Brasillinois Initiative Research Grants

Brasillinois Initiative Research Grants is sponsored by University of Illinois System. This opportunity supports mission-aligned projects and measurable outcomes.

Call for Proposals FAPESP and University of Illinois 2026 Collaborative Calls for Proposals Collaborative Calls for Proposals Call for Proposals FAPESP and University of Illinois 2026 Page updated on 03/11/2026 - Published on 03/10/2026 Launch of Call: March 11, 2026 Closing date for submission of proposals: May 07, 2026 Announcement of results: Starting August 2026 Start of projects: Starting September 2026 Duration of projects: 3 years Modality at FAPESP: Regular Research Grant Submission: FAPESP: SAGe system ( fapesp.

br/sage ); University of Illinois: OVCR Special Programs System Contact at the University of Illinois: sandora3@uillinois. edu 1. 1.

The São Paulo Research Foundation (FAPESP) and the University of Illinois are pleased to launch this new Call for joint research projects. The aim is to promote and strengthen collaboration between researchers affiliated with Higher Education and Research Institutions in state of São Paulo, Brazil, and researchers from the University of Illinois.

This is in collaboration with Brasillinois, an initiative that builds on the unique potential of the University of Illinois System to create a new model for collaboration between U.S. higher education and the Global South.

The initiative leverages the already comprehensive hub of research collaboration to build a research and mobility network that includes other Illinois institutions, partners among the Great Lakes Consortium, and other institutional partners in North America. Brasillinois draws on faculty expertise and programs across the University of Illinois System to pursue collaborative research and mobility initiatives. 2.

1. FAPESP and the University of Illinois wish to support the development of new research collaborations. Projects are expected to focus on contemporary research topics deploying leading-edge technologies in cancer research.

3. 1. Under this Call, a single proposal is expected to be selected for funding.

Additional proposals may be supported depending on budget availability. 3. 2.

FAPESP will fund the participation of researchers based in the State of São Paulo under the Regular Research Grant modality, subject to its eligibility criteria, rules, and guidelines, with a maximum funding for this call of BRL 600,000 (up to BRL 200,000 per year), excluding Research Overheads (Fringe Benefits and Direct Research Infrastructure Cost) and Institutional Research Overhead. 3. 3.

The University of Illinois System will fund the participation of researchers based in the United States under its applicable research funding mechanisms, subject to its eligibility criteria, rules, and guidelines, with a maximum funding for this call of USD 100,000.

Funding awarded to researchers affiliated with the University of Illinois System will be administered in accordance with University of Illinois System policies and procedures. 3. 4.

The duration of the projects should be up to 36 months. Under exceptional circumstances, a no-cost extension of up to 6 (six) additional months may be granted, subject to justification and approval by both FAPESP and the University of Illinois. 3.

5. The projects must have equal durations on both sides, with at least one planned visit from each partner to the other. 4.

1. Each proposal must include one Principal Investigator (PI) from the state of São Paulo and one Principal Investigator (PI) from the University of Illinois, who unite strengths to execute a joint research project. 4.

2. Applicants are expected to propose a coherent research proposal, clearly showing added value for both partners, and the complementarity of both teams, stimulating a balanced partnership. The proposals must aim to respect the principle of reciprocity with regards to academic qualifications of those who will take part in the projects and exchange activities.

4. 3. Eligibility under this Call is limited to early- to mid-career faculty members, defined as researchers who have held a formal employment position at Higher Education and Research Institution for less than ten (10) years and who obtained their PhD degree within the past fifteen (15) years.

Periods of leave of absence on the part of the applicant due to maternity/paternity leave, disability, temporary disabilities or intensive care for ill, elderly or disabled people will be considered by FAPESP in the analysis of the curricular summary, under the terms of PR Ordinance no. 171/2024 , as amended by PR Ordinance No. 207/2025. 4. 4.

Applicants who have previously received support through the FAPESP–Illinois partnership are not eligible to apply to this call. 4. 5.

The following eligibility criteria apply: i. Proposals must be written in English and should not exceed 25 pages, excluding annexes; ii. Proposals must have the same duration on both sides, i.e. 36 months (three years); iii.

