Pillar one promotes scientific excellence, attracting highly-skilled researchers and innovators to Europe. Focussing primarily on bottom-up research, where applicants can define their own research focus without pre-determined or directed grant calls, the pillar aims to support the development and diffusion of scientific excellence, high-quality knowledge, methodologies and skills, technologies and solutions to global social, environmental and economic challenges. Furthermore, it looks to encourage and facilitate the training and mobility of researchers as well as promote development of and access to world-class research infrastructures.

The Pillar is separated into three component parts:

• European Research Council (ERC)
• Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA)
• Research Infrastructures

The European Research Council (ERC) will continue to fund ground-breaking, high-gain/high-risk research and to advance the frontiers of knowledge. The ERC will continue to provide attractive and flexible funding, which enables talented and creative individual researchers (and their teams) to pursue ground-breaking research at the frontiers of science.

The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions (MSCA) will continue to fund, support and train the individuals and institutions behind research and innovation. MSCA will continue to fund excellent doctoral and post-doctoral training programmes, equipping researchers with new knowledge and skills through encouraging mobility and exposure across borders, sectors and disciplines. MSCA actions also set out to enhance training and career development systems thereby having a structuring impact on institutions.

Research Infrastructures aim to provide Europe with world-class sustainable research infrastructures which are open and accessible to the best researchers from Europe and beyond. Projects funded through this programme part will also contribute to reducing fragmentation in the landscape of national and regional infrastructures.