1. UNITED KINGDOM AND MOSAiC: OPPORTUNITIES, FUNDING AND NEXT STEPS
Monday 17 July 2017, Aurora Innovation Centre, Cambridge
@Arctic_Office

2. United Kingdom’s commitments to MOSAiC
The United Kingdom is a full and official partner in the MOSAiC expedition
Formal agreement signed between Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and AWI in March 2017.
The agreement provides for:
Access to data from the expedition, on an equal basis;
Membership of the expedition Steering Committee; and
Access for UK-based researchers to the RV Polarstern during the Arctic drift, October 2019 – October 2020
In return for: a financial commitment from the United Kingdom to support the delivery of the expedition: £500,000.
The mutual expectation is that this fund will be available to support – in broadly equal proportion – berths and associated costs (‘bench fees’, including accommodation, subsistence, internal transfers to the vessel etc) for UK-based researchers.

3. Moving from the commitment to activity
The process for allocating the ‘berth-fee’ funds is still to be finalised – today’s meeting is an important step, to ensure that the process reflects the wishes of the community.
It will be done in line with established NERC practice and in a light-touch, but fully accountable way.
It will support the projects that offer the best scientific value; which fit closely with the MOSAiC logistical and science programmes; and which coordinate with additional funding.
We recognise that securing the berth-fee funds is a significant step in providing access to UK-based researchers – and one that might not otherwise be available - but that in itself this funding does not guarantee the most effective UK contribution to the MOSAiC expedition.
The NERC Arctic Office and NERC Polar Team in Swindon are committed to exploring other opportunities to secure the ‘science’ funding elements.

4. Options: 1) NERC Joint Strategic Response
NERC Executive Funding Group will consider a draft proposal for Joint Strategic Response investment of up to £1.8m to support UK participation in MOSAiC.
The proposal is scaleable – from one two-month berth project (£300k) to six two-month berth projects, presuming proposals require no more than one two-month berth each.
Scope is broad – but option to focus if required?
Will require letter of support from MOSAiC
Proposal suggests using an Expert Panel assessment process.
If the proposal is successful, the suggested timeline could be:
September 2017 – announcement of opportunity
December 2017 – close
March 2018 – Expert Panel meets
April 2019 – projects commence
NERC Executive Funding Group meets 26 July.

5. Options: 2) Other options…
NERC Standard Grants – 18 July and then late January 2018 closing dates. Too soon and then too late…?
Separate research funding streams – i.e. Leverhulme?
University, research centre and other ‘internal’ institutional funds
NERC Changing Arctic Ocean Programme – International Call: MOSAiC is not specifically mentioned, but there is clearly scope and this could be an opportunity for the biological/biogeochemical communities to access funding? Call closes 14 September.
Other options…?

6. Options: 3) EU Commission Funding
To be announced this summer: Knowledge gaps: LC-CLA
Improving the understanding of key climate processes for reducing uncertainty in climate projections
Actions should aim at improving climate projections and constraining climate sensitivity estimates through better understanding of key processes, and associated feedbacks, affecting the climate–Earth system such as: cloud and aerosol processes and cloud-aerosol interactions, biochemical cycles and their evolution under a changing climate, ocean dynamics and circulation, dynamic interactions between atmosphere and ocean, and other relevant processes.
EU contribution: €6-8 million
Type of Action: Research and Innovation Action

7. Summary
The United Kingdom is a formally-committed partner in the MOSAiC expedition.
There is up to £500,000 to support UK-based researchers’ ‘berth fees’ during the Arctic Ocean drift.
We recognise that by itself, this will not necessarily be enough to get the best projects onto the vessel.
We are pursuing a dedicated Joint Strategic Response bid to provide the ‘science’ funding – the wrap-around money for equipment, salaries, laboratory analysis, international flights etc.
If successful, the working assumption is that success in the JSR round will connect to access to the ‘berth fees’ fund, to provide certainty and clarity.
If the JSR is not successful, there will be a need to quickly explore the other options.