ERRIN News & Events provides reports of main ERRIN activities (public events and project news) and EU research and innovation news from other sources. For more info on ERRIN activities see the weekly newsletters or check check the Director's Blog.
De Nazelle to leave the EIT on 1 September 2010
29 July 2010
On 22 July 2010, the EIT Governing Board announced that Gerard de Nazelle, EIT Director, had decided to leave the EIT as of 1 September 2010 due to personal reasons.
Dr. Ronald de Bruin (EIT Head of Unit for Operations, Strategy & Communication) will assume the position of acting Director until a successor is nominated.
Source: EARTO
Consultation on Scientific Basis for a Definition of the Term "Nanomaterial"
26 July 2010
The services of the European Commission need to elaborate a working definition for the term “nanomaterial” to ensure the consistency of forthcoming regulatory developments to guide, as appropriate, the effective implementation of existing regulation and to contribute to international work and dialogue on nanotechnology definitions. The European Commission has requested the Scientific Committee on Emerging and Newly Identified Health Risks (SCENIHR) to provide advice on the essential elements of a science-based working definition of “nanomaterials” and, specifically, to identify the most appropriate metrics to define materials at nanoscale, taking into account reported size ranges and other relevant characteristics and corresponding metrics, characteristics, physico-chemical properties and thresholds.
In line with its procedures for stakeholder dialogue, the European Commission is launching a public consultation on the pre-consultation opinion approved by written procedure on 6 July 2010. All interested parties are invited to submit their comments and proposals on the preliminary opinion by 15 September 2010.
Source: EARTO
Commission gives €1.4bn to ITER nuclear fusion project
23 July 2010
With EU governments unwilling to fill the funding gaps in the multi-billion international nuclear fusion research project ITER, the European Commission is proposing to put an extra 1.4 billion euro on the table to honour the bloc's international commitment.
The Commission adopted on 20 July a proposal for the short-term funding needs to build the ITER fusion demonstration reactor.
To ensure European financing for the project in 2012-2013, the Commission suggests finding €1.4 billion of unused funding from the EU budget (€940 million) and by redeployment of €460 million from the EU's 7th Framework Programme for Research (FP7).
EU research ministers mandated the Commission to table the proposals following unsuccessful negotiations earlier this spring to agree on how to respond to the ambitious project's spiralling costs.
Europe's bill for the project has almost trebled. Initially estimated at €2.7 billion, the bloc's share is now projected to be €6.6 billion until 2020, with France liable for a further €1.3 billion in its capacity as host country for the plant.
EU Budget Commissioner Janusz Lewandowski and Research Commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn stressed that "ITER can provide a safe, clean and inexhaustible source of energy for the future". [...]
The European Parliament and the 27 EU member states in the Council of Ministers will now both have to agree on the proposal, which amends the EU's current long term budget for 2007-2013.
More information: EurActiv
EU unveils multi-billion research fund to boost economy
20 July 2010
The EU commissioner for research and innovation, Ireland's Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, announced has announced nearly €6.4 billion of investment in research and development to be spent by the end of 2011.
The package, described as Europe's biggest ever investment drive in the sector, aims to increase European competitiveness and help tackle EU priorities such as climate change, energy, food security, health and the ageing population.
"Investment in research and innovation is the only smart and lasting way out of crisis and towards sustainable and socially equitable growth. This European package will contribute to new and better products and services, a more competitive and greener Europe, and a better society with a higher quality of life," Geoghegan-Quinn said, arguing that the package will create more than 165,000 jobs. [...]
"This is a huge and efficient economic stimulus and an investment in our future," said the commissioner.
Covering a range of scientific disciplines, public policy areas and commercial sectors, the package earmarks more than €600 million for the health sector, while €1.2 billion will go towards boosting information and communication technology (ICT) research.
More than €1.3 billion will be reserved for the best creative scientists selected by the European Research Council, and SMEs will receive close to €800 million.
Geoghean-Quinn outlined EU efforts to bring research discoveries into mainstream use more quickly. For example, a third of the health allocation would be spent on clinical trials to get new drugs on the market as soon as possible, she said.
As for nanotechnology, €270 million would be spent on research that could lead to patenting and commercialisation opportunities, the commissioner said.
The fund is seen as part of the EU's flagship 'Innovation Union', to be launched this autumn.
