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Importance of EU projects for the Academic Sector

The University of Zagreb has always given great importance to cutting-edge research in science and art. Unfortunately, one of the key questions is always: How to support such research from the financial point of view? Except for the national funding possibilities issued by different Ministries, National Science Foundation and recently established University's development fund, there is another possibility – where challenges and competition are much bigger! European funding schemes are offering much more possibilities and even more are on the horizon when we shall become a Member Sate of the European Union. Even if you are undergraduate or graduate student it is not too early to think about all this possibilities! The main issue is to have original idea, enough motivation and persistence to find a way how to realize and commercialize it. Although it seems so difficult, you will not be alone one this way. University of Zagreb as the institution has its Research office and educated staff to help you, but so has your own Faculty! At the Faculty of Textile Technology there is an International Relations Office as well as the Service for Textile European Projects, established already in 2006. All this factors had positive impact on the increase of the EU projects running at the Faculty of Textiles. At the moment 3 FP7, 3 EUREKA and 5 bilateral projects with Austrian, Hungarian and Slovenian partners are running. We have a very positive experience from the coordination or participation at the international projects. It is indeed a hard work with very strict schedule and tight budget, strictly according to the previously planned budget. The budget has to be accepted by the rigorous experts, both the project evaluators during the project evaluation phase and EC financial department upon the project negotiation phase. Although hard work is a necessity, there are numerous benefits resulting from the participation at the international projects: cooperation with the leading research institutions on the innovative topics, getting insight view on European state-of-the-art in particular area, strengthening the human and material capacity and competences, better cooperation with national and international SMEs which are gaining new and competitive niche markets, possibility to implement new foreground, developed during the project time, by direct beneficiaries - the SMEs involved in the project. Both sides involved in the projects, academy and entrepreneurship, have the benefits of entering the new research areas/markets through the multidisciplinary cooperation. In long term relations, both sides are making a profit from establishment of new contacts, either the new RTDs (research and technology development) or new suppliers/users of developed knowledge, product or service.

EU projects; cutting-edge research; RTD partners

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