From the European Research Council (ERC) 600 million to 301 European researchers, including 23 Italians: of these, however, only seven will carry out their project in our country. Italian researchers rank fourth after Germans, French and Dutch. The funding falls under the "Consolidator grants", that is to say funds destined to researchers with at least seven years' experience after the doctorate to consolidate their scientific activity on projects of excellence.
The projects are funded under the European research framework program Horizon 2020 and cover frontier research ranging from edible electronic food that controls health to the way climate change will change the earth's surface. The winners are 37 nationalities and will carry out their projects in universities and research centers in 24 countries throughout Europe. Germany (52 funded projects), the United Kingdom (50), France (43) and the Netherlands (32) are at the top.
As for Italy, the seven institutes that will host the research are the Italian Institute of Technology (IIT) in Milan, the International School for Advanced Studies (Sissa) of Trieste, the Scuola Normale Superiore of Pisa, the National Institute of Astrophysics (Inaf) , Politecnico di Milano, University of Modena and Reggio Emilia and Ca 'Foscari University of Venice.
"The knowledge developed thanks to these new projects will provide us with discoveries and innovations that we had not even imagined, says European Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth, Mariya Gabriel. European funding in frontier research, he adds," is an investment in our future, which is why it is so important to reach an agreement on an ambitious budget for the next Horizon Europe research framework program ".
More funding for research would allow us to create more opportunities everywhere in the European Union, because, Mariya Gabriel underlines, "excellence should not be a question of geography". The president of the ERC, Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, whose mandate expires on December 31, notes that he had "the immense privilege of seeing thousands of brilliant minds across our continent receive the confidence and support to pursue their ideas more daring. As I greet the organization that will always remain close to my heart, I am once again very impressed to see this last set of beneficiaries funded by the European Research Council and this makes me proud to be European! "
