Newsletter 14/2021: Faculty of Science

Science and Research

Rector’s Honorary Mention to the authors of professional books 2021
The Rector of UP will award the authors of selected professional books in the natural, medical and humanities fields, as well as in the arts and social sciences. A proposal for honorary mention can be submitted by any employee of the university, including the author. The professional book must formally meet the criteria of the result “B” according to the valid Methodology for Evaluating Research Organizations and R&D&I Purpose-tied Aid Programmes (methodology 17+). To be included in the competition, supply the book in printed form and the accompanying document in electronic form to Bc. Barbora Krudencová, barbora.krudencova@upol.cz at the Department of Science and Research until Thursday, September 30. Popular scientific publications, learning texts and textbooks will not be included in the competition. Detailed information on submitting proposals is available here (website in Czech).

GA ČR – call LA grants with USA
Czech Science Foundation (GA ČR) has announced a call for projects based on the Lead Agency evaluation principle, which is expected to begin in 2022. The call concerns projects in which the GA ČR acts as a partner organization in a new cooperation with the US National Science Foundation (NSF). The call is continuous. The Czech part of the project proposal has to be delivered to the GA ČR within 7 days from the submission of the project proposal. Potential applicants should contact Miriam Delongová (miriam.delongova@upol.cz) from the Department of Project Support well in advance (at least 7 days before the planned sending of the project proposal to the GA ČR). The text of the call and the tender documentation can be found on the provider's website (in Czech).

The requirement, which is in addition to the rules for submitting LA project proposals, is in Part C1 a one-page cover sheet containing the name of the project, the name of the proposer (or co-proposer) and other team members, an extended abstract in English. Contact person: Miriam Delongová (miriam.delongova@upol.cz).

Ministry of the Environment (MŽP) – the EU’s LIFE Programme
The Ministry of the Environment (MŽP) has announced a call for applications for support for the preparation and co-financing of standard action projects and coordination and support actions, submitted to the regular calls of the LIFE Programme in 2021.

The general objective of the LIFE Programme is to contribute to the transition to a sustainable, circular, energy-efficient economy based on renewable energy, to protect, restore and improve the quality of the environment, including air, water and soil, and to halt and reverse the loss of biodiversity and address the degradation of ecosystems, thus contributing to sustainable development. Further information in Czech: and on the EU website.

How to write a successful project (in Czech)
The EU call is open this year from July to November (the date may change during the year). If you have any questions, please contact Mgr. Silvia Šavrňáková (silvie.savrnakova@upol.cz).

Grant calls – news
You can find new challenges of national and multinational providers in an updated form at https://www.prf.upol.cz/zamestnanci/projekty/ (in Czech). The Department of Project Support (DPS) regularly publishes news on grant calls and provides support in submitting project proposals. Do not hesitate to contact us.

Selected calls:

Ministry of the Environment – the EU’s LIFE Programme (deadline at the end of November 2021)
Visegrad grants (deadline October 1, 2021)
Call INTERREG V-A SK-CZ/2021/13 (2014-2020) – preservation, protection, support and development of natural and cultural heritage (deadline October 15, 2021)
Interreg V-A ČR-PL - 4. accepting applications for PO2 – Development of the potential of natural and cultural resources to support employment (deadline October 1, 2021)

Registration in the online database of opponents and members of international juries within the AURORA alliance
Within the AURORA alliance, the opportunity was created to participate in the evaluation and implementation of doctoral study programmes at cooperating universities. It is an online database of academics from AURORA universities who would be willing to supervise or review dissertations and become members of an international external jury. The joint committee for potential reviewers of dissertations is an important step in establishing cooperation in the field of science and research between our institutions.

The registration itself does not mean an obligation, as the doctoral procedure must always be preceded by an individual agreement. On the other hand, the number of registrations will increase the likelihood that we will gradually be able to connect the same key areas of R&D and develop cooperation across universities in AURORA. The involvement of colleagues from UP will contribute not only to the internalization of doctoral studies, but also to the improvement of the activities of our supervisors and subject area boards. Online registration is possible at the following web link.