Each PI is allowed to submit only one proposal , submissions of more than one proposal by the same PI will be subject to rejection. iv. Only joint applications that have at least one researcher from a Higher Education and Research Institutions in the state of São Paulo, Brazil, and one researcher from the University of Illinois will be evaluated.

i. The PI eligible for FAPESP’s funding under the scope of this Call must be of a Higher Education and Research Institutions in the state of São Paulo and must meet the FAPESP eligibility requirements for the Regular Research Grant ; ii. Applicants will be subject to FAPESP’s rules on concomitant funding applicable to the selected funding modality.

In addition, the PI may not submit or hold another project with the same research theme. Any justification for holding concurrent grants must be included in the “Observations/Manifestations” tab of the proposal in SAGe, taking into account the PI’s workload already committed to other projects (with a maximum aggregate limit of 40 hours per week). 4.

7. University of Illinois: i. Eligibility: The PI should be full-time faculty or post-doctoral researcher at University of Illinois Systems with a contract of employment for the full length of the proposed project; ii.

Funding: According to item 3 above, expecting balanced efforts from both sides. 5. 1.

Researchers should ensure that all expenses are calculated and covered in line with the rules and regulations in force from FAPESP and the University of Illinois. 5. 2.

Funding requirements for FAPESP’s funding under the scope of this Call must follow the rules of Regular Research Grant . 5. 3.

Funding requirements for support provided by the University of Illinois System under the scope of this Call must comply with the applicable University of Illinois System rules, policies, and guidelines governing the use of research funds. 6. 1.

The same proposal should be submitted both to FAPESP and the University of Illinois. Proposals should be written in English and must contain a clear description of the planned collaboration (distribution of work and methods of implementation) and the added value to be expected from the collaboration. a.

FAPESP: Apart from the research project and the budget summary, the PI from the state of São Paulo must include, in the submission, all documents requested in the SAGe system. b. University of Illinois: The PI from the University of Illinois must submit the research project, the budget summary, all of the documents submitted in the SAGe system including SAGe research submission form.

7. 1. Proposals must be received by both FAPESP and the University of Illinois.

Proposals which have not been submitted in both countries will not be considered for review and will not be considered for funding. Both FAPESP and the University of Illinois will not be held responsible for incomplete registrations due to IT technical problems, communication failures, communication line congestion, or other factors hindering data transfer.

Conditional, late, or submissions via postal mail, fax, or email will not be accepted. It will not be possible to make registrations after the deadline specified in the Call for Proposals. 7.

2. Proposals must be submitted to FAPESP by the PI from the state of São Paulo and to the University of Illinois by the PI from the USA. By submitting the proposal, the proponents agree to the rules and conditions established in this Call for Proposals and in the applicable legislation, and cannot claim ignorance or disagreement.

i. The PI from the state of São Paulo can submit only one proposal in this Call. iii.

It is necessary that the PI from the University of Illinois is registered in the SAGe system and confirm their participation in the proposal (please see the Annex 1 at the end of the Call for more information). It is strongly recommended to complete and submit the proposal well in advance. iv.

FAPESP's communication channels are available for assistance between 9:00 a. m. and 4:00 p.

m. , Monday to Friday. v.

The Principal Investigator is solely responsible for the correct and timely submission of all required documents. Proposals that do not meet this requirement by the established deadline will be returned. b.

Submission to the University of Illinois i. The PI from Illinois can submit only one proposal in this Call. ii.

The proposal must be submitted through the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign Special Programs proposal submission platform. For information on accessing the platform, see the information section on the Illinois/FAPESP call at: https://www. uillinois.

edu/about/international_partnerships/brasillinois . iii. For questions about submissions, contact Angelina Sandora to sandora3@uillinois.

edu . 8. Analysis and selection 8.

1. Proposals that do not comply with the terms of this Call will not qualify for analysis. 8.

2. Each Party will select the proposals according to its own procedures and only the proposals selected by both Parties will be funded. A joint committee will finalize the selection process.

8. 3.