More information: EurActiv
Eastern Europe struggling to meet EU climate targets
16 July 2010
The EU's Eastern European newcomers, who still need to catch up with the rest of the Union in terms of economic and social development, face an uphill battle to attain the 'climate targets' laid out in the bloc's 'Europe 2020' strategy, a round-up of articles from the EurActiv media network reveals.
The EU has adopted an overall target of producing 20% of its energy from renewable sources by 2020, broken down into different targets for each country and taking as a basis their level in 2005.
Bulgaria's target is 16%, the Czech Republic and Hungary's is 13% and Slovakia's is 14%, while for Poland and Romania the targets are 15% and 24% respectively.
It was recently decided that the burden of cutting greenhouse gas emissions will be shared by means of a complicated mechanism, compensating Eastern European countries for their earlier efforts to cut down CO2 emissions (during the period following the collapse of their heavy industries after the fall of communism) with allowances to be auctioned.
Most East European countries appear opposed to the proposal to move beyond the 20% greenhouse gas emission target. For the time being, only the European Commission has analysed this option. [...]
Source: EurActiv
Accelerating the transformation of Europe through innovation
At the joint session for EU Industry and Research Ministers during the informal ministerial meeting in Brussels on 15 July, discussions were held on the subject of ‘Accelerating the transformation of Europe through innovation’. The Belgian Presidency summarizes this constructive discussion as follows.
Ministers underline the sense of urgency for a highly ambitious and integrated innovation strategy, based on strong synergies between innovation policies and between stakeholders. The upcoming flagship "Innovation Union" is of crucial importance to meet the Europe 2020 Strategy objectives and Ministers call to focus on the solutions necessary to implement it efficiently in order to find the shortest ways from research to market. Furthermore, with innovation being the key of transition towards a greener and competitive industry, this flagship should be designed and implemented in close interconnection with the flagship "An Industrial policy in the era of globalisation".
Both EU and national budgets are under pressure due to the current economic and financial crisis. If budgetary cuts in RDI and Higher Education were made, it would take us further away from the 3% target. Avoiding this requires political will and collective action. Specific actions also need to be undertaken to accelerate investments in RDI so as to support the transition of the EU economy towards an energy and resource efficient and competitive knowledge economy that ensures sustainable growth. All bottlenecks that constrain investments in innovation must be addressed.
Source
Food industry's green efforts may hit price wall
15 July 2010
The European food and drinks industry is finalising plans to measure its environmental performance but increasingly price-aware consumers might derail their efforts, the European Commission cautioned.
A European round table bringing together the food industry, farmers and consumer groups has drawn up a series of 10 guiding principles to assess the environmental impact of food and drink products during their entire life cycle.
The principles, agreed on 13 July, will guide the round table's future work on developing a uniform and scientifically reliable methodology for assessing the environmental impact of food and drink products.
It is also meant to serve as a communication tool for companies wanting to boast their green credentials.
The methodology, which is expected to be finalised by 2011, will address key sustainability challenges facing the food value chain, including climate change, resource efficiency, water use and waste reduction.
Jacqueline Minor, director of consumer affairs at the European Commission, noted that informing consumers does not necessarily change their behaviour.
While 83% of consumers say they worry about the environmental impact of the products they buy, they do not always opt for the most sustainable products, because prices are of greater concern to them, she explained.
Minor also suggested that price awareness among consumers is likely to increase in the future, meaning that the short-term benefits of lower costs will prevail over the long-term benefits of sustainable products.
Source: EurActiv
Kroes resists subsidies to spur EU smart tech
14 July 2010
Her statement came as a new expert group was established by the European Commission to develop smart technologies in Europe, such as photonics, nano-electronics, biotech and nanotech.[....]
Even if Kroes did not completely rule out using state aid as an incentive to boost smart tech investment in Europe, her stance represents a significant turnaround compared to previous EU positions on the issue. [...]
If Kroes' position is representative of the entire college of commissioners, then KET industries, like semiconductors, nanotech or photonics, might have to rely on lower public support for their business in the coming years.[...]
Source: EurActiv
EU to promote SME exports
9 July 2010
A new EU study reveals that small firms which trade internationally create more jobs and are more innovative. However, just one in four SMEs has exported in the last three years, prompting the European Commission to promote "internationalisation" in its forthcoming innovation strategy.
Internationally-active businesses report employment growth of 7%, while those focused only on local markets grew by 1%.
However, there is concern at the low interest in international trade among SMEs. Just 4% of those not doing business outside their home country plan to branch out beyond their borders.
EU officials said the forthcoming Research and Innovation plan will look at ways of helping companies tap into fast-growing export markets. Innovation and internationalisation go hand in hand, but SMEs are often unaware of public support available.
