Invitation to partner in a Polish-Norwegian research project on AI-supported PTSD therapy (POLNORIS call, EEA Grants)

We invite a research institution from one of the EEA countries to join us as the research partner in the project "The AI Model Supporting Nature-Based PTSD Therapy", to be submitted jointly to the POLNORIS call, funded by the EEA Grants and run by Poland's National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) in cooperation with the Research Council of Norway.

1. Why this project matters

The planned project’s product - the AI therapeutic tool – is meant to help patients suffering from the post traumatic stress disorder, which causes lasting intrusive memories, severe emotional numbness, and a constant fight-or-flight state that disrupts daily life, work, and personal relationships. The primary target group are the Ukrainian veterans returning home from war, who very often have experienced or witnessed terrifying or life-threatening events and face difficulties in re-integrating with family and society. Many of them are joining their families who settled in Poland. Norway has also received many Ukrainian refugees. Existing services hardly can meet their therapeutic needs. This is a mental health challenge of a scale Europe has not faced in decades.

2. What we will develop

The project will develop a Human-in-the-Loop AI model that supports psychotherapists in diagnosing PTSD and planning therapeutic pathways. Its core function is to support Evidence-Based Psychological Practice, which therapists identify as their most important need regarding AI. The tool is professional: it will not be used by patients on their own. A psychologist remains responsible for every diagnosis and treatment decision.

The project will also deliver:

• a set of diagnostic instruments,

• a library of therapeutic techniques for individual or group use,

• e-health tools: a mobile application for patient contact and psychological testing, connected to a device measuring physiological parameters.

A distinctive feature is the use of nature-based therapy, including forest therapy. Norway's strong tradition of outdoor life (friluftsliv) makes it a natural partner for developing this approach.

The project will last 3 years. It will include a clinical panel study with repeated psychological and physiological measurements on a purposive-random sample. Based on its results, the AI model will be developed and then tested on the same sample within a nature-based therapeutic pathway.

3. What we offer our Norwegian partner

• A genuine scientific role. The call explicitly rewards a clear, active and meaningful role for the Donor partner. We envisage our Norwegian partner as co-leader of key research tasks, for example the design of trauma-focused and nature-based protocols or a clinical study site.

• Full funding. Research organisations can receive up to 100% of eligible costs. Donor partners' costs may account for up to 40% of the project budget.

• Unique data and publications. The partner gains access to a cross-cultural clinical dataset on war-related trauma and to joint, open-access publications in a fast-growing field.

• A minimal administrative burden. We will prepare and submit the proposal and coordinate the project. From our partner we would need expert input into the proposal and a letter of intent signed before submission.

4. What we need from our Norwegian partner

Our partner should have expertise either in psychotherapy, preferably PTSD-related one, or in the application of AI in psychotherapy or medicine.

5. Who we are

We are Małgorzata Bukowska-Siegel, a psychologist working in psychotherapy, including crisis intervention, and Dr Krzysztof Nowak, a sociologist with over 35 years of experience in managing large national and international research and social projects. We have assembled a team with expertise in clinical psychology and psychotherapy, sociology, AI and data science, and research project management.

5. Key facts about the call

• Eligibility: the Norwegian partner must be a research organisation approved by the Research Council of Norway - a university, research institute, foundation or company that appears on the list: https://www.forskningsradet.no/en/financing/research-organisations/approved-research-organisations/

• Budget: projects receive between €1.0M and €1.75M. We plan approximately €1.75M.

• Deadline: 17 December 2026, 15:00 CET.

• Call documents (in English): https://www.gov.pl/web/ncbr/konkurs-polnoris

• Programme overview: https://www.forskningsradet.no/en/financing/international-funding/eea-grants/

Małgorzata Bukowska-Siegel

Dr Krzysztof Nowak

Tel. +48 501 287 802

krzysztof.nowak@profile.com.pl