How to prepare an effective EoI that will open the door to Horizon Europe consortia

Expression of Interest (EoI) is a concise, strategic tool for research institutions and researchers. It helps individuals present their profile to prospective project coordinators and supports efforts to increase the visibility of Polish institutions in European science.

The EoI is the next stage of integration into the cooperation network, following our 2024 work organising institutional information and publishing folders for PAN institutes. The second edition of these brochures will appear with WP26-27. EoI documents shift this work from a static presentation to partner-seeking and participation in international consortia.

A well-prepared Expression of Interest (EoI) document is a gateway to international projects, new partnerships and influence on European research agendas. This article shows how to build a strong and convincing EoI in a few clear sections.

Diamond ERA: From Vision to Implementation – A New Definition of Openness in the European Research Area

On December 3–4, 2025, an in-depth debate on the future of science communication in Europe took place in Brussels. The conference “Diamond ERA: Fostering Openness in the European Research Area”, organized by the Digital Humanities Centre at the Institute of Literary Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IBL PAN) and the Polish Science Contact Agency (PolSCA PAN), in cooperation with the Committee on Literary Studies of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the OPERAS research infrastructure, gathered a wide group of stakeholders at the Permanent Representation of the Republic of Poland to the EU: from European Commission decision-makers, through grant providers, to librarians and infrastructure creators.

V4 Training for Research Project Managers – we are now accepting applications for the next edition (spring 2026)!

V4 Training for Research Project Managers – we are now accepting applications for the next edition (spring 2026)!

We invite you to participate in the next edition of our flagship training course, ‘V4 Training for Research Project Managers’, which will take place in Brussels on 9, 10 and 11 March 2026. As in previous years, we are co-organising it in cooperation with the Czech Liaison Office for Education and Science (CZELO), the National Research, Development and Innovation Office in Hungary (NRDIO) and the Slovak Liaison Office for Research and Development (SLORD).

Join the consultation on the Advanced Materials Act – help shape the future of innovation in Europe

Europe wants to strengthen its leading position in advanced materials as the foundation for many breakthrough technologies: from electronics and batteries to sustainable construction, and from aviation and defence. To create effective, innovative-friendly regulations, the European Commission has launched a public consultation on the Advanced Materials Act (AMA). Details below and in the Commission’s direct announcement (link HERE).

Why is AMA being created?

The AMA is set to become one of the key elements of the Competitiveness Compass package, which aims to accelerate the path ‘from lab to factory’, remove regulatory barriers and strengthen European technological competitiveness.

The future legislation on advanced and innovative materials builds on previous EU actions in this area, in particular the European Commission’s February 2024 Communication „Advanced Materials for Industrial Leadership” This policy marks the beginning of the process of creating a dynamic, secure and inclusive ecosystem for advanced materials in Europe, which will ensure Europe’s research leadership and accelerate the market implementation of innovations by mobilising coordinated EU, national, regional and private investment for this purpose.

Why is it worth speaking up?

Consultations are a space where the needs of large enterprises can be heard, as well as the perspectives of start-ups, scientists and public administration.

It is an opportunity to:

• identify barriers that hinder the scaling of innovation,

• emphasise the need to develop research infrastructure,

• propose solutions to improve access to financing,

• support the creation of clear and predictable regulations,

• showcase Poland’s potential in the field of advanced materials.

The more consistent, factual and real-life experiences from Poland, the greater the impact on future EU priorities.

What do the consultations cover?

The consultations cover:

• directions for research and innovation in the field of advanced materials,

• building European production capacity and increasing strategic independence,

• needs related to research infrastructure, technology transfer and scaling up innovation,

• security, eco-design and sustainability issues,

• market and regulatory barriers hindering the implementation of new materials,

• streamlining regulatory procedures and shortening the time-to-market.

Who can participate?

Anyone can participate in the consultation, including research institutions, companies, industry organisations, administrative bodies, and individuals.

How to participate?

The consultation is conducted via the „Have Your Say”, portal in two forms:

• Call for Evidence – open contributions published on the consultation website
• Public Consultation – online questionnaire with data aggregated by the EC

Responses can be submitted until 13 January 2026.

Below you will find links to material prepared by the EC’s Directorate-General for Research and Innovation to prepare users for the consultation process: in English and in Polish.

