The National Science Foundation
(NSF) is a United States government agency responsible for promoting
basic research and education in science and engineering. NSF provides
more than $5 billion per year in grants to U.S. institutions, primarily
to universities, for research and education in science and engineering.
NSF's broad support for basic research provides crucial underwriting
for discovery in many fields and supports the development of the
next generation of scientists and engineers. NSF awards research
funding based on the merits of the proposed activities, including
their potential impact on society. NSF ensures quality in its programs
by using competitive merit review of grant proposals, coupled with
periodic external review of its research and education programs
that approve those grants. The Foundation has no research institutes
and conducts no research of its own.
An integral part of NSF's
mission is support of international cooperation in science and engineering.
International activities are supported throughout the NSF portfolio.
The Foundation's Office of
International Science and Engineering (OISE) has a leadership
role in promoting and coordinating international cooperation. OISE
also funds specific program activities. NSF currently maintains
two field offices, one in Europe and one in Asia, to advance its
international activities. These offices are part of the Foundation's
OISE.
The NSF
Europe Office is located in the American Embassy in Paris and
facilitates NSF activities in Western, Central, and Eastern Europe.
The Office does not review proposals or administer awards. The NSF
Europe Office has three major roles:
- Facilitation: The Office
works to promote collaboration between the U.S. and European science
and engineering communities.
- Representation: The Office
represents NSF to national and multi-national science organizations
throughout Europe.
- Reporting: The Office
monitors and reports on developments in the European scientific
community.
The head of the NSF Europe
Office is Dr. Mark Suskin (msuskin@nsf.gov).
For further information or inquiries, please contact the Office
by telephone at +33 1-4312-2108, or by FAX at +33
1-4312-2904.
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