Data-Gouv-ML/pcri-informations-sur-les-projets-laureats huggingface dataset:
Novel Brain-Inspired Learning Paradigms for Large-Scale Neuronal Networks (BRAIN-I-NETS)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Information and Communication Technologies
Destination: Future and emerging technologies
Action type: Collaborative project
Countries involved: Austria,France,Switzerland,United Kingdom,Germany,Canada
Call:  (FP7-ICT-2009-C, 2009)
Start date: 2010-01-01
End date: 2012-12-31
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2629554.0
EU funding (EUR): 1998408.0
Participants: 7
Project status: CLOSED

Current designs of neurally inspired computing systems rely on learning rules that appear to be insufficient to port the superior adaptive and computational capabilities of biological neural systems into large-scale recurrent neural hardware system. This is not surprising, since most of these learning rules had to be extrapolated from results of neurobiological experiments in vitro. New experimental techniques in neurobiology - such as 2-photon laser-scanning microscopy, optogenetic cell activation, and dynamic clamp techniques - make it now possible to record the changes that really take place in the intact brain during learning. First results indicate that the rules for synaptic plasticity have in fact to be rewritten. In particular, it appears that local synaptic plasticity is gated in multiple ways by global factors such as neuromodulators and network states. One primary goal of this project is to apply and extend new cutting-edge experimental techniques to produce a set of rules for synaptic plasticity and network reorganisation that describe the actual adaptive processes that take place in the living brain during learning. These new rules will be analysed by computational neuroscience experts and their consequences for learning in simulated large-scale networks of neurons and neurally inspired computing systems will be ascertained. The goal of this project is to port essential aspects of learning in the intact brain into current and next-generation neuromorphic hardware. New interchangeable software tools, that have recently been developed in the FP6 project FACETS, will be employed to carry out these investigations. Open questions that arise in these modelling studies will be addressed by changes in experimental protocols of the neuroscientists, building on long standing interdisciplinary collaborations among the partners.

Keywords: learning,neuronal networks,adaptivity,synaptic plasticity,adaptive neural hardware,reinforcement learning,neural computation
POLICY ADDRESSING CLIMATE CHANGE AND LEARNING ABOUT CONSUMER BEHAVIOUR AND EVERYDAY LIFE (PACHELBEL)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Environment (including Climate Change)
Destination: Earth observation and assessment tools for sustainable development
Action type: Collaborative project
Countries involved: Spain,Spain,United Kingdom,United Kingdom,France,Germany,Sweden,Romania
Call:  (FP7-ENV-2009-1, 2009)
Start date: 2010-01-01
End date: 2012-12-31
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1678489.4
EU funding (EUR): 1330619.35
Participants: 10
Project status: CLOSED

At the heart of this project lies the development, trialling and operationalisation of a tool (STAVE), designed to support the work of policy-making for sustainability in real-world settings. The tool will support processes of knowledge brokerage, promoting the appropriate application of existing research findings, and the generation of new knowledge which is focused on specific policy objectives. In substantive terms, the project responds to recent work on sustainable consumption, which has provided compelling arguments about the difficulties entailed in seeking to address anthropogenic climate change by attempting to shift patterns of consumer behaviour. The project will take the form of a series of collaborative problem-focused interventions with policy-makers which will engage with their current work in these areas. STAVE will allow these policy-makers to examine the nature and validity of assumptions about human sensibilities, reasoning and action that are incorporated into the development of policy. The project will yield detailed guidance on how best to utilise STAVE across a variety of organisational and policy-specific environments. It will also generate important insights into the mechanisms by which different sources of knowledge are utilised in the practical activity of policymaking; and into the nature of lay citizens’ practical reasoning and everyday activities, as they relate to the sustainability of their patterns of consumption.

Keywords: assumptions about human behaviour in policy development,anthropogenic climate change,sustainable consumption,knowledge utilisation and brokerage,problem-focused engagement with policymakers.
Sustainability and performance assessment and benchmarking of buildings - SuPerBuildings (SUPERBUILDINGS)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Environment (including Climate Change)
Destination: Environmental technologies
Action type: Collaborative project
Countries involved: Finland,United Kingdom,France,Belgium,Germany,Czechia,Germany,Spain,Austria,France,Germany,Netherlands
Call:  (FP7-ENV-2009-1, 2009)
Start date: 2010-01-01
End date: 2012-12-31
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 2595587.0
EU funding (EUR): 1949569.0
Participants: 13
Project status: CLOSED

