ENLIGHT funding offers

ENLIGHT Thematic Networks are interdisciplinary, long-term networks involving at least three ENLIGHT partner universities cooperating with local stakeholders. They are formed around societally relevant topics within the ENLIGHT Focus Areas and jointly develop activities in teaching, research and for the benefit of society.

Such activities could be joint seminars, workshops or programs, knowledge transfer initiatives, conferences, modules on Bachelor, Master or doctoral level, spin-offs and many more.

The ENLIGHT Thematic Networks Call is open to lecturers and researchers at the University of Bern and other ENLIGHT partner universities.

ENLIGHT supports ENLIGHT Thematic Networks with EUR 100,000 each for a period of 2 years (until October 2027). This funding amount is divided among the participating partners. Approximately 15 new ENLIGHT Thematic Networks will be funded this year.

Disclaimer: The participation of the University of Bern in ETN is funded by Movetia. The membership of the University of Bern in ENLIGHT is financially supported by Movetia. Movetia promotes exchange, mobility and cooperation within the fields of education, training and youth work – in Switzerland, Europe and worldwide. www.movetia.ch

The Incubator Grant supports bottom-up initiatives to develop learning formats on all three levels of study (Bachelor, Master and PhD) and with reference to the ENLIGHT Focus Areas. At least three (in exceptional cases two) ENLIGHT universities should work together.

The Incubator Grant consists of two strands:

• Development of joint programs (Bachelor's and Master's programs): max. EUR 30,000
• Development of joint teaching initiatives: max. EUR 20,000

This call is open to lecturers at the University of Bern and other ENLIGHT partner universities. 

Disclaimer: The University of Bern's participation in incubator initiatives is funded by Movetia. The membership of the University of Bern in ENLIGHT is financially supported by Movetia. Movetia promotes exchange, mobility and cooperation within the fields of education, training and youth work - in Switzerland, Europe and worldwide. www.movetia.ch

ENLIGHT+ aims to support initiatives that make the university campus greener, more inclusive or create connections to the other ENLIGHT partners in various ways. These initiatives should involve participants from at least three ENLIGHT universities.

Small-scale projects can have a big impact: Grants are available for a range of initiatives, including outreach programs, collaborative events, community workshops for sustainability projects and inclusive campus projects.

The ENLIGHT+ Call is open to all members of the University of Bern.

The University of Bern supports such initiatives with up to CHF 5,000. Additional funding can be requested from other ENLIGHT universities. Important: Each university can only provide funding for its own members.

Do you have a project idea but are still looking for partners? We will be happy to support you with networking. The following information is required:

• Short project description in English
• Specification of the profile of scientists you are looking for
• If available: preferred ENLIGHT partner universities

Please send an e-mail with this information to enlight@unibe.ch. We will then forward your request to the ENLIGHT coordinators at the respective ENLIGHT universities.

Alternatively, you can start a partner search here.

If you have already identified specific contacts at the ENLIGHT universities yourself or have existing collaborations, we recommend that you contact them directly.

If your question cannot be clarified during a consultation and you cannot find an answer on this page, please write to enlight@unibe.ch. Please note that we cannot offer to review your application.

We will process inquiries about the calls until June 25, 2025. We ask for your understanding that inquiries received after this date can no longer be processed before the application deadline.