INTERNATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION

announces its programs to support basic sciences in the former Soviet Union and Baltic states
ISF 1054 31st Street, N.W., Suite 110 Washington, D.C. 20007 tel: (202) 342-2760 fax: (202) 342-2765 E-mail: info@isf.org
ISF P.B. 217 121019 Moscow Russia tel: (7 095) 956-21-51 fax: (7 095) 956-21-56 E-mail: isf@sovam.com

Introduction

The International Science Foundation (ISF) is an American charitable organization established by Mr. George Soros to support basic research in the natural sciences on the territory of the former Soviet Union (FSU) and Baltic states. ISF's initial mandate is to allocate $100 million within two years, 1993-1994. The possibility of additional financial commitments may be considered at a later date. For the purposes of ISF, "basic/fundamental research" may be interpreted as that research directed toward increased knowledge or understanding of natural processes and phenomena without reference to any specific application. Also, FSU and Baltic states may be defined as Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, and Uzbekistan.

Emergency Grants (Phase I)

Grants of $500 have been awarded to FSU and Baltic scientists who submitted evidence of a substantial record of publications in accordance with ISF regulations. Applications for these grants were accepted up to May 31, 1993, and the program is now closed.

Conference Travel Support

This program enables a limited number of FSU and Baltic scientists to travel abroad to attend international scientific conferences. ISF will provide scientists with air (or rail) tickets, and will make modest stipends available to conference organizers to pay in situ expenses. In turn, all registration and conference fees must be waived.

Eligibility: Organizers of international conferences may apply to ISF to obtain support for FSU and Baltic scientists to attend their conferences. These scientists should be actively pursuing basic research in the natural sciences at a scientific institution in the FSU and should be attending an international professional conference in their scientific discipline. Applications for bilateral meetings will not be considered. The number of scientists traveling on this program to attend a single conference cannot exceed 2% of all registered conference participants. No individual will be eligible for more than one travel award in any calendar year.

Deadline: Applications must be received in the ISF Washington office at least 12 weeks prior to the conference date.

Evaluation: It is the responsibility of the conference organizer to ensure that all eligibility criteria as listed in the application have been met. All applications will be reviewed for compliance with these criteria and the overall mandate of ISF. Funds will be allocated on a non-competitive basis for as long as they remain available. If the application is accepted, ISF will notify the conference organizer and provide specific travel information. In turn, the conference organizer must notify the scientist.

Long-Term Research Grants (Phase II)

This support provides financial and infrastructural research support of up to two years to FSU and Baltic researchers to work on their proposed projects. Only research in the fundamental natural sciences will be funded. Grants may range between $10,000-$100,000 for a two-year period.

Eligibility: A Principal Investigator (PI) of the grant must: 1) have a Candidate of Sciences or Ph.D.; 2) have at least 5 scientific publications since 1988 (only 3 are required if the applicant is age 28 or younger) in specified journals as listed in Appendix G of the application; 3) work in a scientific or educational research institution on FSU or Baltic territory; 4) propose to conduct research in the field of fundamental research under this program; and 5) be a citizen of one of the FSU or Baltic states and pledge that ISF research will be carried out on FSU or Baltic territory. Scientists who have moved abroad are welcome to apply to the program. The PI must agree to spend at least six months each year in the FSU or Baltic states in connection with the project.

Deadline: Applications must be received at collection points by:

1st ROUND: Sept. 25, 1993

2nd ROUND: Feb. 1, 1994

Evaluation: Proposals will be peer reviewed for the scientific merit of the researcher(s) and the quality and feasibility of the proposed research. Awards will be made based on the recommendations of disciplinary review panels. Special value will be placed on proposals that offer support of students and young researchers, research that takes place at or in conjunction with higher education institutions, and considerations of geographic distribution. Collaboration between small research teams from different institutions, including use of shared instrumentation, is encouraged.

Libraries and Journals

Early in 1993, ISF contacted scientific libraries in the FSU and Baltic states to determine their journal needs. Based on this study, ISF has compiled a list of several hundred journal titles that are most needed by these libraries. ISF is now soliciting contributions from the publishers of American scientific journals. While journal publishers are typically responsible for shipping costs to a negotiated point in the U.S., ISF arranges the shipping of journals to the FSU and Baltic states and subsequent internal distribution. In addition, ISF plans to invest a substantial portion of its library budget in hardware, software, training, and user fees that will enable FSU and Baltic libraries to access electronic data repositories. ISF has installed equipment in Moscow to support a 64-Kbps satellite link providing access to the Internet, and has agreed to fund database searching through STN International, a collection of 150 scientific and technical databases accessible through the Internet.

Telecommunications

There are four main goals of this program: 1) to help establish international connections accessible to all research and academic networks in the FSU and Baltic states; 2) to promote growth of domestic network infrastructures and information interchange; 3) to advise and assist on coordinating management of research and academic networking and network operator training; and 4) to disseminate end-user training at educational and research institutions in the FSU and Baltic states. ISF teams continue to visit networking organizations in the FSU and Baltic states to discuss these issues. ISF welcomes detailed project proposals which can contribute directly to the development of the FSU and Baltic scientific and academic networking community. Organizations such as computer manufacturers and vendors, network equipment providers, technical training companies and academic publishers are encouraged to contact ISF to discuss joint projects involving provision of equipment and services to the FSU and Baltic states.

Soros Professorships

ISF committees will nominate candidates for Soros Professorships. Soros Professors will receive a substantial stipend for a period of 5 years, and financial support for supplies and equipment. They will be expected to continue teaching and research at their educational institutions. It is anticipated that more than 100 of these awards will be made.

Grants for Equipment

ISF will invite those FSU and Baltic institutions (laboratories, institutes, and higher educational institutions) with a high concentration of grantees in the Emergency Grants Program to submit a budget for up to $5,000 worth of equipment and telecommunication support. If the budget is approved, ISF will arrange purchasing and shipping of equipment.

Please contact the International Science Foundation at the phone, fax, or e-mail numbers above if you would like additional information regarding any of our programs. Thank you for your interest.