The Research Council of the European Union is offering substantial (up to  3.5 million euros) grants to support research by advanced scholars in  institutions in the EU and associated countries. (There is a separate program  for young investigators). Panel SH3 (Environment and Society) is seeking proposals covering the fields of urban and regional studies, urban and regional  planning, urban sociology and urban geography, GIS, transportation, environment, etc. The Council is looking for innovative, interdisciplinary proposals involving basic research. This year relatively few applications were received by this panel compared to other fields; it is hoped that there will be  more in future years.