Call for proposals for a cooperation plan with the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research for 2022
At the request of the Directorate of the Joint Institute for Nuclear Research (JINR), the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS) announces a call for proposals to the Cooperation Plan for 2022. The plan concerns:

Short-term trips of Czech employees to the JINR, for which travel costs are reimbursed by the Czech side (usually by the sending workplace or within the project of the MEYS INTER-EXCELLENCE programme) and the accommodation costs are covered by the JINR. If you are interested in a short stay, send the completed form 2 together with a cover letter explaining the purpose of the short stay.
Short-term arrivals of experts from the JINR to Czech research organizations, where travel and accommodation costs are covered by the JINR (in some cases, accommodation costs can also be reimbursed within the project of the MEYS INTER-EXCELLENCE programme). If you are interested in accepting an JINR expert at your research facility, it is necessary to fill in form 3.
Long-term stays in the JINR (in the length of 3 months or more), when the posted expert is employed on an employment contract in the JINR. If you are interested in a long-term stay, send the completed OK form together with the personal questionnaire in English or Russian and follow the Principles for Posting Workers from the Czech Republic.

Requests for inclusion in the Cooperation Plan should be sent in electronic form to RNDr. Marek Vyšinka, Ph.D., Head of the department for research and development of the MEYS, e-mail: marek.vysinka@msmt.cz and at the same time to the secretariate of the Committee for Cooperation of the Czech Republic with the JINR, e-mail: dubna@ujf.cas.cz, no later than by September 30, 2021.

International and non-university affairs

Support for international cooperation development
As a part of the Institutional Plan, the Faculty of Science also received a contribution to the development of international cooperation. These resources can be used for travel costs of faculty staff related to cooperation development, short-term visits of foreign experts at FS or co-financing of student mobilities abroad. However, no wage or personal expenses can be paid from these resources. If you are planning a trip or a visit that meets the above definition, you can pre-apply for (partial) financial support by email to Waleria Slowiková (waleria.slowikova@upol.cz). In the application state the names of the participants, the foreign institution, the requested amount of support (including the main source of funding and the total expected cost) and the purpose of the visit.

The decision on granting the support will be made with regard to the degree of completion of the cooperation and with an effort to evenly cover all the fields. Preference will be given to activities co-financed by the departments.

Hosting of American academics
Fulbright Czech Republic renews the Fulbright Specialist programme for short-term 2-6 week stays of American experts. Applications for 2022 can be submitted until September 30, 2021. All information, including program descriptions, online applications and instructions, is available at https://bit.ly/Specialist2022.

Fulbright-NARA
We would also like to inform you about the new Fulbright-NARA scholarship in fields related to the protection and preservation of cultural heritage, interdisciplinary heritage science, which represents a complex of scientific disciplines from humanities to highly specialized technical fields. The grant is awarded for a stay at the Heritage Science Research and Testing Lab in College Park, Maryland. The programme for 2022/23 ends on October 15, 2021. Details of the program content, disciplines, and application are available at https://bit.ly/Fulbright-NARA.

Aurora – student and employees exchange
Palacký University’s (UP) membership in the Aurora alliance opens up new opportunities for cooperation. One of the areas is the exchange of students and employees within the Erasmus+ programme. Currently, UP has Erasmus agreements with only two of the eight members of the alliance (the University of East Anglia and the Universita degli studi di Napoli Federico II). Please, check the websites of the partner institutions (https://aurora.upol.cz/alliance-members/#1) and if you are interested in the possibility of cooperation with any of them, please contact Ms. Yvona Vyhnánková from the UP International Relations Office (yvona.vyhnankova@upol.cz).

Webinar for those interested in scholarships to the USA
On Friday, September 17, 2021, at 10:30 a.m., the Fulbright Commission is hosting a webinar for scholarship applicants to the United States. The deadlines of November 1, 2021 are for stays in the academic year 2022/23. The programs are for applicants who are already in a doctoral program and for those who already have a PhD.

For interested students with a bachelor's degree, the webinar will be on October 13 at 10:30 a.m. You can register for it via the form, which is in the link below to our website. Here you will find information about webinars and an application form (both in Czech).

Information about the programmes (in Czech):

https://www.fulbright.cz/stipendia/stipendium-pro-vedce-a-prednasejici/
https://www.fulbright.cz/stipendia/fulbright-masarykovo-stipendium/
https://www.fulbright.cz/stipendia/stipendium-pro-postgradualni-studium/

COIL Academy online course
Would you like to support your international cooperation with foreign colleagues? Would you like to make your workplace and study programmes more visible for foreign students? Are you interested in innovative teaching methods in international education? Take part in the special autumn COIL Academy online course for employees. The courses take place on October 12, October 26, November 9, November 23, December 7, December 14 and are provided by prominent foreign COIL experts from The Hague University of Applied Science: Dr. Jose Beelen a Dr. Reinout Klammer. More information about the course can be found in the attachment and on the website of the Institute for Excellence in Internationalisation: https://iei.upol.cz/trainings/.