The new innovation strategy will take a broader view, including the promotion of novel business models and new services.
Debate is ongoing on whether to merge EU agencies responsible for innovation and international trade as part of the new innovation plan.
Source: EurActiv
Entrepreneurs 'forgotten' in EU innovation policy
5 July 2010
The EU's approach to innovation policy is too focused on science and research, with too little attention paid to business, according to entrepreneurs.
The 'Europe 2020' strategy put innovation at the heart of the EU's blueprint for competitiveness, but plans to publish a 'research and innovation' strategy this autumn are under fire.
Speaking at a conference in Brussels, former Belgian Entrepreneur of the Year Bart Van Coppenolle described the European Commission's approach to innovation as "totally wrong".
Van Coppenolle, founder of Belgian hardware company Metris, said up-and-coming innovators are sceptical of the EU's flagship innovation policy.
"Innovation is about entrepreneurship, not science and research, as the Commission believes. We already have excellent scientists. It is not always about inventing new technologies but more about integrating existing ones," Van Coppenolle said.
The Commission's emphasis on patent issues is no compensation for tax cuts by national governments, according to entrepreneurs at the conference, which was hosted by Eurochambres, an umbrella group of chambers of commerce.[...]
There was also criticism of the time taken to secure EU funds and the high rejection rate for applications from SMEs.
Piet Verhoeve of Televic, a high-tech communications firm, said local funding sources are often a more attractive option for smaller companies.[...]
Source: EurActiv
EU seeks to break patent translation deadlock
2 July 2010
Innovative companies could see a dramatic reduction in the cost of patenting new inventions, if a controversial European Commission plan is adopted by EU governments. The new rules could pave the way for a single European patent to be issued in one of just three languages – English, French or German.
The move is designed to make translation costs 20 times cheaper and promises to bring to a close a long-running language dispute which has scuppered efforts to streamline Europe's expensive patent system. However, the decision to examine and grant patents in the three languages currently used by the European Patent Office (EPO) could cause friction with Spain and Italy who are unhappy with the preferential treatment given to English, French and German.
English, French and German are working languages of the EU and the EPO. At present, 48% of patents are field in French or German, with the remainder presented in English.
In an effort to quell disquiet, the EU executive is proposing a special arrangement for member states where German, French and English are not official languages. Inventors from these countries will have the option of filing applications in their own language and having the cost of translation into a working language of the EPO reimbursed.
Sources: EurActiv
Belgium took over the EU Presidency on 1 July, following the six-month Spanish Presidency
2 July 2010
The Belgian Presidency will provide appropriate follow-up to the global evaluation of future budget priorities (post-2013), for which a Communication from the European Commission is expected for the thrid quarter of 2010.
Research and Innovation will be highlighted as priorities during the second half of 2010 within the context of the EU 2020 Strategy, through the "Innovation Union" flagship initiative. The Belgian Presidency will favour an integrated approach covering multiple facets of innovation - technological, non-technological and social - responding to the current challenges and the needs of businesses, particularly SMEs.
Other research-related priorities will include:
> Simplification of administrative procedures and financial controls in FP7 and in light of the development of FP8;
> Definition of framework conditions for Joint Programming Initiatives;
> Mobility of researchers;
> Promotion of improved integration in universities and research institutes within the knowledge triangle;
> Development of the role of regions in the development, implementation and monitoring of European R&D policy;
> Initiatives to reinforce the contribution of R&D to a sustainable society;
> ITER and 7th Euratom Framework Programme;
> Progress in the definition of a European vision for space exploration.
Finally, under the Belgian Presidency, the Council will continue its work on the resolution of open questions for the EU patent and the unified patent litigation system.
Source: EARTO
EC proposes translation arrangements for future EU Patent
1 July 2010
The European Commission presented a proposal on translation arrangements for a future EU Patent. This is the final element needed for a single EU Patent to become a reality.
Currently, obtaining a patent in Europe costs ten times more than obtaining one in the US. This situation discourages research, development and innovation, and undermines Europe's competitiveness. The idea behind the European Patent is to allow innovators to protect their inventions at an affordable cost, with a single patent covering the entire EU territory with minimum translation costs and without the need to validate this patent at national level.
The new proposal builds on the successful three language system of the European Patent Office (EPO) and, if adopted, would drastically reduce existing translation costs.
Source: EARTO
| Copyright © 2007 ERRIN | Terms of use |  |
