How do successful European research projects come to life? And what does it take to turn individual ideas into strong international collaborations? At the end of April, Ilmenau became a hub for discussing exactly these questions for five days.
As part of an Erasmus+ Blended Intensive Programme (BIP), 15 research managers from partner universities within the SUNRISE Alliance came together at TU Ilmenau to exchange insights on key aspects of European research funding and to develop new approaches to collaboration.
The discussions focused on practical challenges from everyday research support: How can proposals for Horizon Europe be made more successful? What factors determine whether complex collaborative projects get funded? And how can consortia be structured to turn promising ideas into sustainable international partnerships?
Participants also explored how digital tools—especially artificial intelligence—are already transforming research management. Using concrete examples, they reflected on how processes can become more efficient and what new opportunities this creates for project development.
Another key topic was the strategic development of the SUNRISE Alliance. The group worked on ideas to strengthen collaboration in future proposals, enhance networking in doctoral training, and make better shared use of research infrastructures.
The collaboration is already delivering tangible results: in the first year of the alliance, 15 joint proposals were submitted, four of which have already been approved. At the same time, participants agreed that the potential for further joint projects is significantly higher.
The meeting in Ilmenau marks an important step toward closer strategic alignment in research support within the SUNRISE Alliance. The goal is to increase the number of joint projects and to strengthen European research collaboration in the long term.
Thomas Mirow from the EU Office at TU Ilmenau’s Research Service and Technology Transfer unit, who hosted the event, summarized:
This week has shown that real progress in European research funding is made when we work together across institutional boundaries. Researchers have always done this – SUNRISE now provides the framework we need to connect research advisory & support structures as well, enabling us to be more successful together in strategic collaboration.