Call for Proposals: ExposUM FELLOWSHIPS 2024

[Call for Proposals] - Published on January 18, 2024 in Doctoral and HDR Training, Flagship Projects

ExposUM is an initiative of the University of Montpellier and its partners¹ aimed at establishing a leading, cross-disciplinary, off-campus institute for the study, training, and science-society interfaces related to the environmental determinants of human health. A winner of the ExcellenceS (PIA4) call for proposals and supported by the Occitanie Region, ExposUM is funded to the tune of 46.4 million euros for the period 2022–2030.

Background & Purpose of the Call for Proposals

The exposome refers to the sum of all lifelong exposures to environmental and social factors whose effects influence human health by causing, promoting, modulating, or preventing diseases, whether communicable or not. In this sense, it is the environmental counterpart of the genome, with which it interacts throughout an individual’s lifetime.

The Research Division Research the ExposUM Institute aims to support and accelerate the generation of foundational knowledge through an interdisciplinary, coordinated, and integrated approach across the fields of exposome research within the four pillars:

1. Strengthen the monitoring of environmental exposures,
2. To deepen our understanding of the ecology of hosts, pathogens, reservoirs, and vectors ( One Health approach),
3. To improve our fundamental understanding of the biological mechanisms that may be modulated by the exposome,
4. Study the consequences for human health.

Data science serves as a bridge connecting these pillars—both in terms of methodology and analysis, as well as in the application of results. A second bridge, consisting of the study and development of new exposure control strategies, completes this framework, which is integrated with the Interfaces and Training pillars.

To this end, the ExposUM Institute is offering two research fellowships, known as ExposUM Fellowships, for the start of the 2024 academic year . These fellowships complement the regular call for research proposals and are part of the I-SITE MUSE outreach program.

The ExposUM Fellowships program supports efforts to strengthen and develop local expertise and the site’s scientific potential in the Institute’s areas of focus.

Calendar

• Call for applications for the ExposUM Fellowships: January 19, 2024.
• Application deadline: April 1, 2024.
• Evaluation and selection of applications: April 2024.
• Results will be announced in May 2024.
• Start date: September through November 2024.

Funding Terms

These two-year grants are renewable once for an additional two years. They cover, where applicable, the recipients’ salaries as well as an operating budget of €200,000 per year² covering the salary costs associated with hiring at least one postdoctoral researcher (employer’s share starting at €46,000 per year, adjusted based on experience and expertise) and the remainder allocated to other project expenses (hiring an engineer or technician³, operating and equipment costs), contributing to the implementation of an original research project on the exposome.

Eligibility

We are seeking Professors and distinguished researchers and Professors who wish to join one of the research units within the ExposUM Institute to carry out ambitious and innovative research projects.

Eligible applicants include all PhD holderswho are currently serving as faculty members , researchers, or researchers working off-site, whether on temporary contracts or tenured positions (with the possibility of covering adjustments to teaching duties within the project budget).

Nationality and country of residence are not eligibility criteria.

The candidate may choose the affiliated laboratory (a research unit within the ExposUM consortium, whether or not it is jointly supervised by the University of Montpellier), which must be identified at the time of application and approved by the laboratory’s management (see below).

The research project must fall within the field of the exposome, which is the study of environmental determinants of human health in the broadest sense.

Application Requirements

Applications will be evaluated in a single stage based on a submission, written in French or English, which must include:

• a letter of support from the management of the host laboratory confirming the acceptance of the applicant, outlining the project’s relevance and how it fits into the unit’s long-term development plan, as well as the potential for the position and the team to continue beyond the project’s conclusion: 2 pages maximum,

• a candidate profile including a complete CV and a statement demonstrating the ability to develop an original research topic and, potentially, to lead a promising young team (e.g., ATIP-Avenir), the potential to achieve international recognition (e.g., ERC Starting Grant), the ability to lead a transformative project, and the candidate’s career prospects: 3 pages maximum,

• a description of the research project (state of the art, timeline, potential impacts), a proposed schedule, and a budget (including details of any other funding already secured or expected): 7 pages maximum,

• For non-tenured candidates in France, a commitment to apply for competitive examinations for positions as a teacher-researcher or tenured researcher.

These four documents must be combined in this order (no template is provided) into a single PDF file named EUMF_FirstNameLastName.pdf. Please email this file with [Fellowship Application] in the subject line by April 1, 2024, at 2:00 PM (UTC+2).

Evaluation

The evaluation and selection of applications will be carried out by the Scientific and Strategic Orientation Council (SSOC) of the ExposUM Institute, on the basis of the quality and scientific potential of the applicant and the project, the appropriateness of the project with the themes of the Institute and the coherence of the project with the strategy of the partners of the consortium, with the goal of reinforcing attractiveness and the scientific influence on an international level.

Applications demonstrating one or more of the following qualities will be given preference, provided they meet the required scientific standards:

• a highly interdisciplinary project (especially if it includes a humanities and social sciences component);
• the establishment of new partnerships (academic or otherwise);
• research focused on One Health, global health, and the Global South.

Commitments

Selected candidates agree to:

• begin their research activities at the designated research unit between September and November 2024;
• comply with the Nagoya Protocol, where applicable;
• include the logos of the University of Montpellier, France 2030, the ExposUM Institute, and the Occitanie Region in all documents related to the implementation of the project;
• provide an annual report on the activities carried out at the Institute;
• For non-tenured successful candidates, apply for competitive exams for faculty positions or tenured research positions.

Results

1. CIRAD, CNRS, Ifremer, INRAe, Inria, Inserm, IRD, ENSCM, Institut Agro, Montpellier University Hospital, ICM, Occitanie Region. ↩︎
2. Funded by the ANR and the Occitanie Region. ↩︎
3. Hired as part of the awardee’s research project, in accordance with the pay scales in effect at the University of Montpellier. ↩︎

Keywords: call for proposals, Doctorate, Environment, I-SITE, Research