COST, European Cooperation in the Field of Scientific and Technical Research

Formed in 1971, COST laid the foundation for European cooperation in the area of research and development.

Based in Brussels, COST enables European research institutes, universities and companies to work together on a broad spectrum of activities, relating mainly to fundamental and pre-competitive research.

COST membership includes: the EU-25 member states, Bulgaria, Iceland, Croatia, F.Y.R. of Macedonia,  Norway, Rumania, Serbia and Montenegro, Switzerland and Turkey. Israel is involved as a cooperating state. Since 1989, research institutes from non-COST member states have been able to take part in individual COST Actions.

COST’s role as an organisation is to coordinate research activities; it does not impose research programmes nor does it establish uniform research policies. COST activities are organised according to “COST Actions” for various scientific domains. COST Actions are used to centre research efforts on specific topics relating to a given domain, thereby providing the structure needed to coordinate the various research projects. COST Actions originate from base initiatives. The  COST Committee of Senior Officials  decides which COST Actions can be launched and the member states are free to decide whether or not they would like to take part in any given Action. COST Actions are launched when at least five participants from different member states agree to take part and sign a Memorandum of understanding.

COST offers a wide range of Actions in many different scientific domains, with emphasis on the following:

Biomedicine and Molecular Biosciences

Chemistry and Molecular Sciences and Technologies

Earth System Science and Environmental Management

Food and Agriculture

Forests, their Products and Services

Information and Communication Technologies

Materials, Physical and Nanosciences

Transport and Urban Development

Others

COST principles

Cooperation within the COST structure is guided by four principles:

1. Action proposals may be submitted by researchers from COST member states or by the European Commission (bottom-up approach).
2. Participation in individual Actions is on a voluntary basis.
3. Research is funded at the national level by the member states themselves; coordination of the various research projects is funded by the EU’s Framework Programme for Research and Technological Development.
4. COST Actions are used to coordinate national research efforts across Europe. International steering committees are set up to supervise the activities to be carried out for each COST Action.

COST in Switzerland

Switzerland is one of the founding members of COST. The State Secretariat for Education and Research (SER) handles all COST-related financial, scientific and administrative matters in Switzerland. The SER decides whether or not Switzerland will take part in new COST Actions, appoints Swiss delegates to steering and technical committees and decides how available funds are to be allocated among individual Actions and projects. The SER also represents Swiss interests in COST’s executive body, the Committee of Senior Officials.

Swiss researchers have the option of carrying out projects within the framework of existing COST Actions or initiating new COST Actions.

Proposals for new COST Actions may be submitted at the European level using COST’s Open Call system. The deadlines for proposals are published on the COST International Web site http://www.cost.eu/.

Requests for Swiss participation in a COST Action may be submitted at any time.

Application forms for COST research project subsidies should be sent to the State Secretariat for Education and Research. Deadlines are given under the German or French heading "COST in der Schweiz" or "COST en Suisse-Actualité", respectively.