FCT

Organization (acronym): Foundation for Science and Technology (FCT)

Country: Portugal

Role of the organization in FORESTERRA: Partner of ERA-NET FORESTERRA

Webpage: http://www.fct.pt/index.phtml.en

Description:

Fundação para a Ciência e a Tecnologia (FCT) is the Portugal’s main funding agency for research and it is responsible for following the bilateral and multilateral international agreements in science and technology. FCT is a public autonomous institute under the aegis of the Ministry of Education and Science. FCT covers all fields of science, from natural sciences to humanities, normally in a responsive mode, aiming at capability enhancement and research excellence.

FCT’s mission is to promote the advancement of scientific and technological knowledge in Portugal, exploring opportunities that arise in any scientific or technological domain to attain the highest international standards in the creation of knowledge, and to stimulate their diffusion and contribution to improve education, health, environment, and the quality of life and well being of the general public. This mission is mainly accomplished through the financing subsequent to the evaluation of the merit of proposals presented by institutions, research teams or individuals in public open calls, and also through cooperation agreements and other forms of support in partnership with universities and other public or private institutions.

FCT’s budget for 2011 was around 472 million €. Funding is structured around the following schemes: promotion of training and career development (fellowships, scholarships, mainly for PhDs, Post-docs and PhDs in industry), support of centers of excellence (associated laboratories) and research centers (institutional funding), support to infrastructures, promotion and development of scientific activity (research projects) and for diffusion of scientific culture.

FCT has experience in coordinated actions at the national level (joint calls with other Ministries) and at the European level. FCT participates in several ERA-NETs, including ARIMNet, an ERANET on Mediterranean Agriculture.

Key personnel:

Joana Pinheiro - Scientific Officer.

joana.pinheiro@fct.pt