The president of the Spanish National Research Council (CSIC) and the Fundación General CSIC Rafael Rodrigo, and
the president of Banco Santander, Emilio Botín, signed a cooperation agreement today, 11 February 2010.
Under this agreement Banco Santander will provide the Fundación General CSIC with financial support over the next four years
to meet the Foundations overheads and, in particular, to help fund the Cero Projects.
The agreement defines a general framework for cooperation between the Fundación General CSIC and Banco Santander through the latter’s
Santander Universities Global Division and represents solid backing for the Cero Projects programme, which, through
a series of annual public calls for proposals, will fund research projects "that approach their subject in a way that includes a significant innovative component and high degree of risk."
The Cero Projects are to promote
multidisciplinary approaches to the Fundación General CSIC’s four strategic axes:
Ageing, disability and disease;
Human Ecology and Development; and
Frontiers. The first call will be launched and projects chosen during the first half of 2010.
In the words of the Foundation’s president, Rafael Rodrigo:
"The Fundación General CSIC has set itself the challenge of demonstrating that scientific research can generate
solutions to the needs and problems of industry and humanity in general, both individually and collectively."
He went on to explain that the Foundation intends to become a meeting point for business, society and research, and to
play an instrumental role in Spain’s scientific, technological and economic development.
The signing of the agreement with Banco Santander undoubtedly represents significant backing to the achievement of the Foundation’s goals.
