Category Archives: 2023

Let us embrace the spirit of unity and gratitude during the Christmas season

Dear all employees at K2,

As we approach Christmas, I am filled with gratitude for the incredibly wonderful community thriving at K2. With nearly 400 dedicated individuals, including professors, researchers, postdoctoral fellows, doctoral students, technical, and administrative staff, our department stands as a standard-bearer for outstanding achievements in medicine, pharmacy, and nutrition.

Let us reflect a bit on the journey we have had this year, contributing to the advancement of knowledge and improvement of our health through research and education. Our collective efforts in research have not only strengthened the academic prestige of our department but have also had a lasting impact on the well-being of individuals and the positive development of society. Moreover, the significant efforts you have contributed to teaching are crucial for our students to “learn for life” and indispensable for our department.

As we now take a well-deserved break to celebrate the upcoming Christmas and holiday season, I encourage each of you to reflect on the importance of unity and gratitude. It is a time to express gratitude for the opportunity to work in a community with goals that benefit other people, either as therapists or patients. Whether you are an experienced professor, a promising researcher, a passionate postdoctoral fellow, a dedicated doctoral candidate, a skilled technician, or a hardworking administrative person, all your contributions are crucial.

Let us also extend our gratitude to the families and loved ones who support us in our academic endeavours. Their understanding and encouragement play a crucial role in our collective achievements, and it is fitting to express our gratitude for their unconditional support.

As we enter a new year, let us carry with us the values of collaboration, innovation, and humanity that define our department. This is especially important now when funding for academia is threatened, posing challenges for crucial research and education. K2 is one of the best departments at UiB, and I believe we will navigate well through a period of tighter times. I hope the holiday season brings moments of joy, relaxation, and inspiration so that we can all prepare for a new year of ground-breaking research and pedagogical excellence.

On behalf of K2, I wish you a peaceful Christmas filled with warmth, time for reflection, and moments with your loved ones.

 

Pål

Nomination to the faculty prices

Do you/your research group/research group know anyone who has excelled in 2023, either on the research front (publication, research environment, PhD work, dissemination), as an innovation environment or in terms of teaching? The Faculty of Medicine has announced a number of prizes for 2023, so now you have the chance to nominate colleagues/environment (or yourself!). The categories are

  1. Publication of the Year (NOK 100 000)
  2. Research environment of the year (NOK 150 000)
  3. PhD work of the year (NOK 100 000)
  4. Dissemination award (NOK 100 000)
  5. Innovation award (NOK 100 000)
  6. Education Award (up to three awards for outstanding initiatives in education, a main prize of NOK 150,000 and up to two more prizes of NOK 50,000 each!)

We from K2 can put forward one candidate in each category, so do not hesitate to submit proposals (with supplementaryreasons) by Monday 5 February 2024. More detailed information can be found here.

Proposal for Publication/PhD/Group/Dissemination/Innovation

Suggestions for Education Awards

EMBO Workshops

Funding for meetings that stimulate exchanges of the latest scientific knowledge

The deadlines for applications are 1 March 2024 and 1 August 2024, 12:00 noon CE(S)T

EMBO Workshops bring together scientists to present and discuss the latest findings in their subject areas related to the life sciences.  Scientists can apply to organize a conference in their field. This bottom-up approach ensures that the portfolio of scientific meetings funded by EMBO reflects the needs and developments of the scientific community.

In addition to providing the basic funding for the meeting, EMBO assists organizers in promoting the workshop and creating a webpage with a registration and abstract submission system.

https://www.embo.org/funding/funding-for-conferences-and-training/workshops/

 

Funding Opportunities for K2

Many funding organisations have recently announced new calls for funding for the spring. We want to guide you through the jungle and have curated a list for researchers at K2. But there and there are more calls at the homepage of the research advisors at the Faculty: Application Support for External Funding | Faculty of Medicine | UiB.

