72.4
Board meeting 72
72.4
Follow-up on NOVA strategy seminars 2014 and 2015
1. Task force on external funding
Enclosure:
Mandate, received in email from Elise Norberg on 27 October 2015
Background
At board meeting 68, item 68.8 A a, the Board decided the following: “A taskforce among the Board
members will be set down to investigate on external funding, e.g. from the Nordic council of Ministers
(NCM). Grete Bertelsen, Elise Norberg and Hans Henrik Dietz are responsible for writing a draft mandate for
next board meeting.” At board meeting 70, the Board agreed that: “at the board meeting in June 2015, all
NOVA member institutions should have at least one suggestion for a person who can participate in the task
force”, cf. resolution 70.3.1. Attracting external funding to NOVA was the main theme of the NOVA strategy
seminar in Copenhagen 25-26 June. At board meeting 71, the Board appointed a task force lead by Elise
Norberg (deputy NOVA board member from AU-ST), and decided that the task force should send a final
mandate to the NOVA Chair by 15 September 2015. The mandate was to be discussed at board meeting 72.
Presentation
Final mandate
The task force has developed a final mandate on how to attract external funding for NOVA activities. The
group proposes to contact funding bodies as NCM, NordForsk, and the Nordic Joint Committee for
Agricultural and Food Research (NKJ) etc. for funding of network activities and other organisations (e.g. the
industry) for specific funding of PhD courses within their respective area. This is in line with the discussions
at NOVA board meeting 72 where the Board agreed that PhD course funding should be prioritised. A list of
external funding possibilities with a targeting plan is attached to the mandate. The task force is still
searching for additional potential funding bodies to approach.
The task force will write a draft letter that can be used by the different people contacting potential external
funding bodies. The letter will provide a presentation of NOVA and an explanation of what NOVA wishes to
achieve by the requested funding.
Development of course series to provide predictability for students and attract external funding
Elise Norberg has proposed that the next NOVA strategy seminar focus on how to facilitate the
development of more course series. There are two reasons for this, firstly, it gives PhD students more
predictability and ease the planning of the PhD course programme. Secondly, NOVA may be more
successful in attracting funding from the industry if NOVA can present a long-term plan for courses to be
held in the next 3-5 years. Norberg has submitted an application to NKJ for support for the seminar where
the NOVA Board, coordinators, members of the NOVA Student Board and teachers and scientists from
NOVA’s core academic areas can start developing course series.
Norberg will give a presentation on the final mandate and further plans for attracting external funding to
NOVA.
The Chair’s opinion
The Chair would like to thank the task force for the work they have done. It is important for the
implementation of the targeting plan that everyone contribute by contacting potential funding partners.
72.4
Board meeting 72
Moreover, the Chair supports the idea of a strategy seminar focusing on PhD course series. She encourages
all institutions to work on ideas for this kind of PhD education.
Proposed resolution:
The Board approves the final mandate of the task force on external funding.