"PLANT FELLOWS is a new international Post doc fellowship programme in the field of plant sciences. PLANT FELLOWS will be managed by the Zurich-Basel Plant Science Center, the sole beneficiary of the COFUND action, drawing from 10 years of expansion and success in fellowship management and higher educational establishments.PLANT FELLOWS will be open to applicants from all over the world. 15 European and 7 international universities and research institutes and 3 industry partners have been pre-defined as host organisations on the basis of their excellence in higher education and plant research.PLANT FELLOWS will offer 74 new Post doc fellowships spread between three different schemes (incoming, outgoing and reintegration) and a structured training programme for experienced researchers, including workshops, dedicated training in complementary skills and industrial placements. Unique in its kind, the fellows of the programme have the opportunity to obtain a Certificate in Plant Research and Development. PLANT FELLOWS thus aims at establishing a Training and Qualification Framework in the area of life-long learning/vocational training which complements the present postdoctoral training in plant sciences with an international competitive dimension.PLANT FELLOWS aims at delivering trained people who can enable the EU to respond to its changing needs in, for example, food production, plant-based energy production, sustainable land use, agricultural developments, and environment protection. By promoting a high level of intersectorial interactions and transnational mobility, the fellows will have access to frontiers expertise in plant research and state-of-the-art facilities in a way that is not possible within any existing or national programme. The mobility activities and adjustments to new cultures will contribute to building tolerance, confidence and loyalty - necessary attributes to meet global challenges."