Established in 1998, the UK Cuba Science Links programme is designed to increase collaboration between research groups in the United Kingdom and Cuba. The programme is funded and managed by the British Council in Havana and supports projects agreed with the Cuban Ministry for Foreign Investment and Economic Co-operation [MINVEC]. Funding is available each year to support collaborative research projects between groups in publicly funded research and higher education institutions.
We currently have 3 links in their 2nd year for during this financial year 2008-09.
1- Proactive Measures to Conserve Caribbean Fungal Biodiversity
Partners: Dr David Minter, Principal Scientist, from CABI Bioscience (International Mycological Institute) working with Dr Julio Mena Portales from the Instituto de Ecología y Sistemática, and the National Botanic Gardens of Cuba
2-Molecular pharmacological and biological basis for the use of Cuban plants as dietary interventions in metabolic diseases associated with obesity and type 2 diabetes.
Partners: Prof. Alan Harvey, PhD, from the Strathclyde Institute for Drug Research (SIDR) in Glasgow, together with Dr Evangelina Marrero Faz, PhD from the the Cuban Institution, the National Centre for Animal and Plant Health (CENSA).
3-Isolation and characterization of new inhibitors from tropical marine sources against new therapeutic proteinase targets in malaria: Biochemical potential as drugs
Partners: Dr Colin Berry from the Cardiff School of Biosciences, Cardiff University, Wales, together with Prof Dr María de los Angeles Chávez Planes from the Faculty of Biology at the University of Havana.
The call for applications 2009-2010 will be published in early 2009.
For more information please contact Jenny White.
In addition to the Cuba Science Links Programme, the British Council has launched an international Researchers Exchange programme known as RXP for short visits between overseas countries and the UK. For more information, please see http://www.britishcouncil.org/science-rxp.htm
HOW DOES IT WORK?
The RXP exchange awards fund short term exchange visits for postdoctoral researchers to make international connections. This can be a single visit between two weeks and three months duration, or multiple visits. The award is to the individual, not the link and cannot exceed £5,000.
 Applications must be for travel between December 2008 and December 2009
The deadline for applications will be 2 July 2008
Notification of successful awards will be given in November 2008
HOW MUCH CAN I APPLY FOR?
The maximum award that can be applied for is £5,000, and costs must be detailed.
To celebrate the forthcoming anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth, this year we would also like to invite researchers to apply for our special Darwin RXP awards. If you are a researcher in areas related to evolutionary theory and Darwin’s legacy you can apply for a special RXP award. For example these areas would include research links in:
Behavioural Ecology
Biodiversity
Comparative Biology
Systematics
Developmental Biology and Evolutionary Biology
Ecology
Evolutionary Processes
Paleobiology
Population & Evolutionary Genetics
Evolutionary theory has challenged orthodoxy in disciplines across the arts, humanities and the social as well as natural sciences: from evolutionary psychology, ethics, and cognitive neuroscience, to language, aesthetics and social behaviour. Given the pervasive influence of Darwin’s ideas, we would also welcome applications from researchers in these and other areas.
The Darwin RXP awards will be judged under the same criteria as the usual RXP awards. Applications for the Darwin RXP awards should be submitted by the normal RXP deadline, 2 July, and will be included in the same selection process.
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