The Fondation du Pélican de Mie et Pierre Hippert-Faber, in line with its objectives and under the Hippert Research Program, launches the third edition of its Call for Research Projects.

This year's Call for Research Projects aims to contribute to the financing of research projects, preferably at the University of Luxembourg, and focused exclusively on the fight against neurodegenerative diseases and oncology research.

The Fondation du Pélican de Mie and Pierre Hippert-Faber (“Foundation”) was created in 2010 by Mr. Pierre Hippert, in memory of his wife. A retired Luxembourg pharmacist, Pierre Hippert was passionate about science and the arts, and through his foundation, wished to support initiatives aimed at encouraging research, in particular, scientific and academic. While Pierre Hippert unfortunately passed away in 2021 at the age of 92, his vision continues to shine through his Foundation.

In this regard, the Fondation du Pélican seeks to provide long-term support in the field of biomedicine and biotechnology.

Eligibility Criteria

Eligible applicants are public institutions performing research, in Luxembourg, i.e. research units, research laboratories or research entities attached to the University of Luxembourg.

The submitted projects can take place within the University of Luxembourg, or in the frame of partnerships. Project proposals can be based on a previously completed project if the goal is to deepen a new research trajectory and/or pursue an exploratory strategy in terms of research. The principal investigators ("P.I.") of project proposals must be contractually affiliated with the University of Luxembourg at a minimum of 60% of their time.

Luxembourg public institutions are only eligible if they can offer for the full duration of the project, a non-permanent employment contract of at least 24 months for post-docs and at least 36 months for PhD candidates.

Research and development experts, laboratory technicians and other personnel supporting the work of PhD students and post-docs, must not exceed 33% of the total cost allocated to the all the project's Human Resources (i.e. Total proposed budget for the project proposal including Pélican funds). The type of contract, permanent or non-permanent, does not apply to these previous categories. Research directors and other management positions are not eligible for funding

The project proposal may be carried in collaboration with one or more public research institutions in Luxembourg or abroad. Only the collaborating institutions in Luxembourg can receive funds. This is limited to a maximum of 40% of the total project budget (from Pélican funds).

The collaborating institution(s) in Luxembourg or abroad should ensure that they will be able to offer scientific guidance as well as office and/or laboratory space, when applicable.

Any additional Institutions based in Luxembourg which play a major role in the execution of the project should be listed under “Collaborating Institution(s)”. The applicants are encouraged to establish links with clinicians (ideally based in Luxembourg) to develop as much of a translational research trajectory as possible.

The project must be sufficiently detailed to facilitate its evaluation by the assessors. The project proposal duration must also be strictly limited to a maximum of 3 years. The project budget must be detailed, especially if other partners are involved. The annual funding per project from Fondation du Pélican may not exceed €250,000. The total budget per project funded by the Fondation du Pélican for the total duration of the proposal may not exceed €600.000. The Fondation du Pélican may select a maximum of three projects. A guarantee of contribution or co-financing from the research partnership is greatly appreciated (e.g. contribution in kind or other source of funding).

To summarize: the costs mainly covered in the framework of the project’s duration and for its exclusive benefit include non-permanent positions for Phds and Post-docs, purchase of new equipment and software, material and laboratory rental, consumables for the benefit of the project’s workplan/experimentation, research stays for the benefit of the project (duration limited to two months), trainings with regard to the need for new equipment, new research methods, etc.

Please consider the (non-mandatory) appendices as part of the submission process and as an opportunity to provide additional information to enrich the quality of the application content and create added value for your proposal. You should not copy and paste the content of the online application into the appendices.

Selection Procedure

An independent jury composed of external scientific experts will review the submitted applications. These independent external experts will be identified by the Foundation based on their respective experience, background, and associated skills in the targeted domain.

The jury provides its evaluation results to the Management Committee of the Foundation, which will validate the final grantee(s). The ranking and recommendation of the jury shall be so endorsed by the Foundation. This decision is final and shall not be subject to appeal. If the jury considers that none of the applicants qualify for funding, the Foundation may decide not to allocate the funds. The funding will be allocated to the research project/program, not an individual.

Selection Criteria

The members of the jury will evaluate the applications based on the following criteria:

• Quality of science-based approach, work plan (project management), team members (competence & expertise), and other resources used (tools, equipment, etc);
• Recognized public interest and relevance of the subject;
• Project feasibility;
• Clear use of funds;
• Existence or not of any co-funding (external and/or internal funds);
• Validation of the ethics committee and the data protection committee (if needed).

Application Procedure

The application procedure has two main steps. 

Applicants must first submit their intention to apply in writing to project.request@fdlux.lu, with the subject heading "2026 Pelican Research Program". The deadline for this first stage is December 01, 2025 - 14:00 CET.

In this email, applicants must provide: Name, Surname, Title, Position, Institution /Organization, Postal Address, Phone Number, Email, Project title and a concise text presenting your project (Max 1500 Characters).

Applicants will then receive the Budget form (.xls) and a link to access the online Grant Application Form with a Log-in ID and Password. After accessing this form, applicants must complete their FULL APPLICATION via the online Grant Application Form by 12 January 2026, 14:00 CET, at the latest.

The applicants must inform the Foundation of any staff changes during the evaluation process after the January deadline, as this could affect the perceived intrinsic quality of the project proposal by the evaluators. The laureate(s) will be informed of the final decision by June 2026. The laureate(s) will be invited to present their research project at the latest in November 2026 during a kick-off meeting with the jury of independent experts. Annual and final reports will be contractually obligatory for the laureates.

Contact

For further questions, please write by email to project.request@fdlux.lu.

Due Diligence Practice

The Foundation will directly reward the laureate(s). A due diligence process will be applied to potential laureates to verify their probity and integrity.

Please keep in mind the documentation to attach to the completed application:

• Formal authorization to apply from the representative institution and collaborating institution(s) (mandatory),
• Formal, signed commitment as to the accuracy of the information, provided by the applicant (mandatory),
• Budget, including all costs and sources of funding - (budget form .xls provided to be completed, mandatory),
• Curriculum vitae for each team member (mandatory) or key actors involved in the proposal, letter of motivation; recommendation letters; acceptance document.
• Research / Scientific protocol / Detailed methodology - (max 2 pages),
• Detailed project plan (grant, work package and associated information) - (max. 5 pages)
• Detailed project governance, policies related to risk management, ethics and data protection issues (max. 3 pages),