Good practices, competences and infrastructure of Polish science can have a real impact on the shape of the future Advanced Materials Act. It is worth taking advantage of this opportunity to highlight the Polish perspective in the European debate and actively co-create the legal framework that will be in force for years to come.

Take part. Share your experience. Let’s work together to ensure that Europe, including Poland, is at the centre of global materials innovation.wacji materiałowych.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION:

The PolSCA PAN office in Brussels, together with local partners representing a total of six European countries (BE, BG, DE, PL, SK and the EU), is currently preparing an Emerge-EU study visit dedicated entirely to Advanced Materials. The initiative is intended for researchers wishing to strengthen their independence (stages R2/R3) and is scheduled for 21-23 January 2026. Details will be available soon.

Matchmaking event – MEDIA, MIGRATION and EDUCATION – event summary!

Summary of the event!

The “MEDIA, MIGRATIONS and EDUCATION” match-making event took place on 20 November 2025 in Brussels and was an international meeting dedicated to upcoming calls under Cluster 2 of the Horizon Europe programme, with a particular focus on media, migration and education topics. The event was organised by the PolSCA PAN Office in cooperation with liaison offices gathered in the IGLO network, representing a total of 10 EU Member States, including Austria, the Czech Republic, France, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Slovakia and Spain, with the participation of partners from the Netherlands. We had the pleasure of hosting almost 60 representatives of the European research and innovation community.

Diamond ERA: Fostering Openness in the European Research Area

Open event on 4 December 2025 | Brussels

The “Diamond ERA: Fostering Openness in the European Research Area” conference is a one-day policy-focused event that brings together key stakeholders to advance the conversation on Diamond Open Access (OA) in the Social Sciences and Humanities (SSH) across the European Research Area (ERA). Taking place on 4 December 2025 in Brussels at the Permanent Representation of Poland to the European Union, this open event aims to highlight and promote Diamond OA as a sustainable, equitable, and mission-driven model of scholarly publishing. It provides a platform for engagement between policymakers, researchers, publishers, research funders, and infrastructure providers to collaboratively identify pathways toward stronger support and integration of Diamond OA practices in the European science policy landscape.

Two days, ten different sessions, almost one hundred experts and…unicorns.

First Central and Eastern European Congress for Research Managers in Brussels comes to an end.

On a surprisingly warm Brussels morning, we opened the doors to something the region has been working toward for nearly ten years: a space where Central and Eastern European research managers could finally meet as equals, not just attendees. People showed up carrying real experience – small wins from finance departments and labs, hard lessons from proposals that almost worked, and a stubborn conviction that solid research ecosystems are built by the professionals who rarely get the spotlight. For two days, they had it.

PolSCA Masterclass: managing research projects with the PM² methodology. Event summary.

On 7 and 8 October 2025, a two-day workshop on the practical aspects of managing research projects using PM², the European Commission’s project management methodology, was held at the Institute of Fundamental Technological Research of the Polish Academy of Sciences (IPPT PAN). The event was organised by the PolSCA PAS Office in cooperation with IPPT PAN as a part of activities for the Horizon Europe Navigators network of research managers at PAN institutes. The sessions were led by Dr Justyna Małkuch-Świtalska – trainer and expert in project management and research careers, author of Projekty naukowe. Zarządzanie w praktyce (PWN, 2020) – who has delivered over 2,500 hours of training in Poland and abroad and works with Trener Nauki.

The workshop report “IGLO in Action: Workshop and Survey on Simplification — Summary Report”

On the 10th of October 2025, the report “IGLO in Action: Workshop and Survey on Simplification – Summary Report” was published, summarising the workshop in Brussels, which took place on the 4th and 5th of June 2025, and the accompanying survey.

The new report presents key findings and recommendations for simplifying the rules and procedures of the Horizon Europe program, based on the collective expertise of research managers and administrators from across Europe. Sixty-three participants from 14 countries took part in the survey. The workshop was attended by 22 research managers from public universities and research institutions in 12 European countries, as well as representatives of the European Commission, the Research Executive Agency, and the ERC Executive Agency.

The new report presents the main findings and recommendations for simplifying the rules and procedures of the Horizon Europe program, based on the collective expertise of research managers and administrators from across Europe. Sixty-three participants from 14 countries participated in the survey. The workshop was attended by 22 research managers from public universities and research institutions in 12 European countries, as well as representatives of the European Commission, the Research Executive Agency, and the ERC Executive Agency.

