ScanBalt Bridge Award

Bridging academia and SME’s in the Baltic Sea region based on smart growth is a pillar of the ScanBalt Strategy “Innovation on Top of Europe 2008-2011”. This requires strengthened links between academia clusters and innovation which will be highlighted by the ScanBalt Bridge Award.

The ScanBalt Bridge Award is granted by the ScanBalt Academy and the Royal Physiographic Society in Lund together with Greifswald University and Lund University.

THE FOUNDERS

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In 1996 the Medical Faculties of the Universities of Greifswald and Lund introduced a bilateral award emphasizing the significance of mutually rewarding exchange in supranational regions and the growing importance of the Baltic Sea Region in life sciences. In 2009 the Royal Physiographic Society in Lund, an academy of Natural Science, Medicine and Technology, is joining the founders together with the ScanBalt Academy, both forming in different ways an independent think tank, ”Ideenschmiede” of international reputation, cross-border team builder of science centers, enterprises and political organizations, the most innovative clusters in biotechnology, life sciences and medicine around the Baltic sea.

THE INTETION

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The award seeks to highlight the Nordic dimension of the European Union and encourage cooperation between project leaders of research groups in life sciences, any of several branches such as biology, medicine, anthropology, or ecology, that deal with living organisms and their organization, life processes, and relationships to each other and their environment. Priority will be given to project groups who have or are starting their cross-border cooperation with the spirit of global competitiveness, making use of the Nordic-Baltic Expatriate Forum and having in mind the economical potential of their cooperation.

THE DONATION

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The sum amounts to 25.000 EUR and can be divided at most between two applicants. The money will provide travel grants to support working meetings of the project leaders and their teams in the ScanBalt BioRegion, to build bridges between them as the name of the ScanBalt Bridge Award is programmatically intending.

THE APPLICANTS

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Applicants should be project leaders representing a multicentered team of different scientific institutions around the Baltic Sea. International cooperation is mandatory. Priority is given to applicants from institutions that are founding members of ScanBalt, like for example the two grant-giving universities themselves.

THE APPLICATION

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Applications should include 1. the curriculum vitae and merits of the applicant and 2. a description of the research project (2-4 pages) and the cooperation together with a short popular summary (half page) intended for media publication. The material, in seven printed copies, should be sent together with a signed by hand application letter to the offices of the ScanBalt Academy or the Royal Physiographic Society. Deadline will be September 15, 2009. The applications will be scrutinized by representatives of the ScanBalt Academy and the Royal Physiographic Society in Lund as the independent bodies among the grant-giving organizations.

THE DELIVERY
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The ScanBalt Bridge Award will be delivered on the occasion of the annual meeting 2009 of the Baltic Development Forum, taking place at the Baltic Development Forum Summit 5-6 October in Stockholm. For further information on the ScanBalt Bridge Award please contact Prof. Hans-Robert Metelmann at
For application send to: Kristina Hartwig (ScanBalt Academy Schwerin, Schlossgartenallee 15, 19061 Schwerin, Germany) or Rolf Elofsson (The Royal Physiographic Society, Stortorget 6, 222 23 Lund, Sweden) or Peter Frank (General Secretary ScanBalt, Arne Jacobsens Alle 15, 2, 2300 Copenhagen, Danmark)