The project will develop 1) sustainability indicators for buildings, 2) understanding about the needed performance levels considering new and existing buildings, different building types and local requirements, 3) methods for the benchmarking of sustainable buildings (SB) and 4) recommendations for the effective use of benchmarking systems as instruments of steering and in building processes. The work will make use of the existing knowledge of SB assessment and rating systems. However, the project recognises that there are still unsolved issues and areas with no common understanding. These include: a) the integration of social and economic issues with SB assessment, b) consideration of certain environmental aspects as land use, c) defining appropriate performance levels considering both minimal levels and advanced targets, d) consideration of local conditions, different building types, and both new and existing buildings when selecting performance levels, d) selection of benchmarking criteria to be easily adopted in different parts of Europe, e) effective mobilisation of the benchmarking system, f) effective making use of the system in building processes and in building regulation and steering. The work will be divided into 8 work packages: WP1 ensures the effective work progress and the good communication between project members and between the project and the Commission; WP2 establishes the common starting point for the project; WP3 analyses the potential of SB benchmarking systems as an instrument of steering and when used in different phases of building projects, WP4 develops and selects sustainability indicators that describe the environmental, social and economic performance of buildings. WP4 will focus on the development of data validity and reliability for each key indicator. WP5 defines performance levels and benchmarking criteria, WP6 makes recommendations for effective exploitation, WP7 pilots the system, and WP8 disseminates the outcomes with help of the project NETWORK GROUP and with help of powerful organisations of building professionals.

Keywords: sustainable building,asessment,benchmarking,labelling
Bacterial Synthetic Minimal Genomes for Biotechnology (BASYNTHEC)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Food, Agriculture and Fisheries, and Biotechnology
Destination: Life sciences, biotechnology and biochemistry for sustainable non-food products and processes
Action type: Collaborative project
Countries involved: France,Netherlands,United States,Switzerland,Germany,Denmark
Call:  (FP7-KBBE-2009-3, 2009)
Start date: 2010-06-01
End date: 2013-05-31
Duration (months): 36.0
Total project cost (EUR): 4823326.0
EU funding (EUR): 2993162.0
Participants: 8
Project status: CLOSED

BaSynthec will combine computational and experimental biology approaches with novel high-throughput methodologies to reduce and modify à la carte the chromosome of Bacillus subtilis, a genetically tractable bacterium and one of the key microbes used as a Cell Factory in biotechnology. Simpler B. subtilis strains with reduced energy consumption for self maintenance will be designed and constructed by removing some potentially expensive cellular processes. The cells with the lowest experimentally determined waste of energy and with industrially relevant phenotypes will be engineered to reroute the flux devoted to biomass formation through rational modifications of the complex metabolic regulations, and will be used as biotechnological platforms to plug in synthetic modules. For this purpose, BaSynthec will develop a model-driven approach to design and engineer the strains with predetermined features, with a particular focus on unrestricted metabolic activity and the plug-in of synthetic functional modules. This strategy is based on the recent development of two complementary modelling approaches for B. subtilis: i) a genome-scale model of genetic and metabolic regulatory networks associated with a novel method called “Resource Balance Analysis” defining the formal background of model-based approaches for engineering strains; and ii) the development of a new genome-scale metabolic model of B. subtilis which is the most complete and accurate that exists today. Two pathways of high biotechnological relevance will be used for establishing the proof-of-principle of the assembly of functional synthetic modules: i) the vitamin B5 biosynthetic pathway, and ii) the secretion machinery for the export of extra-cellular enzymes. It is anticipated that validated simpler bacterial strains together with the modelling framework generated by BaSynthec will be used as generic biotechnological platforms to better control and exploit cell metabolism in industrial processes.

Keywords: synthetic biology,systems biology,computational design,minimal genome,biological engineering,live cell array,gram-positive bacteria,bioinformatics,high throughput phenotyping,omics data
Scoping China’s Environmental Research Excellence and major Infrastructure: Foresight, Potentials, and Roadmaps (SPRING)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Environment (including Climate Change)
Destination: Horizontal activities
Action type: Coordination and support actions
Countries involved: United Kingdom,United Kingdom,Bulgaria,Norway,China,United Kingdom
Call:  (FP7-ENV-2009-1, 2009)
Start date: 2010-03-01
End date: 2013-08-31
Duration (months): 42.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1070170.1
EU funding (EUR): 993232.9
Participants: 10
Project status: CLOSED

SPRING is a supporting action under EU FP7 Environment theme, with the main objective of creating and providing a solid basis for future EU-China collaboration in environmental research. SPRING will identify common needs and opportunities, analyse potential topics of research cooperation and initiatives, map competences and potentials of Chinese research organisations and major infrastructure, investigate strategic development plans and initiate roadmaps for future collaborations. SPRING will analyse the hurdles, barriers, and cornerstones that need to be addressed to enable better research engagement by EU researchers to China, and vice versa. It will improve the visibility of research initiatives and strengths of Chinese regions to a wider audience in Europe. The project will create and maintain a web portal that will serve as a bilateral contact point, showcasing past projects and present project, and also update strategic plans for EU-China cooperation.

