Connect Amazonia: UBBI-FAPESPA Collaboration Fund

UoB and Pará applicants must be active professors of the permanent staff of the University; Post-doctoral researchers may be added to the team list, but are not eligible for funding.

In addition, the Pará applicant/project lead must:

• be a Brazilian national or a foreign national lawfully resident in Brazil and residing in the State of Pará;
• hold a doctoral degree;
• maintain an employment or institutional affiliation with a public or private non-profit Scientific, Technological and Innovation Institution located in the State of Pará throughout the project term;
• undertake science, technology and innovation activities at the host institution;
• maintain a complete and up-to-date Lattes CV and FAPESPA Platform registration;
• submit only one proposal as project lead to FAPESPA and UBBI;
• have English-language proficiency appropriate for international collaboration;
• have no outstanding obligations with FAPESPA and be in good standing with the State of Pará for contracting and the release of funds;
• have no functional, employment or contractual relationship with FAPESPA;
• not be related, in the direct or collateral line up to the third degree, to FAPESPA staff directly involved in managing the call;
• be responsible for the technical and financial implementation of the Pará component and for obtaining all applicable ethical and legal approvals.

For the host institution in Pará, applicants must:

• be a legally constituted public or private non-profit Scientific, Technological and Innovation Institution, based in the State of Pará and demonstrably capable of undertaking ST&I activities;
• be registered in the CNPq Directory of Institutions and on the FAPESPA Platform;
• provide formal institutional approval signed by an authorised officer and ensure the institutional conditions required for implementation;
• monitor the project and support compliance with the agreed obligations.

Funding Criteria

Through the Connect Amazonia 2026 Collaboration Fund, UBBI and FAPESPA will jointly invest approximately £50,000 to support up to 4 collaborative research projects. Each selected proposal may receive funding of up to £12,500, with costs shared equally between the two funders, whereby UBBI and FAPESPA will each contribute up to £6,250 per project for eligible activities undertaken in Pará.

The fund may support:

• Research-related expenses directly associated with project activities.
• Researcher mobility and travel between Brazil and the United Kingdom.
• Workshops, networking activities and stakeholder engagement.
• Research consumables and project delivery costs.
• Training and capacity-building activities.
• Other justified project expenses in accordance with institutional regulations.

Requests for equipment, specialist services or research assistance must be clearly justified and demonstrate direct relevance to project objectives.

UBBI and FAPESPA will be responsible for funding activities undertaken by researchers within their respective jurisdictions.

UBBI-FAPESPA seed funding will be subject to the travel reimbursement and relevant financial policies of the institution providing the funding to its faculty or units. UoB expenditure must be aligned with the University’s Travel Policy.

Eligible Costs

Current expenditure essential to the Pará component may be supported, provided that it is included in the budget and justified in relation to the objectives, methodology, milestones and deliverables:

• domestic and international economy-class travel directly related to the project;
• domestic and international subsistence allowances, in accordance with the values established in the CNPq Per Diem Table for Research Grants and Awards, for members of the Pará-based project team;
• consumables, including reagents, experimental inputs, laboratory materials, packaging and other consumable items required to achieve the project objectives;
• Third-Party Services - Legal Entities, where strictly necessary and not corresponding to duties that should be performed by the team;
• the organisation of events, workshops, training, justified laboratory analyses, technical visits and scientific, technological and institutional engagement activities.

Ineligible costs

• capital expenditure, including equipment, machinery, furniture, vehicles, property or other permanent assets;
• remuneration, salary supplements, scholarships or payments to individuals;
• fines, interest, bank charges and routine administrative expenses;
• expenses not directly related to the project or incurred outside the term of the Grant Award Agreement.

Funding Period

The funding period for the Connect Amazonia 2026 projects will run from December 2026 to 31 July 2028.

Successful projects are expected to commence activities upon award notification and operate throughout the funding period. Applicants should outline a realistic programme of activity, including key milestones, anticipated outputs and plans to sustain the collaboration beyond the lifetime of the award.

• FAPESPA funding will be transferred to the Brazilian Principal Investigator in December 2026, in accordance with FAPESPA regulations.
• University of Birmingham funding will be awarded in two tranches:

1. 50% released in December 2026, to support activities through 31 July 2027;
2. 50% released in August 2027, subject to satisfactory progress, to support activities through 31 July 2028.

The proposal must be prepared in English, using exclusively the official Connect Amazonia 2026 call form provided by UBBI. It must include the lead researchers in Pará and Birmingham, an abstract, objectives, methodology, expected results, contribution to the Sustainable Development Goals where applicable, team composition and complementarity, work plan, timetable, detailed budget, continuity strategy, and institutional approval.

The proposal must be submitted through the single online submission route, using the Connect Amazonia UBBI-FAPESPA Collaboration Seed Fund Application Form, by 26 October 2026.

The information and budget relating to the Pará component must fully comply with these Guidelines. The proposal submitted to UBBI will be shared with FAPESPA for joint assessment, subject to the institutions’ data handling and confidentiality rules.

FAPESPA may request supplementary documents and information required for eligibility checks, assessment, and contracting.

