Background and objectives
Nordic countries
The Research Council of Finland actively cooperates with other Nordic research funding agencies. In particular, we are closely involved in the activities of NordForsk, the Nordic research funding organisation established under the Nordic Council of Ministers, by co-funding its research programmes.
Our research councils also actively engage in the work of the three Joint Committees of the Nordic Research Councils (NOS).
Europe
The Research Council of Finland promotes European research cooperation and the building of the European Research Area (ERA) in two main ways. Firstly, our experts act as Finland’s representatives on committees of the EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation and advise and support applicants seeking funding from the programme. These tasks are closely coordinated with Finnish ministries and Business Finland. Secondly, we sponsor partnerships with the EU and European funding agencies and market them to researchers through thematic ERA-NET and JPI calls. However, the new Horizon Europe framework programme will transform European research partnerships.
We also coordinate the Finnish Liaison Office for EU R&D (FiLi) with Business Finland in Brussels. FiLi works in close cooperation with the European Commission as well as European and Finnish researchers in Brussels.
Global partnerships
The Research Council of Finland has several bilateral partnership agreements with research funding bodies both within and outside the EU. Depending on the terms of the agreement, this cooperation can involve either project or mobility funding and, in some cases, also assistance for co-hosting research seminars.
We also contribute to the work of international research funding organisations (IIASA, OECD) as well as bodies that coordinate Finland’s global research and higher education partnerships on a national level (UNESCO, Team Finland Knowledge).