If you plan to apply for funding, we appreciate if you inform the Department via this form:: Varsel om søknad om ekstern finansiering / Intention to apply for external funding (uib.no). Happy Grant Writing!

Meltzer fond
150.000 NOK, for UiB employees. Travel, running costs, organising conferences etc.
Deadline: annual, next: 12 January 2024

ERA4Health Modulation of brain ageing through nutrition and healthy lifestyle (NutriBrain)
Transnational calls with 3-5 partners, 36 months. Funding: 300.000 EUR for the Norwegian participants (400.000 for coordinators). The other partners receive funding from their national funders. On the improvement of cognitive brain ageing through nutrition and other lifestyle factors.
Deadline (pre proposals): 15 January 2024

 Novo Nordisk Endocrinology and Metabolism
–  Excellence Emerging Investigator Grant Endocrinology and Metabolism
10 MIO DKK, 5 years. For researchers at 4-8 years after PhD.

Ascending Investigator Grant. 5 years, 10 MIO DKK. For researcher 7-18 years after PhD. Prevention of disease relevant to the human organism within the areas of endocrinology and metabolism, relating to cellular energy homeostasis, and hormonal disorders of the endocrine system.
– Distinguished Investigator Grant. 5 years 10 MIO DKK.
Deadline: 16 January 2024 

ERA4Health Nano and advanced technologies for disease prevention, diagnostic and therapy (NANOTECMEC)
3-5 partners, 3 countries, 3 MNOK for the Norwegian participant. Regenerative medicine, Diagnostics or Nanotherapy. TRL3-6. The aim of the call is to advance nanomedicine toward any translational focus with anticipated impact relative to the risk and investment.
Deadline (pre proposals): 30 January 2024

Global Initiative on Chronic Diseases / NIH Primary and Secondary Prevention of Cancer
Budget not limited, 5 years. Implementation research in Low- and Middle-Income Countries or in populations facing conditions of vulnerability in High-Income Countries.
Deadline: 05 February 2024

DAM Foundation Research grants (Forskning)
1,5-3 MIO NOK for 3 years. Stiftelsen Dam is one of Norway’s largest foundations and provides funding for health and research projects that will provide better health through participation and activity for people in Norway. The applications are sent through a volunteer oganisation like the Norwegian Red Cross, The Norwegian Cancer Society, the National Association for Publich Health etc.
Deadline: annually, 15 February

ERA PerMed PMTargets
Joint Transnational Call, most likely 3-5 partners from at least 3 countries, 300.000 EUR for the Norwegian partners. Topic: Identification or Validation of Targets for Personalised Medicine Approaches. Must combine the research on new and advanced targets with companion biomarker research (companion diagnostics).
Deadline: 5 March 2024

NFR Collaborative Projects Food-Climate-Health
12 MIO NOK, 4 years. Requires collaboration with partners in other sectors.
The projects must be interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral. They must include elements from each of these three areas and look at the relationships and interaction effects between them:
– food (sea and/or land-based)
– environment and/or climate
– public health
Deadline: 13 March 2024

NFR Collaborative Projects Enabling Technologies
12 MIO NOK, 4 years. Requires collaboration with partners in other sectors.
– Industrial Biotechnology. Biotechnological methods, enzymes, microorganisms and other cell systems to produce various products, such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, feed, textiles and energy.
– Technology convergence. Create radically new technologies through professional fusion within the enabling technologies.
Deadline: 13 March 2024

JPIAMR AMR Interventions 2024
3-7 Partners from 3 countries. Probably 300.000 EUR for the Norwegian partners; other partners are funded by their national funders.
Topic 1: Design novel or improved interventions to prevent, mitigate and /or treat fungal infections, which are resistant to treatments and/or are at risk of developing resistance
Topic 2: Improve and/or, compare and/or evaluate strategies, technologies, treatments, methods, protocols or data collection based on existing  interventions, aiming to prevent or reduce the emergence or spread of antibacterial or antifungal resistance or to treat/cure infections caused by resistant bacteria/fungi and recommend new policies.
Deadline (preproposals): 14 March 2024

