ESA EO AFRICA R&D Facility, in collaboration with the African Union Commission (AUC), announces Call for Research Proposals 2022-2023.
In collaboration with the AUC, the ESA EO AFRICA R&D Facility launches a call for research proposals to support African–European collaborative efforts to develop innovative, open-source EO algorithms and applications adapted to African solutions to African challenges by leveraging cutting-edge cloud-based data access and computing infrastructure.
The ESA EO AFRICA R&D Facility, in collaboration with AUC, will support up to 16 (sixteen) research proposals for one-year projects, as follows:
Water scarcity and food security are the main themes of the EO AFRICA R&D Facility’s Research Calls. The present call aims at addressing research topics related to the modelling and monitoring of environmental processes. Proposals in the following topics are encouraged to apply:
- EO contribution to hydrological forecast
- Runoff and river discharge
- Regional evapotranspiration and hydrological stresses
- Irrigation demand
- Crop development and yield forecast
- EO support of precision farming
- Forest and rangeland processes
- Ocean/coastal processes related to food resources
Duration: 1 year.
Benefits
The EO AFRICA R&D Facility will provide the selected projects with:
- A budget of up to 25,000 EUR to cover research activities during the project period.
- Free access to cloud-based Virtual Research Environments (VREs) through the Innovation Lab of the Facility, an interactive geospatial computing platform with ready-to-use EO software and facilitated access to EO data.
- Dedicated user and technical support for using VREs and developing geospatial computing workflows.
- Scientific support and advice by senior researchers and experts of the EO AFRICA R&D Facility consortium.
- Access to the EO AFRICA Space Academy and its Digital Campus for capacity and knowledge development activities, such as online courses, webinars, and face-to-face training events on topics related to EO, cloud computing, food security, and water scarcity.
- Integration into the EO AFRICA Network for international scientific networking, collaboration, and visibility.
Eligibility
Project proposals shall meet the following criteria:
- The project must be proposed by two scientists representing a collaborative partnership of one African and one European research entity (e.g., institute, laboratory, university).
- The co-principal investigators should possess a PhD degree relevant to the topics of the call or should be in the process of obtaining it as a PhD candidate.
- Project teams may include more researchers.
- Projects should be completed within 12 months.
- Project proposals should focus on one or more of the research topics of the call.
- The proposal should explain how the work will be shared among the partners, including the roles of project team members and their expected contributions.
- The proposed research can be linked to an ongoing (collaborative) project of the partners.
Selection
The following criteria will be considered:
- Level of innovation of the EO application with relevance to the topics of the call
- Addressing the specific needs in Africa
- Scientific soundness and maturity
- Making innovative use of digital tools
- Impact of fostering the use of EO data and services in Africa
- Balanced cooperation of the partners
- Background of the African and European co-principal investigators
- Geographic representation of Africa
Application Process
The proposal submission shall include:
- The research proposal fully completed in all parts according to the provided template duly signed by the African and the European Co-PIs and authorized representatives of the African and European research institutions,
- Detailed CV of the African co-principal investigator,
- Detailed CV of the European co-principal investigator,
- Short resumes of other researchers on the team.
To apply, click here.
Deadline: November 15, 2022.
For more information, visit the official site.
