Platform of funding programs for intersectoral research on aging - Second competition 2021-2022

1. CONTEXT

Since taking up his position in 2011, the Chief Scientist of Québec has encouraged the research community working for the well-being of an aging population to consider new research models and approaches involving all stakeholders in an effort to generate real benefits. The community’s reflections led to the creation of the Platform of Funding Programs for Intersectoral Research on Aging, which is intended to provide a better understanding of aging and to address the needs of “successful aging” using a holistic perspective that goes beyond the deterioration of health in the elderly and focuses more on the complex and multidimensional nature of aging. Research needs include not only health care, but also living and working environments, intergenerational aspects, new organizational and social dynamics, the search for new balances, the relationship with technology and the digital world, etc. There is also a need to include the users of the anticipated results—public policy makers and the government, industrial, entrepreneurial and community sectors—to achieve an integrated research model.

A first competition (link) was launched in the winter of 2019 under the Platform of Funding Programs for Intersectoral Research on Aging, and 11 research proposals were funded: 4 projects under the Audace component, 4 projects under the Living Lab component and 3 research infrastructures under the Cohort component (link: Announcement of awards). It goes without saying that the research proposals funded under the first competition could not meet all research needs on successful aging in an inclusive society, particularly when it comes to aging populations in the regions. Moreover, COVID-19 has highlighted the need to redouble research efforts in all sectors to protect the lives of the most vulnerable elderly, and to respond more adequately to the needs of all older adults, most of whom are autonomous. Given this context, the second Platform on Aging competition includes a Call for Solutions component consisting of grants for projects focusing on the search for solutions that could have quick, concrete benefits for user communities.

This second competition offered by the Fonds de recherche du Québec and supported by the Health and Social Services Ministry’s Secrétariat aux aînés is seeking to encourage intersectoral and collaborative research initiatives with a view to generating not only new knowledge, but also innovative and even transformative solutions to address the major challenge of population aging.

2. GUIDING PRINCIPLES OF THE PLATFORM

All applications submitted under this second competition of the Platform of Funding Programs for Intersectoral Research on Aging must adhere to three key principles.

• Address research themes related to one of the multiples dimensions of successful aging in Québec society

Research projects can address all aspects of aging with a view to promoting successful aging in Québec society. For example, research topics may deal with supporting family caregivers, institutionalization of the elderly, accompaniment and good support practices, the development of inclusive environments, housing for seniors and helping seniors stay in their homes, socialization and intergenerational interaction, the dynamics of successful aging in the regions, aging in the digital age and digital literacy, isolation and agism, etc.

• Focus on intersectorality

Convinced that an intersectoral approach will open up novel research perspectives, introduce groundbreaking conceptual frameworks, cast new light on the complex and multidimensional phenomenon of successful aging and provide innovative, sustainable and socially acceptable solutions, the FRQ invite researchers from all sectors to come together to address this major challenge facing Québec society through a joint, co-constructed, integrated approach based on intersectoral networking.

By “intersectoral networking”, the FRQ are referring to a research and collaboration approach which brings together researchers from disciplinary fields or research practices from at least two of the three major sectors covered by the FRQ (namely: health sciences, natural sciences and engineering, humanities and social sciences, arts and letters) to work on a research topic, problem, method or question in order to shed new light on common or shared research issues. From an intersectoral perspective, disciplines and sectors must firmly engage in a joint, co-created research approach whose mode of operation lies outside of the hierarchization of fields of knowledge and leads to mutual enrichment between sectors.

• Use a co-construction approach to conducting research

Experience has shown that if seniors do not feel involved in the research that concerns them, there is a high risk of failure. A “co-construction” approach, i.e. one in which the users of the anticipated results are involved in the research process, is therefore preferable. More broadly, partnership approaches are strongly encouraged. These may involve, where appropriate, in addition to the user community: public policy makers, government actors, the private and community sectors, industry and the business community. In short, stakeholder participation at each stage of the research process, from defining knowledge needs to the uptake of research results, is to be encouraged in the interest of respect and openness to a wide diversity of approaches, methodologies, cultures and knowledge.