Keywords: china,research excellence,culture understanding,foresight,tsinghua,peking university,translation,science cooperation,roadmap
European Marine Research Knowledge Transfer and Uptake of Results (MARINETT)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Environment (including Climate Change)
Destination: Horizontal activities
Action type: Coordination and support actions
Countries involved: Ireland,Portugal
Call:  (FP7-ENV-2009-1, 2009)
Start date: 2010-02-01
End date: 2012-07-31
Duration (months): 30.0
Total project cost (EUR): 871336.0
EU funding (EUR): 782000.0
Participants: 2
Project status: CLOSED

MarineTT is premised on the concept that knowledge is a major source of competitive advantage in business. Much potentially valuable knowledge, locked into inaccessible or non-user-friendly contexts, is unused because key stakeholders are not aware of its existence. MarineTT is concerned with marine environment research, an approach allowing coverage of other themes (climate change, biodiversity, earth observation and urban development) while also allowing important sub-topics (such as fisheries and aquaculture) to be included, given their relevance to the key area of the impacts of economic growth leading to environmental degradation, and the current ecosystem management approach supported by the EC. MarineTT will use the existing EurOcean info-base of European marine research funded projects as its initial basis, extending its functionality by introducing critical missing fields, making it a more efficient tool, focusing on knowledge outputs rather than a simple listing of research projects. The profiles will be updated to include new fields, such as: stated aims and objectives vs. actual outputs, research performers, research outcomes, research methodologies (effective and/or ineffective), products, and other relevant information. This knowledge can then be discharged through encouraging and accelerating commercial application of research results, through facilitating the transfer of knowledge for policy and senior decision makers, and through the promotion of research results to the public at large. MarineTT will make a real contribution to the call for improved access to EU research results for industry, multipliers, the civil society, and policy-makers. The project is divided into three phases: (1) Collect and Understand, refining and improving databases and info-bases; (2) Analyse (cost &amp; benefit) and Consult, with key stakeholders and experts; and (3) Transfer and Connect; effective knowledge transfer

Keywords: marine sector,marine industry,marine research,knowledge management,knowledge analysis,knowledge transfer,brokerage events,knowledge for policy,knowledge for industry
GEO Network for Capacity Building (GEONETCAB)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Environment (including Climate Change)
Destination: Earth observation and assessment tools for sustainable development
Action type: Coordination and support actions
Countries involved: Netherlands,France,France,Poland,Czechia,South Africa,Morocco
Call:  (FP7-ENV-2009-1, 2009)
Start date: 2009-11-01
End date: 2013-05-31
Duration (months): 43.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1212258.2
EU funding (EUR): 999988.0
Participants: 10
Project status: CLOSED

The purpose of the GEO Network for Capacity Building (GEO-Net-CaB) project is to create the conditions for the improvement and increase of the GEO capacity building activities and framework, with special emphasis on developing countries, new EU member states (and EU neighbouring states) and climate monitoring and will serve the bigger goal of improved effectiveness and efficiency of GEO capacity building for application in the GEO societal benefit areas. Coinciding with this purpose, successful brokerage with (potential) clients for earth observation products and services will be facilitated. The project will deliver the following output: 1. Capacity building needs in earth observation are identified (at a generic and global level, but with emphasis on the target regions). 2. Specifications for earth observation capacity buildings are described. 3. Resource providers are identified. 4. Sustainable brokerage between stakeholders (including resource providers) is established. 5. A mechanism to facilitate cooperation between stakeholders and providers is established. 6. A global base of technical expertise for education and training in earth observation is established (with emphasis on developing countries, new EU member states and climate monitoring). 7. Monitoring and evaluation mechanisms for determining the efficacy of GEO capacity building efforts are established. To achieve maximum impact demonstration projects will be carried out in Southern Africa, the French-speaking African region, Czechia and Poland, with spin-offs to EU neighbouring countries and Latin America and Asia. The project (with a duration of three years) will be carried out by a strong consortium of partners from the Netherlands, France, South Africa, Morocco, Czechia and Poland, supervised by an advisory board with worldwide representation and strong connections to GEO.

