POST A PROJECT IDEA, CHALLENGE, OR RESOURCE ON WORLDLABS

Anyone who is interested in submitting an application must engage in the Plant2Food Marketplace on WorldLabs. You may post an idea, challenge, or resource yourself or become involved in a project posted by someone else.
All abstracts must be linked to a post on the Marketplace.

By sharing your ideas early, you make it visible to companies and researchers who are actively looking for collaboration opportunities.

The Marketplace adds value in several ways, it:

• Increases your reach: Your idea is exposed to a broad, international community that extend beyond your current professional network

• Accelerates matchmaking: Others can quickly assess whether your idea aligns with their expertise, needs, or strategic interests.

• Strengthens project quality: Early feedback and co‑creation help refine ideas before you submit an abstract.

• Supports transparency: Openly posting ideas is part of the OIS approach, which ensures that the initiation of project happens in an open environment rather than behind closed doors.

For OIS platforms, openness is a core principle. Applicants are therefore required to upload their ideas to the Marketplace before developing them into full project applications. Sharing your idea is not only a way to find partners, but also a contribution to the collective knowledge base of the community and an invitation for others to build on, challenge, or complement your ideas.

The project idea will evolve as partners become involved. Once the team is set with a good idea and the right competencies, the partners must collaborate to translate the idea into a cocreated Plant2Food project where everyone plays an active role, including all applicants and industry partners.

The team’s main applicant may then submit an abstract via Plant2Food WorldLabs ‘Opportunities.’

The abstract requires:

• A link to the originating idea/challenge/resource posted within the Plant2Food Marketplace 

• Confirmation that the project has been discussed with a business developer from the main applicant’s institution. 

• MAIN APPLICATION – A template is available for easy preparation in advance of online submission. (see Important documents in the left-hand side) 

• STATEMENT OF COMPANY ENGAGEMENT - An optional template is provided (see Important documents in the left-hand side).

The abstract is used to assess whether a project idea and team is sufficiently strong, relevant, and aligned with Plant2Food’s selection criteria (1-4) to proceed to a full-length application. Detailed project plans, budgets, and a complete and confirmed consortium are not required at abstract stage. However, clarity of the project concept, strength of the scientific rationale, and quality of the proposed collaboration will be considered in the abstract evaluation.

Invited teams may submit a full-length application via WorldLabs ‘Opportunities’. At the time of invitation, the Secretariat will provide a link and further details, including all templates and guides.

The full-length application:

• Builds on (and must remain clearly linked to) the abstract. 

• May be submitted within a different Grant Type if the project idea, methodology, and/or consortium develops in the time period between abstract and full length application deadlines to such an extent that it fits better within a different Grant Type. 

• May involve refinement of the project scope and/or team, for example as a result of new or changed partnerships, scientific input or resources. 

• Must include all required documentation (and signatures when necessary) e.g. budget, gantt chart, company letter(s) of support, CVs, figures. Must be pseudonymised of names and pronouns, as it is subject to blinded review.

The main applicant is encouraged to consult a legal or compliance specialist at their institution to assess any regulatory, contractual, data protection, or licensing considerations that may affect the implementation of the project or the open sharing of its results. If there have been significant changes to the project’s scope, activities, or expected outcomes since the abstract stage, applicants are encouraged to reassess the project’s precompetitiveness and openness in dialogue with a relevant business developer.