CORDIS gateway to FP7
In anticipation of the final approval of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) by the Council, CORDIS, the Community Research and Development Information Service, has launched a new FP7 service. The new web service provides the latest state of play as the EU's new research and development (R&D) programme moves into its implementation phase. It will then develop into a fully-fledged support service for all potential participants and interested parties. The service, which replaces the current 'Towards FP7' pages, provides detailed information on the specific programmes and themes, participation rules and official documents related to FP7. It also contains all the latest developments, announcements and events relevant to FP7. Adopted work programmes and calls for project proposals will be published on this service as soon as they are available. The new pages allow users to learn about FP7 in general and, in particular, its specific programmes and their themes, as well as the activities related to Euratom and the Joint Research Centre (JRC). There is also a set of fact sheets in 21 languages, providing general information about the new Framework Programme. In addition to background information, the new service also includes an FP7 Newsroom, where the most important latest developments relevant to FP7 are highlighted and explained. For potential participants, there is a guidance section explaining the rules of participation in FP7, including eligibility criteria, explanations of the most important procedures, and a summary of the different types of participation that are available. The new FP7 service also provides access to sources of support for participants, ranging from the newly-appointed National Contact Points (NCPs) in each of the EU Member States and associated countries, to a network of liaison officers. A specific search mechanism for relevant documents in the FP7 library completes the new service, which will continue to develop as the central gateway for all FP7-related information on CORDIS; with a partner search facility to help build FP7 project teams planned for the near future.