HKDir UTFORSK
3 MNOK, 4 years. The Norwegian Directorate for Higher education and skills finances these educational projects with Brazil, Canada, China, India, Japan, South Africa, South Korea, or the USA.
Deadline: 15 April 2024

Innovative Health Initiative Call 6 and 7
The Innovative Health Initiative (IHI) is a public-private partnership between the European Union and the European life science industries that funds health research and innovation to address unmet public health needs and foster interdisciplinary and international collaboration. Upcoming topics:
– 6.1: Support healthcare system resilience through a focus on persistency in the treatment of chronic diseases. 60 months. The pre-defined industry consortium will contribute 11 MIO EUR. IHI will contribute 11 MIO EUR. This budget is expected to cover four pilots in different disease areas (including diabetes, obesity, and cardiovascular disease) in different geographies and healthcare systems.
 6.2: Development of practical guidance and recommendations for using real world data/real world evidence in healthcare decision-making. 60 montsh. Pre-defined industry consortium will contribute 13 MIO EUR. IHI contributes 13 MIO EUR.
– 7.1 Improving clinical management of heart disease from early detection to treatment. 12,5 MIO EUR.
– 7.2 User-centric technologies and optimised hospital workflows for a sustainable healthcare workforce. 12,5 MIO EUR
– 7.3 Clinical validation of biomarkers for diagnosis, monitoring disease progression and treatment response.  15 MIO EUR.
Deadline: summer 2024

2024 Call for Proposals from the Peder Sather Center for Advanced Study at UC Berkeley

The Peder Sather Center for Advanced Study supports projects carried out by researchers at UC Berkeley in collaboration with researchers from eight Norwegian universities. The Center offers grants between $10K and $25K. Funds are made available for two academic years.

Grants can support activities such as workshops, mini-conferences, virtual intellectual exchanges, the undertaking of exploratory and pilot studies, activities such as PhD student exchanges, longer-term stays for Principal Investigators, the collection and analysis of data, and other core research activities.

Interested applicants should visit the Proposal Application Guidelines 2024-2025 on the Peder Sather Center Website. All application materials must be submitted by the deadline of April 1, 2024.

Application Process

  1. Consult Proposal Application Guidelinesfor grant application instructions
  2. Complete the online 2024-2025 Peder Sather Grant Application Formadministered by Grantmaker (begin by establishing your own unique account)
  3. On the application form, upload your Proposal Document. The Proposal Document should be a single pdf that includes: The research project narrative, a project timeline, and a CV for each Principal Investigator
  4. Upload an itemized budget as a pdf using the provided template
  5. Finally, upload the Attestation of Commitment Letter from the project’s PIs as a pdf
  6. All application materials must be submitted by April 1, 2024

Please note, the application shall include the following:

  • An explanation of the promiseof the proposed project (i.e. how the project will contribute to the advancement of scholarly knowledge and/or scientific inquiry).
  • An explanation of why the project is feasible
  • An explanation of the impactof the project

Editorial

Vestlandslegen: Presentation of new employees

Most of the positions advertised in connection with the clinical part of the Vestlandslegen at Stavanger University Hospital have now been filled or are in the last part of the hiring process. To better integrate these into the parent institute, from next week there will be a presentation of each individual employee in the K2 News. In addition to getting useful information about each employee, we hope it will make it easier to get in touch. Increased collaboration on teaching with cross-disciplinary teaching groups (Faggrupper på tvers) will make everyday life easier both in Bergen and in Stavanger. Furthermore, it provides the opportunity for increased research collaboration, a large and only partially utilized potential.

Welcome to all new employees at Stavanger University Hospital!