3. RESEARCH NEEDS ON SUCCESSFUL AGING

Among priority themes and courses of action, the following research needs were highlighted at the 2012 Forum on aging and, more recently, during the brainstorming session held by the FRQ on October 11, 2017:

• Better understand the cohort of seniors aged 85 and older. This age group is not well known – being, in a way, the “first generation” of its kind – and is facing very specific vulnerability issues. It is up to researchers to shed light on how this category of seniors should be cared for, the nature of their needs. and the best practices for supporting them.
• View aging as a trajectory using a “life course” perspective. We all age differently depending on our genetic heritage, the socio-economic conditions that mark our lives, the place where we live (particularly rural vs urban), the generation we belong to, our gender, our cultural background, etc. Seen in this way, “successful aging” begins in childhood. An intersectoral research approach is therefore a promising avenue to address aging that runs counter to a common perception that reduces aging to the question of health deterioration in the elderly
• Preserve seniors’ individual and collective capacities on the short, medium and long terms. With the over-65 age group set to more than double in the near future, it is important to promote “successful” aging in Québec society by encouraging research aimed at optimizing all forms of autonomy, be it mobility, the ability to take care of their health, to continue living at home, to return to work, to access services, to maintain their financial skills, etc. As with other issues affecting Quebec society, diversity and immigration are factors that will need to be better integrated in research on successful aging.
• Aging in the digital age: Today’s seniors find themselves aging in a world in which information tools, technology and connected objects are assuming an ever-greater importance and offer, among other things, a means of monitoring health, maintaining mobility and adapting the home for greater functionality and safety. Aging well in the digital age calls for the acquisition of specific new skills in order to make use of digital technologies. It is necessary for research to apprehend the digital behaviours of seniors, which vary according to a range of factors including level of education, career path, physical health (vision, hearing, speech), cognitive health, degree of digital literacy, rural or urban place of residence, etc. Better still, research needs to find innovative, sustainable solutions that are socially adapted for and by seniors and the actors concerned.

4. OBJECTIVES

Through the Platform’s second competition, the FRQ aim to:

• Support the advancement of knowledge on issues related to aging from a comprehensive holistic perspective;
• Pay particular attention to the issues of successful aging in the regions;
• Encourage research proposals focusing on solutions that could have quick, concrete benefits for practice settings;
• Maximize collaboration within the scientific community from the sectors of the three FRQ (Nature and Technology, Health, Society and Culture) to meet research needs on successful aging while encouraging the participation of different stakeholders in the search for innovative, socially acceptable solutions;
• Encourage the sharing of knowledge and tools to better support partners through multiple actions or interventions.

5. TWO FUNDING COMPONENTS

For its second competition, the Platform of Funding Programs for Intersectoral Research on Aging is offering research grants under two distinct funding components: Living Lab and Call for Solutions.

5.1 Living Lab Component

The Living Lab component aims to act as an incubator that will foster the emergence of new intersectoral approaches addressing a target theme, in this case successful aging, with a focus on the development of innovative practices through the direct participation of stakeholders involved with aging: private, public and community organizations; government and municipal representatives; citizens; university researchers; etc. Designed as “an open innovation research method that promotes a co-creation process with end users under real-life conditions”^[1] , a Living Lab approach must:

• Lead to innovative, sustainable, socially acceptable solutions through experimentation in real-life contexts;
• Facilitate intersectoral collaboration between researchers and knowledge user communities such as public policy makers;
• Have an impact on the advancement of knowledge and the resolution of social, economic, cultural and technological problems;
• Foster the sharing of knowledge (data, processes, practices, etc.).

5.2 Call for Solutions Component

The Call for Solutions component is designed to support targeted research aimed at finding concrete answers to research questions with short-term benefits for user communities or, even more directly, for target groups. The goal is to encourage initiatives with an action research approach, i.e. that produce new knowledge while taking action and leading to actions, change and solutions, whether technological, organizational, social, health-related, or other, in response to the challenges of successful aging. Based on the need to understand, explain and identify evidence-based answers, a Call for Solutions project must:

• Demonstrate its relevance both to the advancement of knowledge and to the uptake community or users;
• Offer solutions that will improve practices, tools, processes, approaches, etc.;
• Have quick, concrete benefits for uptake communities or users.

5.3 Summary of the two funding components

*Indirect costs of research

6. COMPETITION TERMS AND CONDITIONS

This competition and its two funding components Living Lab and Call for Solutions are governed by the rules set out in the CGR regarding  the  eligibility  of  applications, eligible expenses, intellectual property, amounts allocated, funding periods, eligibility rules and FRQ research status definitions.

6.1 Eligibility of the applicant (principal investigator)

The applicant (principal investigator) must have one of the following research statuses as defined in the CGR:

(1) university researcher;

(2) clinical university researcher;

(3) college researcher.

He/she must also meet the general eligibility requirements set out in the CGR .

