Overview and objectives
The consolidation and strengthening of the National Science and Technology System constitute priorities of science and technology policy that aim to increase the national and international competitiveness of science and technology and its contribution to innovation and knowledge transfer and to the realization of global aspirations. Defined in the 2030 Agenda: United Nations Sustainable Development Goals. In this context, the promotion and strengthening of the skills of scientific and technological institutions through the participation of their teams in projects is particularly relevant. To support these objectives, the FCT is launching this competition that aims to finance exploratory research projects in all scientific domains, with a focus on original projects for early-career researchers, or on ideas or concepts with a high degree of novelty and that demonstrate disruptive potential compared to previous work, developed by more experienced researchers.
Recipients
Research teams from the following non-business Portuguese entities of the Research and Innovation System may apply for funding:
Higher education institutions, their institutes and R&D units;
State Laboratories, Associated or International Laboratories based in Portugal;
Private non-profit institutions whose main objective is R&D activities, including Collaborative Laboratories (CoLab) and Technology and Innovation Centers (CTI);
Other public and private, non-profit institutions that develop or participate in scientific research activities.
Projects must take the form of individual projects, presented by a single beneficiary, with a maximum duration of 18 months.