Project co-financing from European Space Agency
The European Space Agency (ESA) offers to co-fund research projects by soliciting novel research ideas into the ESA and space innovation pipeline via the Open Space Innovation Platform and especially the open Discovery channel.

More information can be found in the attachment, and on this website there is the list of activities available that have been selected in the past year.

Academic Senate

The meeting of the Academic Senate FS UP will take place on September 15, 2021. Detailed information and materials for the senate are published on the website https://www.prf.upol.cz/o-fakulte/fakultni-organy/akademicky-senat/ (in Czech).

Study affairs

Dean’s Award for the Best Teacher
The Dean of the Faculty of Science has announced the Dean’s Award for the Best Teacher. Students of third and higher years of Bachelor study and students of the Master study can participate by choosing the best teachers by vote. Each student can nominate up to three teachers, who will be assigned votes with a weight of 1,0, 0,7 and 0,5, respectively. In order to vote, it is required login to the Portal, the vote itself is anonymous. Voting takes place on the website until September 30, 2021. The best teacher for each of the five fields (mathematics and computer science, physics, chemistry, biology and ecology, earth sciences) will be awarded.

Current measures – Covid 19
Due to the extraordinary measure of the Ministry of Health of the Czech Republic, it is mandatory to wear a respirator or similar facial protection, meeting FFP2 or KN 95 standards (at least 94 % efficiency) throughout the indoor premises of the university (faculties, dormitories, canteens) from July 31, 2021 until further notice. More information here.

Plans of study for academic year 2021/2022
The lists of courses (plans of study) for the academic year 2021/2022 can be found on the faculty websites.

Online confirmation of study
You can print your confirmation of study online directly from your Portal.

Registration of courses in STAG
It is necessary to register for courses in STAG for the academic year 2021/2022 by September 27, 2021.

Individual study plan of the doctoral students in their first year
Students in the first year of the doctoral study programmes have to submit their individual study plan by September 30, 2021 to their Student Affairs Officer. The plan has to be signed by the student, his/her supervisor and the chairman of the Subject-area Board.

English language courses for employees and PhD students
The Department of Foreign Languages at the Faculty of Science, Palacký University offers English courses for the employees and PhD students of the Faculty of Science in the winter semester 2021/22. The complete list of courses is available on our websites kcj.upol.cz/en/.

Organization and maintenance

Parking spaces
All employees can use the parking lot between the main building of the Faculty of Science and the SLO building (Joint Laboratory of Optics), which has a capacity of 27 parking spaces. In all parking lots around the faculty buildings, it is necessary to mark the vehicle with a parking card, which is issued by the faculty’s Building Management – Technical Department Envelopa (email). If the vehicle is not marked with a parking card, a fine may be imposed by the Olomouc Municipal Police. In underground garages, it is prohibited to park outside the reserved parking spaces. In case of any violation, access to the underground garages may be revoked.

Miscellaneous

Academic harvest festival
The first academic harvest festival, organized by the Department of Chemical Biology, will take place on Thursday, September 16, 2021 from 2:30 p.m. on the premises of the Faculty of Science of the Palacký University in Olomouc-Holice. The celebrations of the end of this year's harvest will include the ceremonial handing over of the harvest wreath, the presentation of the results of the work of scientists from the Department of Chemical Biology in the field of breeding and protection of agricultural crops and demonstrations of unique agricultural technology. There will be a presentation of a new drone with a laser scanner, which helps scientists assess the growth of field crops from this year. Transportation to the venue is provided for those interested (at 2:15 p.m. departure from the Rector's Office building, Křížkovského 8). More information can be found here.

Health Day at UP
On Thursday, September 16, the Palacký University organizes in the premises of UP Press, Biskupské nám. 1 the Health Day for UP employees. When entering the UP Press premises, you are obliged to put on a respirator and disinfect your hands.

Examinations and activities with registration:

Examinations and activities without registration:

Respiratory rehabilitation after COVID-19
Correct Nordic Walking technique
Healthy scooter riding - correct riding technique
Prevention of musculoskeletal pain during sedentary work
Practical examples of first aid (cardiopulmonary resuscitation)
Blood pressure measurement
Sustainable University - presentation

Researchers‘ Night
On the last September Friday (September 24, 2021), the Researchers’ Night with a focus on the topic of “time” will take place in dozens of Czech cities. A varied program for children and adults has also been prepared by the Faculty of Science. You can find it on this website (in Czech).

Faculty of Science

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