Applicants with research status 3 (college researcher) must have a master’s or a PhD.

Applicants with the status of retired researcher may assume the role of principal investigator (and therefore be responsible for the application), provided they can prove that they are still active in research (publications, grants, student supervision, etc.). A letter from the researcher’s home university must be provided with the application, indicating the following: 1) Prior to his/her retirement, the researcher was a regular professor; 2) For the term of the grant, the researcher will have access to the facilities and logistical support required to carry out research activities; 3) The researcher will continue to train/supervise students and young researchers, where applicable.

Applicants with the CGR research status of university researcher or clinical university researcher who receive a salary as a contracted professor (non tenure-track position) in a university recognized by the FRQ to manage funding must attach, in the “Other documents” section of the application form, a letter from their university certifying that they will retain this position throughout the duration of the grant period.

The eligibility requirements for all team members are presented for each component in Section 7.

In addition, the principal investigator of a project that was awarded a grant under the Living Lab component of the first competition cannot be the principal investigator (applicant) on an application submitted to the Living Lab component under this second competition.

6.2 Roles of team members

For both funding components, there is no limit to the number of members on a single team. The applicant (principal investigator) may be joined by co-directors and co-investigators, all of whom must be based in Québec. The composition of an applicant team must, however, meet the eligibility requirements for each funding component as described in Section 7 below.

Co-director (optional)

A person named as co-director of the project must:

1. Come from a sector covered by a Fonds de recherche du Québec (FRQNT, FRQS or FRQSC) that is different from that of the principal investigator;

and

2. Have one of the following research statuses as defined in the CGR, as is the case for the applicant (principal investigator):

(1) university researcher;

(2) clinical university researcher;

(3) college researcher.

A co-director with research status (3) (college researcher) must have a master’s or a PhD.

A project co-director shares the responsibility for the conduct of the proposed research equally with the principal investigator. If the application is successful, the co-director must 1) be identified with the principal investigator as co-leader of the research project, and 2) endorse the final report upon completion of the grant.

A team may include up to two co-directors. Each co-director must be from a sector covered by a different Fonds than that of the applicant (principal investigator).

Co-investigator

The team may include an unlimited number of co-investigators with one of the four research statuses defined in the CGR:

(1) university researcher

(2) clinical university researcher

(3) college researcher

(4) other research statuses that do not correspond to statuses (1), (2) or (3) mentioned above, namely:

1. researcher in a government institution recognized by the FRQ; link ;
2. government or private sector researcher;
3. practitioner;
4. artist;
5. individual participant.

A co-investigator with research status (3) (college researcher) must have a master’s or a PhD.

As is the case for the principal investigator, and for the purpose of validating their status, a co-director or co-investigator with the status of retired researcher or university researcher or clinical university researcher who receives a salary as a contracted professor (non tenure-track position) in a university recognized by the FRQ to manage funding must provide a letter from their university as described in Section 6.1. If a researcher’s status cannot be validated in the absence of documents required under the program rules, that researcher will be removed from the list of team members before the application is presented to the evaluation committee.

Teams may also enlist collaborators in accordance with the conditions set out in Section 7 for each component.

6.3 Participation in more than one submitted project

A researcher may submit only one application as principal investigator, across all components in this competition.

A principal investigator may also be co-director or co-investigator for up to 2 other applications, across all components in this competition.

A co-director or co-investigator may be a part of up to two applications, across all components in this competition.

7. TEAM ELIGIBILITY CONDITIONS FOR EACH FUNDING COMPONENT

8. EVALUATION CRITERIA AND EVALUATION PROCESS FOR EACH FUNDING COMPONENT

8.1 Evaluation criteria for the Living lab component

8.2 Evaluation criteria for the Call for Solutions component

8.3 Application evaluation process

As indicated in Section 4 of the CGR, the FRQ receive funding applications, check their eligibility and submit them for scientific evaluation by specially formed peer committees whose members are recognized for their skills, expertise and achievements in connection with the program objectives and the applications submitted.

The project evaluation process takes place in two phases for each component:

• Phase 1: Individual evaluation with respect to the research needs set out in Section 3 and the evaluation criteria for each component.
• Phase 2: Consensus evaluation by the plenary committee and ranking of applications. The committee determines which applications it recommends for funding.

9. APPLICATION PROCESS

9.1 Electronic application form

Before submitting a funding application, the applicant and all team members (co-directors and/or co-investigators) must create a user account on FRQnet using this link if this has not already been done. Please note that individuals who already have a personal identification number (PIN) have direct access to a FRQnet account and must update their profile using the E-portfolio.

