked to submit full proposals in February 2018. If these receive a favorable review, they will be followed by pitches in April 2018.
Mentoring
Next to financial support, one of the main benefits for supported projects is guidance and mentoring. Eligible projects become part of the SPARK-Berlin program.
Further Information
- For Track 1, please refer to the “Guide for Applicants – Track 1.”
- For Track 2, please refer to the“Guide for Applicants – Track 2.”
- For information regarding SPARK-Berlin, please refer to the SPARK-Berlin website: www.spark-bih-berlin.org.
Info events will be hosted throughout December 2017. Please see box on the right for dates and locations.