GrACe

The call is aimed at colleagues who are currently working with employees of the University of Tours.

You are a researcher at the university of Tours and have a research project with an international component involving at least one partner from the NEOLAiA alliance of European universities¹? Apply to the NEOLAiA Research Collaboration Support Fund!

1. General presentation
Launched in 2024 with the financial support of the France 2030 Plan as part of the NEOLAiA European University, this Fund aims to promote scientific collaboration and stimulate new initiatives within the alliance. It is open to researchers from the university of Tours, including doctoral students. It has a total budget of €277,000 over the 3 years of the programme (2025-2027).

Through biannual calls, the NEOLAiA Research Collaboration Support Fund aims to support initiatives such as (indicative list):

• Incoming or outgoing mobility for a maximum of one month to: initiate networking activities, prepare a project submission, organize scientific events, participate in conferences or seminars, etc. These mobilities can take place to or from NEOLAiA universities, or any other destination, provided that the mobility aims to develop collaborations with NEOLAiA partners.

• Mobilities undertaken as part of the NEOLAiA research mentoring programme (Work package 5 Increasing Regional Research Impact).

• Scientific events organised at the university of Tours and involving at least one NEOLAiA partner.

• Projects that aim to develop a 'living lab' approach by integrating research and real-world experimentation in collaboration with multiple stakeholders.

This list is not exhaustive. The selection committee will consider applications for other initiatives, provided they clearly indicate how they fall within the scope of the scheme.

2. Eligibility criteria:
The person leading the project must be an employee (permanent or contractual) and/or PhD student at the University of Tours. To be eligible, applications must involve at least one partner from the NEOLAiA alliance, in addition to the University of Tours. 

3. Eligible costs:
Only operating expenses incurred by the university of Tours are eligible (non-exhaustive list):

• Eligible costs relating to mobility: transportation (economy class flights, second class train are obligatory), meals and accommodation, local transportation;

• Eligible costs relating to the organisation of an event: reception costs (coffee breaks, lunch breaks, seated dinners, cocktails); venue rental, technical equipment, translation booth rental; expenses for printing, translation, interpretation, publishing, and more.

An eco-responsible approach to project implementation is encouraged, including efforts to minimize the environmental impact of hosting events in Tours, opting for train travel over flights whenever possible for trips to NEOLAiA destination, and similar initiatives.

Personnel costs and equipment purchases are not eligible for funding.

The maximum funding available per project is €20,000.

Once the funds are awarded, the research unit or department affiliated with the project leader will manage all expenses incurred for the submitted project, including those related to the NEOLAiA partner(s) involved, and will handle the logistical organisation of the mobility or scientific events.

Expenditures must be incurred between February 1, 2026, and December 31, 2026. Exceptionally, expenditure may be incurred after the specified schedule (subject to the approval of the Research and Development Department).

4. Selection procedure and criteria:
Applications must include a completed form signed by the director of the applicant’s research unit and/or the thesis supervisor, if applicable. The application form must be accompanied by a provisional budget for the project.

The NEOLAiA Research Collaboration Support Fund selection committee meets twice a year and comprises a member of the research commission, the delegate(s) from the NEOLAiA WP5 research at the University of Tours, the vice-president for research, the vice-president for science with and for society and Doctoral Schools and the vice-president for international relations.

Its role is to evaluate and select the applications. The Selection Committee may request the opinion of external assessors.

To evaluate all applications, the selection committee will apply the following criteria and sub-criteria:

- QUALITY (7 points) - clarity and relevance of the objectives and scientific presentation, justification of the choice of NEOLAiA partners; consideration of an interdisciplinary approach; inclusion of the project's research themes in the 3 pillars of the alliance (diversity and inclusion, enhanced mobility, digital transformation) and the focus of the NEOLAiA project on global health.

- FEASIBILITY (7 points) - precise description of how the action will be implemented; realistic and coherent budget.

- IMPACT (6 points) - evaluation of the relevance of the action with regard to the development of research collaborations with the partners of the NEOLAiA alliance and the projected results of the research, particularly on the scale of the regions of the NEOLAiA partner universities.

Minutes will be kept of the selection committee's decisions.

5. Final activity report, financial statement and communication:
At the end of the project, the beneficiary of the NEOLAiA Research Collaboration Support Fund must submit:

- A financial statement with supporting documents for expenses,

- A final activity report, detailing the implementation and results of the action (templates provided).

to neolaia@univ-tours.fr no later than January 30, 2027.

The grant beneficiary agrees to acknowledge NEOLAiA's financial support in all communication activities related to the implementation of the funded action. The NEOLAiA logo, along with the logos 'Cofinanced by the European Union' and 'Plan France 2030,' must be displayed on all online and offline communication materials associated with the action.

6. Timeline:
Opening of the call: 3 November 2025

Deadline for submission of applications: 7 January 2026

Selection committee and announcement of laureates: mid-January 2026

Project implementation period: 1 February 2026 – 31 December 2026

Deadline for submission of final activity report: 30 January 2027

7. Contact:
Hélène Legrand, Project Manager for Research, Doctoral Cooperation and Open Science, NEOLAiA office, University of Tours neolaia@univ-tours.fr

¹ Co-funded by the European Union's Erasmus+ programme for the period 2024-2027, the NEOLAiA alliance brings together 9 European universities: Bielefeld Universität (Germany) - Universidad de Jaén (Spain) - Örebro Universitet (Sweden) - Ostravska Universita (Czech Republic) - Università degli Studi di Salerno (Italy) - Universitatea Stefan cel Mare Suceava (Romania) - University of Nicosia (Cyprus) - Siauliai Valstybiné Kolegija (Lithuania) - University of Tours (France).