New Northern Ireland research funding backs H2020 involvement
World-class research at Queen’s University Belfast has received £3.5m (~€4.8m) in funding from the Department for Employment and Learning (DEL) in the Northern Ireland Executive.
The money, announced by Employment and Learning Minister Dr Stephen Farry, will support the Science Foundation Ireland (SFI) Investigators Programme projects through the SFI-DEL Investigators Programme Partnership, as well as help reap further benefits from Horizon 2020.
Farry said: “The SFI-DEL Investigators Programme Partnership is of significant benefit to Northern Ireland, both economically and socially. I welcome that seven projects involving Queen’s University collaborating as partners with research institutions in the Republic of Ireland have been successful in SFI’s prestigious Investigators Programme.
“These research collaborations will not only address fundamental research issues but will also strengthen cross-border research alliances and help Northern Ireland to bring further success under Horizon 2020, the EU framework programme for research and innovation.”
The partnership supports collaborative projects involving universities from Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in undertaking excellent scientific research that has the potential to impact society and the economy. The seven successful projects from Queen’s were selected following international competitive peer review involving 400 international scientists. Research is being undertaken in areas such as energy, food security, computing, advanced materials and personalised medicine.
Adding his thoughts, Scott Rutherford, director of research and enterprise at Queen’s University, said: “We are delighted that seven research projects at Queen’s have received funding from the SFI-DEL Investigators Programme Partnership.
“I am delighted that Queen’s researchers have made such a strong showing in the early stages of this All-Island initiative, which opens up substantial future collaborative opportunities with Science Foundation Ireland.”
Also commenting, Dr Darrin Morrissey, director of programmes at SFI, said that the “collaborative research projects will strengthen cross-border research and provide a basis for leveraging alternative funding such as the EU’s Horizon 2020 programme”.
