Call for Proposals: ExposUM Innovation 2026 – Pre-Proof of Concept (POC)

[Call for Proposals] - Published on June 4, 2026 in the University Innovation Hub (PUI)

ExposUM is an initiative of the University of Montpellier and its partners¹ aimed at establishing a leading, off-campus, interdisciplinary institute for the study, education, and science-society interaction regarding the environmental determinants of human health. ExposUM is a recipient of the ExcellenceS (PIA4) call for proposals and is supported by the Occitanie Region for the period 2022–2030.

Background and Objectives

The ExposUM Institute, in collaboration with the Montpellier University Innovation Hub (PUI) and with the support of the Occitanie Region, is launching an initiative to support innovation in environmental health. This call for projects (AAP) complements the PUI’s existing initiatives, such as Companies & Campus (C&C) for collaborative research and the Booster Innovation Montpellier (BIM) program for the very early pre-maturation phases.

The goal is to fund the early development phases of commercialization projects stemming from research. This program specifically targets the transition to Technology Readiness Levels ( TRL) 3–4 (experimental proof of concept or laboratory validation), in order to prepare projects for a future funding application under the POC Regional program (TRL 5–7).

Financial Support and Duration

The financial support is intended to accelerate the implementation of research findings.

• Maximum funding: 80,000 € per project.
• Duration: Up to 18 months from the date of notification.
• Eligible expenses: personnel, small equipment, supplies, and services.

2026 Campaign Schedule

Eligibility and Selection Criteria

• Principal Investigator: researcher, faculty member, or Professor; tenured or on a fixed-term contract (in which case, the employment contract must cover at least the entire duration of the project); member of a research unit at I-SITE Montpellier.
• Theme: Projects addressing environmental health (or theexposome).
• Selection:Projects will be evaluated based on scientific quality and relevance, innovation, technical feasibility within 18 months, and potential for future commercialization.

Projects will be evaluated by the Innovation Committee (COMIN) of the University Innovation Hub (PUI). The PUI conducts this evaluation to ensure synergy and strategic consistency among innovation-related initiatives within the France 2030 programs at I-SITE. As such, the PUI reviews proposals for innovative projects, including those supported by France 2030 programs such as ExposUM.

Submission Guidelines

The project must be written in French using thesimplified application form available for download below, following the instructions provided therein.

The primary submitter should send the file via email to [email protected], copying the unit director. Please include [Pre-Proof of Concept (POC) 2026_Last Name First Name] in the email subject line.

The deadline for submitting applications is August 28, 2026.

Contact

For any information regarding this call for proposals, please write to the following address:   (Subject: Pre-Proof of Concept (POC)). 

Research institutions that are part of the I-Site consortium

ABSys, AGAP Institute, AIDA, AMAP, Analyses, ART-Dev, ASTRE, BC2M, BCM, BIOLuM, BioWooEB, CBGP, CBS, CDE, CEFE, CEE-M, CEMIPAI, CEPEL, CERCOP, ChimEco, CREAM, CRBM, CSUM, DEFE, DGIMI, DIADE, DIASCOPE, DMEM, ECO&SOLS, ECOTRON, EDPFM, EDSM, ESPACE-DEV, EuroMov DHM, F&S, FHU Evocan 2, FHU Neurexpo, FHU Regenhab 2, FHU TIE, G-EAU, GECO, Génopolys, GM, HortSys, HSM, IATE, IBMM, ICGM, ICS, ICSM, IDEDH, IDESP, IEM, IES, IGF, IGH, IGMM, IHD, IHPE, IMAG, IMAGINE, INM, INNOVATION, INTERTRYP, IPSiM, IRCM, IRIM, IRMB, ISDM, ISEM, ITAP, L2C, LBE, LBN, LDP, LEPSE, LICeM, LIRDEF, LIRMM, LISAH, LMGC, LPHI, LUPM, Maraîchage, MARBEC, MEEB, MISTEA, MIVEGEC, MMDN, MOISA, MRE, MRM, MSH Sud, OREME, PAC Chimie Balard, PCCEI, Pech Rouge, PHIM, PhyMedExp, QualiSud, R&R, SantESiH, SELMET, SENS, SPO, Sys2diag, TETIS, TransVIHMI, VASSAL, VBIC

1. CIRAD, CNRS, Ifremer, INRAe, Inria, Inserm, IRD, ENSCM, Institut Agro, Montpellier University Hospital, ICM, Occitanie Region. ↩︎

Keywords: Call for Proposals, Innovation