Keywords: capacity building,earth observation,environmental monitoring
INTEGRATED WASTE MANAGEMENT IN WESTERN AFRICA (IWWA)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Environment (including Climate Change)
Destination: Environmental technologies
Action type: Coordination and support actions
Countries involved: Germany,Spain,Switzerland,Sweden,Germany,Spain,Germany,Senegal,Ghana,Côte d'Ivoire,Egypt,Niger,Nigeria,South Africa
Call:  (FP7-ENV-2009-1, 2009)
Start date: 2010-06-01
End date: 2012-05-31
Duration (months): 24.0
Total project cost (EUR): 1254179.96
EU funding (EUR): 999884.35
Participants: 18
Project status: CLOSED

Most of African countries are struggling towards development and improving their living conditions. An appropriate waste management structure at a national and regional level is a milestone that must be achieved in order to improve living standards, health and environment. The situation in many countries is that the obvious lack of a functional waste management system brings perennial garbage problems such as inefficient garbage collection, poor public compliance to waste segregation, uncontrolled open burning, and tolerated presence of open dumpsites. Furthermore valuable resources are lost due to inefficient or non-existing recycling systems. The establishment of an efficient waste management and recycling system contributes to enhancing the resource efficiency of these countries and thus supports a sustainable development in the long-term. The present Coordination Action will seek the establishment of Integrated Solid Waste Management systems (ISWM) in Western Africa. ISWM systems combine waste streams, waste collection, treatment and disposal methods, with the objective of achieving environmental benefits, economic optimization and societal acceptability. For the achievement of the project objectives, a solid waste management expert and research co-ordination platform will analyze the current situation in the targeted countries (Ghana, Nigeria, Senegal and Ivory Coast), identifying main gaps and constraints of any type (technological, sociological, organisational, etc.) and selecting suitable management systems. According to the results obtained, including inputs from authorities and policy makers in participatory workshops, the consortium will provide valuable guidelines and recommendations to be used in the future implementation of developed strategies such as National and Regional Action Plans on solid waste management. The project will also build local capacities through workshops and seminars where relevant stakeholders must be involved.

Keywords: waste management,iswm,solid waste africa,life cycle assessment,waste policy
CHEMICAL SUBSTANCE IN VITRO/IN SILICO SCREENING SYSTEM TO PREDICT HUMAN- AND ECOTOXICOLOGICAL EFFECTS (CHEMSCREEN)

Framework: FP7 — Cooperation
Programme: Environment (including Climate Change)
Destination: Environmental technologies
Action type: Collaborative project
Countries involved: Netherlands,Germany,Netherlands,Netherlands,Denmark,Belgium,Germany,Germany,Spain
Call:  (FP7-ENV-2009-1, 2009)
Start date: 2010-01-01
End date: 2013-12-31
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 4609052.0
EU funding (EUR): 3496723.0
Participants: 10
Project status: CLOSED

The current system of risk assessment of chemicals is complex, very resource-intensive and extremely time-consuming. Because of this, there is a great need to modernize this process. However, this is not feasible without alternative, integrated testing strategies in which chemical characteristics are used to more advantage and where costly and time consuming animal tests are replaced to a large extent by more rapid, cheap and ethically less controversial methods. This is particularly needed for reproductive toxicity testing of chemicals. Reproductive toxicity is important to assess both human and environmental toxicity and uses the most animals in toxicity testing. Unfortunately, there are very few alternative methods. ChemScreen aims to fill this gap and place the tests in a more general innovative animal-free testing strategy. For this, we will generate a simple rapid screening system, which aims at widespread implementation within the tight time schedule of the REACH program. It will be a flexible tool that can be adapted and used for applications beyond the scope of REACH and in the post-REACH period. It will use in silico methods for prescreening chemicals for all relevant toxic effects. When found positive, this will be followed by further in silico and in vitro tests, most of which are available already. To fill the gap of suitable alternative methods for reproductive toxicity testing we will use a novel high throughput approach combining in silico/in vitro methods. In this approach we will combine knowledge of critical processes affected by reproductive toxicants with knowledge on the mechanistic basis of such effects. Straightforward data interpretation and decision trees will be developed in which all information on the potential toxicity of a chemical is considered. In this way we will provide a cost-effective means to generate a basic set of data on toxicological properties of chemicals and a decision tool to assess if further testing of chemicals is required.

Keywords: chemical risk assessment screening silico vitro human ecotoxicology