Applications will be evaluated by a joint UBBI-FAPESPA review panel against the following criteria:

• Alignment with one or more of the strategic priority areas.
• Scientific excellence and innovation.
• Contribution to the BioAmazon Valley vision and sustainable bioeconomy development.
• Potential environmental, societal and economic impact.
• Strength, complementarity and sustainability of the UoB-Pará partnership.
• Feasibility, quality and clarity of the proposed methodology.
• Capacity-building opportunities, particularly for early-career researchers.
• Potential for future external funding, technology translation, entrepreneurship, commercialisation and policy influence.

Additional consideration will be given to projects that demonstrate a clear pathway towards innovation, value creation and long-term impact within the BioAmazon Valley ecosystem.

Proposals will be assessed through a joint UBBI-FAPESPA process. FAPESPA will be responsible for verifying the eligibility of the Pará component and will participate in reconciling the final outcome.

Applications must be submitted by one senior or junior faculty/researcher at a Pará-based institution and by one at UoB, both of whom will be named Co-Investigators (Co-Is). Pará and UoB applicants must be active professors on the permanent staff of the University; Post-doctoral researchers may be added to the team list, but are not eligible for funding.

Additional participants of the respective project teams may be professors, PhD candidates, and post-doctoral researchers. The funding scheme is open to all academic fields. Activities may focus on one discipline or be of interdisciplinary character.

The proposal must be submitted through the single online submission route, using the Connect Amazonia UBBI-FAPESPA Collaboration Seed Fund Application Form, by 26 October 2026.

Applications should include:

1. Identified UoB and Pará Principal Investigators.
2. Project title and summary/project abstract (max 200 words).
3. Description of the research, including objectives, methodology, and expected outcomes; if applicable, include the contribution of the project to the SDG (max 2 pages).
4. Details of the project partners, including previous collaboration, including description of previous research outputs (if any) and contribution of partners from Pará and UoB.
5. Anticipated total cost and itemised budget (see template below).
6. Working plan for the project (including a timeline and milestones).
7. Anticipated means of sustaining the collaboration. What funding is available from other sources and what potential is there for future external investment?
8. Executive Officer of the Unit / Head of School or Faculty Dean approval. Email confirmation of this support will suffice, and should be saved in PDF format and attached with the application.

Budget Template

Please use the following format to present your budget:

The deadline for submissions is 26 October 2026.

Late or incomplete applications will not be considered.

Applications should be submitted by both Co-PIs, in English and Portuguese, using the Connect Amazonia UBBI-FAPESPA Collaboration Fund Application Form, as follows:

The University of Birmingham:

• Application form
• Further information can be requested from Dr Gisele Tyba Mayrink Orgado, UBBI Project Officer. Email: g.tybamayrinkorgado@bham.ac.uk

FAPESPA:

• Enquiries related to applicants and institutions based in the State of Pará should be directed to Marco Antonio Viana Oliveira, International Advisor, FAPESPA, Belém, Pará. Email: assessoriainternacional@fapespa.pa.gov.br

Interested parties are responsible for identifying and formalising a partnership between a researcher affiliated with the University of Birmingham and a researcher affiliated with an Institution located in the State of Pará. The proposal must be jointly developed and submitted.

UBBI and FAPESPA will provide academic matchmaking support. To register an area of expertise, preliminary idea, and desired partner profile, interested researchers must complete the form.

Participation in matchmaking is optional, does not guarantee that a partnership will be formed, and does not transfer responsibility for identifying or confirming the international partner to the partner institutions.

UBBI-FAPESPA Strategic Leads and Contacts:

University of Birmingham

Dr Angelo Martins Jr
UBBI Academic Co-Director
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
Email: a.martinsjunior@bham.ac.uk

Dr Erica Arthur
Head of Global Partnerships
International Partnerships
University of Birmingham
Edgbaston
Birmingham
B15 2TT
Email: e.d.arthur@bham.ac.uk

Fundação Amazônia de Amparo a Estudos e Pesquisas – FAPESPA

Dr Deyvison A. Medrado Gonçalves
Scientific Director
FAPESPA
Belém, Pará
Email: dicet@fapespa.pa.gov.br

Marco Antonio Viana
International Adviser
FAPESPA
Belém, Pará
Email: assessoriainternacional@fapespa.pa.gov.br 

Review Timetable

Applications will be evaluated by a joint review panel from UBBI and FAPESPA in accordance with the Assessment Criteria outlined above as follows:

• Call launch: September 2026
• Applications Open: 1 October 2026
• Applications Deadline: 26 October 2026
• Peer Review and Assessment: November 2026
• Successful Awards Announced: December 2026
• FAPESPA Funding Released: December 2026
• UBBI First Tranche (50%) Released: December 2026
• First Tranche Expenditure Deadline: 31 July 2027
• UBBI Second Tranche (50%) Released: August 2027
• Project Completion Deadline: 31 July 2028
• Final Reports Due: 31 August 2028

Reporting

Grant recipients are required to follow the proposed project and to submit a two-to-three-page final report no later than one month after the end of the grant period. Periodic status updates on the progress of the project may be requested and recipients may be asked to present to the UBBI Steering Group, FAPESPA and other appropriate forums (e.g., departmental/College presentations) as requested. The report should include the following information: objectives proposed and activities undertaken; project outcomes and achievements, including key findings and future plans; a brief assessment by the lead researcher of actual expenditure against planned. Grant recipients will later be asked to provide an update two years after the visit to ensure that longer-term outcomes of the engagement can be measured that would not have become apparent in the first-year report.

FAPESPA Guidelines in Portuguese