During the workshop in Brussels (4th and 5th of June 2025), participants discussed essential aspects of simplifying the rules and procedures of Horizon Europe, covering a wide range of topics: from lump sums and other simplified cost options, through the interpretation of rules and guidelines, the EU Funding & Tenders Portal, project proposal templates, time to award grants, to reporting, reimbursement of actual costs, financial audits, and the involvement of third parties.

Key recommendations include:

1) Staffing and cost simplifications

•    settlement of personnel costs based on actual costs

•    simplification of working time records

2) Eligibility rules and technical costs

•    Reimbursement of repair and maintenance costs

•    Reporting of total depreciation costs only once during the project

3) Contracting and contract amendments

•    Simplification of the contract amendment process

• Streamlining the process for making minor changes

4) Reporting

•    streamlining of reporting

•    extension of the reporting deadline

5) Audits and compliance

•    recognition of national audits

•    appropriate selection of auditors with a recommendation of knowledge of national law

•    raising the threshold for mandatory use of CFS

6) IT tools and document standardization

•    automatic transfer of data from an approved application to the SyGMa platform

•    introduction of templates for non-scientific parts of project applications

7) Support and communication with the grant provider

•    launch of a telephone hotline

The report emphasises the importance of clarity, credibility, and stability of funding rules, as well as the need for early and continuous involvement of practitioners in the development of new measures.

The report can be downloaded at: HERE

IGLO is an informal network of Brussels-based, non-profit R&D liaison offices whose objective is to facilitate and streamline interaction, information exchange, and cooperation between IGLO members, their national research systems, and EU institutions in the area of framework programs.

The PolSCA office is the only Polish representative actively involved in IGLO, representing the interests of Polish institutions, sharing implementation practices, and initiating the exchange of experiences.

One of the results of our activities was the co-financing of the participation of Joanna Kartasiewicz (ICTER – Institute of Physical Chemistry, Polish Academy of Sciences) and Anna Demner (University of Warsaw) in the “Simplification” workshop.

•    Valorisation of knowledge (January 2025) KoWi published a summary and a short report on the event.

•    Lump sums (October 2023) — “IGLO in Action: Second IGLO Workshop on Lump Sum Funding — Summary Report.”

Round Table: projects’ regulatory and administrative perspective!

On 9 October, the Warsaw School of Economics hosted a Round Table Discussion on Research Projects: Regulatory and Administrative Perspectives. It was the first meeting of its kind among experts on research projects carried out in Polish institutions.

The round table design meeting (OSP) brought together experts who, on a daily basis, connect different worlds: science with administration, researchers’ ambitions with institutional requirements, European standards with national practice. On one side of the table were representatives of research funding agencies and ministries, on the other – research managers and administrators (RMAs) from universities and research institutions, and between them – designers of IT infrastructure intended to streamline everyday grant management.

The meeting saw active participation from representatives of institutions financing and programming scientific research: NCN, NCBR, NAWA, FRSE, ABM, FNP and MNiSW, representatives of universities and research institutions (KRASP, PAN) and the RMA community – FAA, PolARMA, PolSCA. Representatives of OPI (e-Grants) were guests from the technology sector.

The OSP was established as a platform to connect stakeholders in the grant process at every stage: from conception and application to implementation and settlement. It is a declaration of a shift away from ad hoc ‘firefighting’ in favour of ongoing dialogue and a roadmap for simplification. In the background, a simple but important thesis resonated: the development of universities today means the development of projects, and without professional administrative support and wise, consistent rules, we will not be able to build lasting quality.

Areas identified as requiring cooperation:

RMA as the missing pillar. The role of RMA was a recurring theme in the participants’ statements: a recognised profession in Europe, but still undefined in Poland, despite its key importance.

E-Grants platform – a common language for the system. This is an OPI project that aims to bring together the entire project lifecycle in a single environment.

Wise standardisation, i.e. the need for wise harmonisation of what is common and repetitive in the offerings of Polish research funding institutions.

Information and competence, i.e. comprehensive training and clear competition announcements.

At times, the discussion was very practical, almost workshop-like. However, it was agreed that this was not a one-off event, but a format for ongoing sectoral consultations.