CORDIS focus

European Commission Directorate-General For Enterprise And Industry

Description

Issue number 239, 23 February 2004
Scientific and technical research
Target audience: Specialised/Technical

Sujets

• Periodical publication
• RE/Search
• Research and development
• Sciences et techniques

Informations

• Publié par: EUROPEAN-COMMISSION-DIRECTORATE-GENERAL-FOR-ENTERPRISE-AND-INDUSTRY
• Nombre de lectures: 20
• Langue: English

Extrait

IN THIS ISSUE

E B S c o m m u n i c a t e s b u s i n e s s r e a l i t y t o p o l i c y - m a k e r s , c l a i m s s u m m i t f o u n d e r According to Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin, the European Business Summit (EBS) is the ‘ideal platform’ for dialogue between research and innovation stakeholders page 2 Commission paves the way for an E U s e c u r i t y r e s e a r c h p r o g r a m m e Philippe Busquin, EU Commissioner for Research, presented a communication on 3 February, seeking approval for a Preparatory Action aimed at preparing the ground for an EU security research programme from 2007 page 3 Romania requests cut in financial contributions to FP6 The European Commission is considering a request by the Romanian government for a decrease in the country’s budgetary contribution to the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6) page 5 EU project to deliver broadband t o r e m o t e c o m m u n i t i e s v i a airships and aircraft An EU-funded project is preparing to test different forms of high altitude platforms (HAPs), airships or solar powered aircraft located in the sky at an altitude of around 20 km, in order to assess which would be the most efficient in making broadband available to rural communities page 9 G e r m a n y c e l e b r a t e s r e c o r d participation levels in FP6 pr o je c t s Germany’s Minister for Education and Research, Edelgard Bulmahn, has welcomed figures showing that German researchers are participating in more projects under the Sixth Framework Programme (FP6) than any other group page 10 Highlights . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 2 Innovation: Policy and Practice . . . 8 Programme Implementation . . . . . . 9 Result . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 14 Calls and Tenders . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15 General Policy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16 Inside Europe . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 20 Miscellaneous . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22 Events . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Other Items Online . . . . . . . . . . . . 26 New on CORDIS . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27

ISSN 1022-6559

B a s e d o n i n f o r m a t i o n f r o m C O R D I S N e w s a v a i l a b l e o n t h e W e b a tl u / n e w sh t t p : / / w w w . c o r d i s .

Research to be one of prime beneficiaries of higher EU budget proposed by Commission As was expected following recent comments by Commission President Romano Prodi and Com- missioner for Research Philippe Busquin, a proposal on the Commission’ s future budget between 2007 and 2013, unveiled on 10 February amongst much controversy, makes a claim forhigher contributions from the EU’s Member States for research and innovation initiatives at EU level. The Commission highlights ening physical infrastruc- three priorities for an en- ture and human resources; larged EU: sustainable encouraging public-pri- growth; citizenship, free- vate partnerships; stimu- dom, security and justice; lating the development of and making the EU a global ‘poles of excellence’; and partner. Research and inno- co-ordination of national vation fall into the first pri- research programmes. ority, as growth requires ‘a The proposal also outlines more dynamic and better the importance of in- connected Europe,’ states creased investment in the the proposal. ‘This requires related EU policies of a substantial change in poli- space and security. cies to support the Union’s  Although the possibility of physical and knowledge in-  in frastructure. This means c s r e e ar a c t h C g o a u   n E c u il r  ( o E p R e C a )  n is     R n e o - t action to improve re-  citl search, boost enterprise  mentioned expli y in the and innovation, and estab- © Audiovisual Library, European Communities nanif gnpus laico trtpo g‘ f i -vidi eo aealosth, oppr lish networks at European  projects carried out by in- level.’ di  idual research teams selected on a competi-v The Commission therefore calls for ‘commit- tive basis at European rather than at national ment appropriations’ to sustainable growth to  scale, in particular in basic research’ fits the de- rise from€47,582 million in 2006 to€76,785 scription  of the proposed ERC. The Commis- million in 2013. The EU’s total budget of around sion recently published a communication on ‘Eu- €and basic research’, in which it verified  rope100 billion a year today amounts to 0.98% of the EU’s GDP. The Commission would now raise that it would consider funding an ERC. that figure to 1.22% of Gross National Income  Turning to infrastructure, the proposal gives the (GNI) in the years after 2007. That would still  s io come in under the permitted upper limit of d e a x t a a m ba p n l k e s s     i o n  f  g E e u n r o o m p ic e s a   n a   n l d a   r c g o e m  l p a u s t e i r ng ,     n b et- 1.24%. The proposal is however controversial,  works as initiatives where increased investment as six Member States have already stated their is foreseen. The co-ordination of national re- desire to limit expenditure to 1% of GNI. search programmes is envisaged for research In terms of research, the Commission’s pro- fields such as cancer, Alzheimer’s, nano- posal outlines five areas for which more fund- technology and social and economic challenges. ing is needed: providing grants to research teams selected on a competitive basis; strength- continued on page 4

