What is the overall concept?

In the template for the thematic program in Horizon 2020 this section comes after you have presented the objectives, what you will achieve with your project, and before the ambition section where you describe the State of the Art.

In templates for other programs this section is often called introduction or background. Do not write a general, unfocused, text book like text here. By taking a specific and focused approach closely related to your objectives you can improve this section considerably. It is in the concept section that you get the first opportunity to give an overview over your idea and the excellent research you will do.

Depending on the proposal total pages you should use half to one and a half page on this section.

The concept section may be hard to write because what you write here you could also have put in other sections. Remember it is “overall concepts” so it is an outline of what you will write more about later. Do not put too much in here. Save the details for later sections.

The template gives you a lot of info that will help you write about the concept or idea:

Describe and explain the overall concept underpinning the project.

Main ideas
- Your main idea should be the vision/idea you wrote for the objectives. Here you can expand and explain the idea and objectives a bit more.
- Explained the need for your idea and problems it may solve and the impact in may have
Models or assumptions involved
- Earlier findings or observations that has lead up to your idea
- Any framework or model you can place your idea in
- New models of frameworks to be invented or used
Identify any inter-disciplinary considerations
- Here you may refer to the consortium and inter-disciplinary nature of the partnership
- You may also refer to how you will work/has set up the work plan in an interdisciplinary way to achieve the goals
If relevant, use stakeholder knowledge;
- Needs or wishes of the stakeholders you may satisfy

Describe the positioning of the project e.g.

Where it is situated in the spectrum from ‘idea to application’, or from ‘lab to market’.
- Give the reader and idea of where the focus of your project will be and the corresponding output
- Indicate the rationale for your position and the span you will cover
Refer to Technology Readiness Levels where relevant.
- TRLs may be useful to show the span and ambition of your project (see TRL)

Describe any national or international research and innovation activities which will be

linked with the project.

Any outputs from other activities that will feed into your project
Any outputs from this project that will feed into other projects

Methodology

Methodology is often closely related to the concept and the concept development

Describe and explain the overall methodology

Show that you have selected the appropriate methodology for your project
Present methodology that will be developed in the project

Where relevant, describe how sex and/or gender analysis is taken into account in the

project’s content.

Show that your project uses research methods that will address sex and gender issues

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