Have you ever tried to be PI (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Principal_investigator) in a grant proposal? Now you have the chance to do so if your academic supervisor happens to be a member of the European College of Neuropsychopharmacology (ECNP). Details via
http://www.ecnp.eu/emc.asp?pageId=1201 (next deadline Feb 28, 2008).

If you know of similar opportunities for young scientists to become PI, please post them here.

Things are finally coming to a crux with regard to federal funding. Dr. Zerhouni (NIH director) has opened the discussion to grantees, including postdocs. See what is going on....

http://chronicle.com/free/v54/i15/15a00102.htm

Incidentally, and as Dr. Zerhouni pointed out at the 2007 BioVision.Nxt meeting, the NIH (US) supports international research, so this, in effect, is an interesting issue for all. I think that there are also some key lessons with regard to economics. Unprecedented growth in budget allocations... stagnant budgets = lots of trainees/postdocs...