Risk-taking, structuring and dedicated fund-raising

Major scientific advances involve a certain amount of risk-taking. By supporting cutting-edge research integrated into its environment through calls for projects, the A*Midex Foundation contributes to the emergence of innovative science, capable of responding to the societal challenges of today and tomorrow.

The "White Research" call for projects

L'White Research" call for projectscall for projects, formerly known asEmergence and Innovation"and launched 4 times, encourages innovative approaches aimed at giving impetus to ambitious and innovative emerging or exploratory scientific projects.

The objectives of this call for projects are to

• To select and fund emerging, innovative research projects that break with "conventional" research itineraries.
• Encourage scientific daring and the resolution of new and original questions
• Encourage the development of emerging or exploratory themes.

Videos of winning projects from the "Experimenting with the future" collection

The "Sustainable development in training" call for projects

The aim of the call for projects is to raise awareness among students, the players of tomorrow, so that they integrate the challenges of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) defined by the United Nations.
With an overall budget of €1 million, the call invites Aix-Marseille University players to consider these issues through an interdisciplinary, multi-stakeholder approach, encouraging a cross-fertilization of viewpoints and a blend of cultures.

Supporting promising projects

A*Midex plays an active role in fostering a culture of excellence throughout the Aix-Marseille community, by promoting the conditions and mobilizing the capacity to respond to ambitious and varied calls for projects.

The "Pépinière d'excellence" call for projects

The "Pépinière d'excellence" call for projects, launched 3 times, is designed to encourage excellent research, both disciplinary and interdisciplinary, on the Aix-Marseille site. The aim is to boost the ability of teams to respond to national and international calls for projects.

The overall budget dedicated to this call for projects over the period 2021-2024 is €900k, including co-financing from AP-HM to the tune of €150k.

The objectives of this call for projects are:

• Encourage the acculturation to scientific project management of the site's first-time applicants and university hospital staff, hospital practitioners and clinicians, attached to a research unit on the Aix-Marseille site.
• Provide initial "seed" support for new research initiatives
• Create links and collaborations within Aix-Marseille's scientific teams to encourage the creation of project teams.

Videos of winning projects in the "Expérimenter l'avenir" collection

Quality management for the entire site

A*Midex makes every effort to implement a rigorous quality policy. To this end, the foundation is at the heart of a dense network of contacts for sharing knowledge and expertise. It has also introduced a rigorous management and assessment methodology to help it grow in competence and become a model of best practice.

Building a network to share expertise

An interface with international policies
A*Midex coordinates concerted responses and actions by the Aix-Marseille site as part of the UDICE network - an association of French research universities - to respond specifically to the Priority Research Programs launched as part of the Plan de relance France 2030 (Hydrogen, Quantum, etc.), as well as with structuring platforms such as AGIR (Réseau Français des Instituts d'Études Avancées) or ATHÉNA, which work to structure and internationalize the humanities and social sciences.

Inter-Idex experience sharing
The contacts initiated between IdEx and I-Site are regular, in order to maintain a dynamic of sharing and exchanging best practices. This sharing of experience takes a number of forms: cross-appraisals for calls for projects, joint presentations at conferences and colloquia, and within the UDICE network.

Close links with the Aix-Marseille University community through the France 2030 projects
Leading and coordinating the France 2030 projects enables us to strengthen our partnerships with the research organizations and educational establishments of the A*Midex consortium at every stage, helping to structure the ecosystem. From application to project evaluation, A*Midex teams work in constant collaboration.

A quality approach to guarantee process reliability

Since 2019, A*Midex has been committed to a quality approach aimed at building and implementing a quality management system (QMS) with a view to ISO 9001 certification, which will cover the call for projects and calls for applications process, as well as the management and support processes.

France 2030 projects in line with the objectives of the field of action

Cité de l'Innovation et des Savoirs Aix-Marseille (CISAM)

• CISAM+: the CISAM+ project is a continuation of the CISAM, created over two years ago and partly financed by A*Midex, with the aim of stimulating innovation in the region by bringing together research laboratories and the socio-economic world. As part of the project, 7 new thematic antennas are being created on AMU and CNRS campuses, to amplify CISAM's actions as close as possible to academic, socio-economic and cultural players. The CISAM+ project is structured around 3 programs: Innovation training, Innovation support & Open innovation. These programs focus on three main themes: technologies for health, cultural and creative industries, and sustainable development.