PUBLISHED BY THE EUROPEAN COMMISSION  INNOVATION

2

EBS communicates business reality to policy-makers, claims summit founder

According to Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin, the European Business Summit (EBS) is the ‘ideal platform’ for dialogue between research and innovationstakeholders.Yettheevent’s founder and managing director, Didier Malherbe, looks forward to the day when he no longer has to organise this biennial event.

As the final preparations are being made for this year’s summit in Brussels on 11 and 12 March, CORDIS News spoke to Mr Malherbe, and asked him why, after only two previous instalments, he feels the event has become a point of refer- ence for business people and politicians alike.

‘Even though their goals may be mutually compatible, policy-makers and business leaders occupy different realities,’ Mr Malherbe began. ‘Ultimately, businesses are there to make money, while policy- makers are more focussed on the in-

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EUROPEAN COMMISSION Enterprise Directorate-General Communication and Awareness Unit L-2920 Luxembourg Fax: [phone] E-mail: [e-mail] CORDISfcosu also available at: is http://www.co rdis.lu/focus/en/ B a s e d o n i n f o r m a t i o n f r o m C O R D I S N e w s availableon theWeb at:  http://www.cordis.lu/news

CORDISfousc published every two is weeks by the Communication and Awareness Unit of the Enterprise Directorate-General as part of the Eu r o m m Co p e a nun i t y ’ e s e a r R i x t hs Sch F r a m e w o r kP r o gr a m m e ,a n dp r es e n t s the latest news on European Union research and innovation and related p r o g r a m m e s a n d p o l i c i e s .

CORDIS FOCUS - NUMBER 239

Didier Malherbe © CORDIS News creased growth and employment that tend to follow profitability.’ Therefore, he explained, the most funda- mental aim of the EBS is to bring both groups together to promote a better mutual understanding. Asked what makes this summit different from other consul- tation processes or events organised by the political institutions themselves, Mr Malherbe highlighted the ‘business men- tality’ of the summit. ‘We will try to avoid generalised discus- sions on the Lisbon Strategy, for exam- ple, in favour of presenting delegates with examples of current realities and trying to identify concrete answers,’ he said. In the spirit of bringing business and policy closer together, the EBS has dual objec- tives and benefits for each party. For busi- nesses, especially small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs), the event represents a very efficient means of communicating their daily reality to politicians and gain- ing future perspectives on fast moving areas of research such as biotechnology, nanotechnology, and environmental tech- nologies. It is also an ideal opportunity to learn about the opportunities offered by public initiatives, such as the Commission’s Sixth Framework Programme. For their part, political institutions wel- come the opportunity to drive home to the private sector the importance of in- vestment and co-operation in research and innovation activities. Furthermore, the benefits of personal interaction with business people are recognised by politi- cal institutions within the EU, where many

individuals may have little direct experi- ence of the private sector, according to Mr Malherbe.

For him, one of the most positive signs that the EBS is as equally valued by policy- makers as it is by companies was the ini- tiative taken by the Commission’s Re- search DG, and Mr Busquin in particular, to support the third edition of the event. ‘The idea to make research and innova- tion the focus of this year’s summit came from the Commission, not us,’ revealed Mr Malherbe. The main output of the summit will be the drafting of a clear appeal from re- search and innovation stakeholders to the Spring European Council, focusing on concrete objectives and actions. When asked what such an appeal could contain, Mr Malherbe stressed that as far as many businesses are concerned, the legal framework for investment in research and innovation is still far from ideal. ‘For example, the process of gaining a patent in Europe is still far too compli- cated and expensive; politicians often develop new legislation, such as the re- cent REACH proposals, without seeming to fully consider its impact on smaller busi- nesses; and in new areas such as biotech- nology, Europe will continue to fall be- hind other parts of the world until the legal environment for products is improved,’ he argued. Asked whether he hopes the summit will become a permanent feature of public and private sector interaction within Eu- rope, Mr Malherbe revealed that his am- bitions are quite different. ‘My dream would be not having to organise future events because the mutual understand- ing between business and politics was perfect, but for now, this remains just a dream,’ he concluded. For further information, please consult the following Web address: http://www.ebsummit.org/index.html BasedonaCORDISNewsinterviewwithDidier Malherbe,founderoftheEuropeanBusiness Summit RCN21606

23 FEBRUARY 2004