The MoRE2020 programme was comprised of two components: the recruitment period and the project implementation period. The programme’s three planned calls for proposals were released in quick succession, with 20 researchers having received grants by Month 21, January 2019. The period between Month 22 and Month 60, which was planned for the completion of the projects, was affected by the situation with the Covid-19 pandemic. Fellows were granted extended time, but due to restricted travel arrangement and visa applications, a few fellows could not start or fulfil their project as planned. Therefore, it was 18 researchers in total that received grants.
The application, evaluation and selection process of the three calls for proposals were undertaken without incidents, including thorough ethics checks performed by the MoRE2020 Ethics Board. Of the 21 applications received during the first call, 19 were eligible for evaluation, of which 17 received scores high enough to be considered for funding. Of the 21 applications submitted to the second call for proposals, all were considered eligible for evaluation, and 19 received scores high enough to be considered for funding. Of the 25 applications submitted to the third call for proposals, 22 were eligible for evaluation, of which all received scores high enough to be considered for funding.
Out of the 67 submitted applications, 24 were deemed Excellent (the highest possible category) by the expert evaluators, while 18 were deemed Good. Four applications were considered ethically unsuitable for implementation under the MoRE2020 programme. The MoRE2020 Programme Board ranked the applicable proposals according to the scores given by the experts, considering the ethical evaluation, the gender distribution of the applicants, as well as the applying milieus and research areas. Following this ranking, the proposals were submitted to the Regional Development Committee of Region Västra Götaland for the final decision.
Throughout the programme, the MoRE2020 Management Team implemented various communications activities to promote the programme, ensuring that the most important target group of researchers and West Swedish R&I milieus were reached. Activities included direct outreach to research groups and faculties, targeted informational meetings organized with the help of the local Grants Offices’ personnel, as well as the usage of social media to reach an even wider network of potential applicants. The number of high-quality applications was a testament to these targeted activities.
The first part of the project was comprised of the launching of the programme, as well as the three calls for proposals. The second period from April 2019 was dedicated to follow up on all the projects to finish and support the fellows, especially them with difficulties due to the pandemic. By the end, 18 researchers were awarded MoRE2020 grants. Of the awarded proposals, 7 are outgoing and 11 are incoming from 5 of the region’s 6 universities and from 1 of the region’s research institutes. The thematic research areas represented by the fellows are urban development, life science, marine environment and the maritime sector, information and communication technology, green chemistry, sustainable production, food production/agriculture and forestry and material sciences. The ratio of male to female researchers were 50/50 %.
The MoRE2020 programme offered tools and support to fellows to disseminate and exploit results, and some of the venues for reaching out to different audiences. The participating fellows generated significant scientific output with participation at scientific conferences and publishing more than 50 journal articles. Outcomes from the reports from the fellows concluded that participants shared both a high level of satisfaction from collaborating with the research and innovation milieus and end-users as well as the assistance in administrative procedures from the management team.