Individuals interested in the funding opportunities provided under this competition must complete and submit the appropriate electronic application form via FRQnet. The form must be completed in the E-portfolio of the principal investigator using the FRQnet platform of FRQ-Santé, which is the Fonds that hosts the Platform of Funding Programs for Intersectoral Research on Aging.

Each component of this competition has its own electronic application form. These forms are available in the E-portfolio of FRQnet account holders under “Available Competition, Program: Research Grants, Platform of Funding Programs for Intersectoral Research on Aging / Living Lab or Call for Solutions“. As indicated in the CGR, the form may be filled out in English or French. However, the project title and summary must be written in French. This information may be used by the FRQ for promotion and dissemination purposes.

Only forms completed by the principal investigator and submitted electronically will be accepted. Application forms must be submitted by the principal investigator’s managing institution. When completing the form, the applicant (principal investigator) and each team member must indicate their consent to participate in the project by completing the necessary transactions in their own E-portfolio using the FRQnet platform of FRQ-Santé, which is hosting the competition, before transmission to the managing institution.

Any documents that are not required and which are included with the application will not be submitted to the evaluation committee. The FRQ will not notify applicants of any information or documents missing from the application. Any documents submitted to the FRQ after the competition closing date will not be considered.

Please note that the process of submitting an electronic application form to the Fonds in FRQnet includes two steps which must be completed before the competition deadline:

1. Transmission of the application by the principal investigator to the institution designated as the managing institution;
2. Submission of the application to the Fonds by an administrator of the managing institution.

The managing institution designated by the applicant in the application form must be:

• his or her employing institution, which is recognized by the FRQ to manage funding (list available here)

or

• the location of his or her research, provided that this institution:

1. is recognized by the FRQ to manage funding
2. has an affiliation agreement with his or her employing institution.

9.2 Documents to be submitted with the electronic application form

The principal investigator who submits the application for the chosen component must include the following documents with the application form:

9.2.1 Documents to be submitted with the Living Lab component

9.2.2 Documents to be submitted with the Call for Solutions component

The application deadline for both components is January 26, 2021.

10. DESCRIPTION AND NATURE OF THE FUNDING

11. FOLLOW-UP AND ACCOUNTABILITY

In accordance with the CGR, the holder of a grant obtained under this competition is required to submit a final report, the format of which will be communicated in due course to the principal investigators of the funded projects. This report must be submitted no later than three months following the end of the grant period.

In addition, grant holders must focus efforts to popularize their research results in order to maximize potential impacts for those groups most likely to benefit from the research. Furthermore, after the final report, principal investigators must contribute, when invited to do so, to events such as forums, conferences and follow-up or transfer activities organized by the Fonds to introduce the results of their work to a wider public of potential users. Expenses related to such events are the responsibility of the participants and must be included in the grant budget under “travel and accommodation expenses”.

The final report may be written in English or French. If written in English, it must be accompanied by a title and abstract in French. The report must be submitted no more than 12 months after the end date of the grant, except under exceptional circumstances. If a final report is not submitted within the prescribed time, co-investigators on the funded project may not receive new funding from the FRQ until the situation has been remedied.

Grant recipients must indicate, in all reports, papers or other communications, that the research was funded by the FRQ.

12. IMPORTANT DATES AND ANNOUNCEMENT OF RESULTS

• Mid-october 2020 : Announcement of the second competition with two funding components

• November 4, 2020 : Rules of the second competition to be published online

• November 11, 2020 : Electronic forms for both funding components (Living Lab and Call for Solutions) to be made available online

• 2 possible dates to take part in a 1-hour DSMI webinar to present the calls for proposals (Living lab and Call for Solutions) and answer participants’ questions:

  • Tuesday November 17 at 1:30 p.m.
  • Thursday November 19 at 9 a.m.

A recording of the power point presentation of the webinar is provided in the Toolbox on the competition webpage.

• January 26, 2021: Deadline to submit applications to both components (4 p.m.); see Section 9.1 for details on the application process in FRQnet

• End of April 2021: Announcement of competition results for both components

For the conditions regarding the announcement of funding, refer to Section 5 of the CGR.

A copy of the certificate of ethics for the use of human or animal subjects or biological materials as part of the project is required on the awarding of any grant, if applicable. Payment of the grant is governed by the rules relating to research ethics and conformity (CGR, Section 5.4).

13. EFFECTIVE DATE

These rules apply to the 2021-2022 fiscal year.