Apply
Value
Researchers are eligible to apply for grants up to €50,000 [fifty thousand euro] to support their project.
The total funding will not exceed €50,000 (or equivalent for other currencies) and includes all costs, including indirect costs.
Grant scope and application criteria
Find For Rare research grants are designed to support original research projects that advance knowledge in the field of:
Fabry disease
Alpha-mannosidosis
Cystinosis
The following categories of research projects are eligible for funding:
- Projects aimed at improving understanding of the factors affecting diseases, from pathogenesis to progression
- Studies of patient tailored clinical management
Project proposals from global regions other than the Americas are eligible for submission.
All application documents are required to be in the English language.
Please note that the maximum duration of the project should not exceed 24 months.
To be eligible for funding, the applicant must:
- be a principal investigator, research scientist, or physician scientist at an organisation operating in the health or scientific research sector that meets the requirements of the current local legislation
- hold a professional degree (e.g., PhD, MD, PharmD)
- be responsible for the conduct of the study
- have permission from their organisation to apply for a grant
Individuals from organisations affiliated with the directors of Chiesi Global Rare Diseases/Chiesi Group as well as individuals who are spouses or family members, including relatives up to the second degree, of the directors of Chiesi Global Rare Diseases/Chiesi Group are ineligible to apply.
Research grants will be provided to organisations that are operating in the health or scientific research sector and are neither awarded nor paid out to individuals.
- Each organisation awarded with a research grant must be the actual beneficiary, i.e., the recipient and direct user of the grant
- Each organisation may submit more than one project proposal without any restrictions on the number of proposals per therapeutic area. However, each researcher can only submit one project proposal
The following projects will not be considered eligible for funding:
- Studies for which extensive data have already been published
- Studies that directly or indirectly aim to investigate the efficacy and safety of drugs, including pre-clinical and clinical (interventional and observational) studies
- Projects that have the same objectives/endpoints as investigator-sponsored studies already supported by Chiesi Group or Chiesi subsidiaries
Downloads
Download the brochure for a comprehensive overview of the Find For Rare Research Grant Initiative
Brochure
Application process
Applying for the Find For Rare research grant only takes a few steps:
2.
Prepare a curriculum vitae (CV) and cover letter
3.
Submit the application documents (application form, CV, and cover letter) to the Grant Office via email – FindForRare@ashfieldmedcomms.com
The CV (max. 2 pages) should comprehensively outline the applicant’s educational background, research experience, and publication record and have been updated within the last 6 months.
The cover letter (max. 1 page) should articulate the applicant’s motivation for seeking the grant and provide a concise overview of the proposed research topic and elucidate its significance.
Please note all submission documents are required to be in the English language.
Participation in this call for applications is free of charge.
Application timelines
Call for applications is now closed!
All applications must be submitted to the Grant Office by the application deadline, 31 December 2024.
Applications received after the deadline and/or submitted using procedures other than those described will not be taken into consideration.
Following submission of the project proposal, a confirmation of receipt (and completeness of the application) will be issued by the Grant Office.
Recipients of the research grant will be notified via email and their names and affiliations will be publicly announced. Date of the announcement is to be confirmed.
An award ceremony is planned and will take place in Italy. Chiesi will cover all travel and accommodation expenses for the grant recipients (researcher or delegate). Further details, such as timelines and event programme, are to follow. Please note that virtual attendance will be offered to grant recipient(s) who are unable to attend the award ceremony in person. Grant recipient(s) from the UK, Ireland, and Sweden can only participate in the award ceremony virtually
Application review
The Grant Office will gather research proposals and ensure they are complete and meet eligibility criteria.
All submitted research proposals will be evaluated by the Steering Committee, an independent scientific board of leading experts in the lysosomal storage disorders field, specialised in Fabry disease, alphamannosidosis, and cystinosis.
To ensure a fair, balanced, and independent scientific review and selection process, the research proposals will be evaluated by the Steering Committee according to defined assessment criteria:
Strength of the proposed
research project
- Scientific rigor of the study design • Comprehensiveness of the proposal
- Appropriateness of the technology utilised to attain the goals
Innovation and novelty
- Originality of the research topic
- Innovative design of the study methodology
- Potential for impactful future research
Relevance and impact
- Relevance to the therapeutic area
- Clinical and research significance of potential findings
- Potential to improve patient care
Potential for success
- Prospect of achieving proposed goals
- Timeliness for achieving proposed goals
- Relevance of the potential findings if goals are not fully achieved
- Clear explanation of budget allocation demonstrating effective resource deployment
Chiesi will not in any way influence the application, evaluation, nor grant selection process.
The payment of the grants by Chiesi Global Rare Diseases does not involve any commercial objectives and shall never be issued to induce or encourage the prescription, use, or purchase of Chiesi products.
To ensure the validity of the application, each organisation will be called to formally certify meeting the requirements of the research grant and its commitment, in case of obtaining the grant, to refrain from reinvesting or reusing the grant for profit generation for any reason. In the lack thereof, the evaluator reserves the right to reallocate the grant to the alternative applicants from the final ranking list who meet the stated requirements, even after the initial allocation of the grant.
Applicants assume full responsibility for ownership, content, and compliance with all relevant regulations relevant to their research projects. Any fraudulent documents or untruthful declarations shall constitute the grounds for disqualification from the Research Grant Initiative, even once the selection phase is complete. This includes potential disqualification from future payments and the application of the sanctions envisaged by applicable law.
Each organisation receiving the research grant shall maintain complete ownership of any inventions or rights generated by the research project, with Chiesi Farmaceutici S.p.A. having no entitlement to any interest, rights, or authority in them.
