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COST

What is COST?

COST is a European wide support initiative set up by a Ministerial conference in 1971 to encourage co-operation in S&T. There are now 34 participating countries including the 25 Member States of the European Community.

COST supports the co-ordination and networking of existing research and activities of public value. COST does not fund research.

Any area of S&T can be considered for COST support.  The present main domains are: 

• Agriculture, Food Sciences & Biotechnology
• Chemistry
• Environment
• Forests & Forestry Products
• Materials
• Medicine and Health
• Meteorology
• Physics
• Social Sciences and Humanities
• Telecommunication and Information Science Technologies (TIST)
• Transport
• Urban Civil Engineering 

What does it do?

COST currently supports about 200 individual Actions in these areas. Participation is on an à la carte basis, subject to a national approval and evidence of existing activity. COST only assists with the costs of co-ordination, and does not fund research activities. The initiative is administered by national representatives on a Committee of Senior Officials, helped by a technical secretariat provided by the European Science Foundation.

Further Information

Further information on COST procedures can be obtained from the UK National COST Co-ordinator's office or the COST website on CORDIS.