Pål

NFR tematiske utlysninger/RCN thematic calls

Forskerprosjekt for fornyelse (tematisk utlysning)

https://www.forskningsradet.no/utlysninger/2024/forskerprosjekt-fornyelse-tematisk/

Søknadstype Forskerprosjekt

Søknadsfrist 6. mars 2024, 13:00 CET

Norwegian Centres of Excellence scheme

The SFF scheme gives Norway’s best researchers the opportunity to organise their research activities in centres that seek to achieve ambitious scientific objectives through collaboration. The research conducted at the centres must be innovative and have major potential to generate ground-breaking results that advance the international research frontier. SFF centres may receive support for a total of ten years (an initial six-year period with the possibility of a four-year extension).

The next call for proposal by the SFF scheme is planned in 2025 and allocated towards the end of 2027.

https://www.forskningsradet.no/en/apply-for-funding/funding-from-the-research-council/sff/

Save the date for SDG Conference Bergen in 2024

SDG Conference in Bergen 7–9 February 2024: Save the date!

The seventh SDG Conference will take place 7–9 February 2024. Save the dates!

The topic for the conference is The role of universities in transformative change. We need fundamental changes in societal structures and values to address climate change, biodiversity loss, and unsustainable consumption.

Take part in the conference through our interactive digital platform. Last year, the conference gathered over 1500 virtual participants from more than 100 countries globally.

Registration opens in December at the SDG Conference web site.

The 2024 conference emphasizes the critical role universities have in facilitating transformative change in response to global challenges. Read the 2024 concept note

We hope you will join us for these important conversations!

The program will be released soon at uib.no/en/sdgconference.

Speakers include:

  • Farhana Sultana, Syracuse University
  • Arturo Escobar, University of North Carolina
  • Ioan Fazey, University of Dundee
  • Linda Sygna, Co-Founder of cCHANGE
  • … and many more!

Present your health management research – European Health Management Conference 2024

We are glad to invite you to submit your health management research for presentation during the European Health Management Conference 2024 that will take place in Bucharest, Romania, on 5-7 June under the theme ‘Shaping and managing innovative health ecosystems’. The Conference is co-hosted by the Ministry of Health of Romania and the National Institute of Health Services Management.

The European Health Management Conference is a great platform to showcase cutting-edge research, share provocative ideas, and discuss complex problems with a view to reach implementable solutions. EHMA 2024 will explore the entire spectrum of health megatrends. From the digital transformation of healthcare systems and services to the ever-growing importance of sustainability, and the evolving skill sets required by the healthcare workforce, we aim to explore how the health sector is adapting to these changes. We emphasise an ecosystem approach, promoting collaboration among stakeholders. Our aim is to facilitate dialogue on how different health care actors can work together and leverage each other’s strengths to drive innovation and address pressing challenges.

Since its inception, the European Health Management Conference has served as a forum for promoting discussions and sharing innovative solutions in the ever-evolving healthcare landscape. Each year, we bring together a wide spectrum of healthcare stakeholders, including managers, leaders, researchers, academics, patients, policymakers, and industry representatives. This diverse collective of expertise enhances the dialogue on pressing health management issues.

For this reason, we would be delighted to have you and colleagues consider submitting an abstract to present your health management best practices and research. You can find more information on the Call for Abstracts and how to send your submission here.

SUBMIT YOUR ABSTRACT

Furthermore, we will host the 22nd edition of the Karolinska Institutet Medical Management Center (MMC) & EHMA Research Award dedicated to doctoral theses in health management. Candidates should be researchers in the final phase of their PhD studies or who have recently completed a PhD (within 12 months from graduation). The best papers will have the opportunity to compete for a €1,000 prize. This is a prestigious award, and we would be thankful if you could share this information within your network. More information is available here.

As we strive to connect health managers, experts and researchers, we would be grateful if you could help us disseminate our Call for Abstracts within your organisation and network.

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact the EHMA team at conference@ehma.org.

Looking forward to seeing you at the conference!