Beyond regular review procedures by each Party, the evaluation criteria include: • Scientific quality, feasibility and innovativeness of the research plan; • Competence and expertise of the applicants from both countries; • Added value generated by US-Brazilian research collaboration; • A clear description of the responsibilities that will be carried out by research partners; • The potential for outcomes such as joint publications, conference presentations, new coursework, acquiring external funding in the future and the expansion of collaborations among researchers from the partner institutions.

8. 4. Considering the final results announced under this Call for Proposals, FAPESP and the University of Illinois will not accept reconsideration requests.

8. 5. Applicants who submit proposals both to this Call and to another International Call under the same funding modality (excluding mobility calls) declare that they are aware that only one proposal may be awarded.

Accordingly, if the result of one Call is published first and the proposal is approved, the evaluation of the other proposal will be automatically canceled. 9. 1.

To execute the research project, an agreement must be established between the partners, covering at least the following information: i. where and for how long the data generated during the project will be stored, how it will be protected, and who will have access to it; ii.

indication of the repositories where the data generated will be stored, including both those generated exclusively by Brazilian partners and those generated exclusively by foreign partners, with cross-references in both cases; iii. the rules that will apply to the co-authorship of publications resulting from the collaborative research project; iv.

intellectual property issues: if the project results or the final report itself have commercial value or may lead to the development of a product or method involving the establishment of a patent, the exchange of information and the ownership of intellectual property rights will be governed by Brazilian Law No. 9,279 of May 14, 1996, Decree No. 9,283 of February 7, 2018, and FAPESP's Intellectual Property Policy.

In the case of partnerships with foreign entities or institutions, the respective country's laws regarding the matter should also be observed. 9. 2.

The presentation of this document is not mandatory for signing the Grant Contract by the Brazilian PI; however, FAPESP can request its presentation at any time. Foreign researchers interested in finding partners in the state of São Paulo can use the Virtual Library of FAPESP .

It is possible to search for information regarding Grants and Scholarships awarded by FAPESP, including abstracts, as well as the names of participating researchers and their institutions. All questions related to this Call for Proposals must be directed to: FAPESP: Luana Silva Soares / chamada-brasillinois@fapesp. br University of Illinois: Angelina Sandora / sandora3@uillinois.

edu Annex 1 – Specific instructions on the use of SAGe Please bear in mind that: 1. It is necessary that the PI from the state of São Paulo and from the University of Illinois are registered in the SAGe system and confirm their participation in the proposal. • Researchers who do not have a SAGe registration must initially do so by accessing the SAGe page at fapesp.

br/sage , clicking “No registration? ” and filling in the requested data. It is not enough to just register as a user.

After accessing the system it is necessary to complete the mandatory registration data, marked with “*”. • Researchers already registered must login to SAGe with their usual identification and password to access the system. 2.

When submitting the proposal, pay attention to the mandatory completion of all items marked with “*”. It is necessary to submit the proposal at the end. A saved proposal does not mean that it is a submitted proposal.

3. In case of doubts, on the SAGe home page there is a link to the Manuals that can be used and, on the Manuals page, seek clarifications in the list FAPESP Investigators Guides. The system also provides an English version with manuals for user registration and confirmation of participation in proposals.

4. The PI from the University of Illinois must be included in the team and must later confirm its participation through the option “Proposals in which I participate”, in the “Proposals” item in the SAGe main menu. IMPORTANT: It is strongly recommended to complete and submit the proposal in the system well in advance and that the researcher periodically checks for pending issues using the "Validar" option in SAGe.

This can be done repeatedly as the proposal is constructed, allowing all necessary arrangements for submission to be made on time. When selecting the “Validar” option, the SAGe system will present the pending issues that impede the submission of the proposal considering the items that were inserted.

In case of doubts about the use of SAGe, in addition to the Manuals, FAPESP also provides assistance through the Converse with FAPESP service at fapesp. br/converse . URL: https://fapesp.

br/18060/call-for-proposals-fapesp-and-university-of-illinois-2026 Page updated on 03/11/2026 - Published on 03/10/2026