Mattias Björnmalm, PhD’s Post

Mattias Björnmalm, secretary-general of the CESAER group of European science and technology universities, told Research Professional News: “Europe’s R&I system remains far from where it needs to be to compete globally. While there has been some progress, much higher ambitions are needed.” He said the text shows the “clear limitations” of relying on voluntary action from member states, and that a legislative act on the ERA, which has been proposed by Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, “would be a welcome step” as “a legislative and mandatory approach is now essential”. “The current setup, dominated by extensive discussions around soft governance approaches, policy agendas and technical working groups, does not seem capable of driving the transformative and decisive change needed. The future of the ERA must be rooted in stronger enforcement mechanisms that engage high-level decision-makers, rather than being largely relegated to lower-tier and more technical discussions,” he said. But he added: “Unfortunately, this is largely absent” from the text. “As von der Leyen stated, we must act decisively and put ‘research and innovation, science and technology at the centre of our economy’. The swift development and adoption of a highly ambitious ERA act would be an excellent place to start.” Full text of article in Research Professional: https://lnkd.in/dW-H4E2X Full text Communication published yesterday: https://lnkd.in/dGQP8m7c

The ERA act proposal is “very good news” and is in line with Draghi’s vision, Mattias Björnmalm, secretary general of CESAER, an association of European universities of science and technology, told Science|Business. It comes as discussions are taking place around the next ERA policy agenda for 2025-2027. Stakeholders gathered in Brussels this week for an event hosted by the Commission looking at past achievements and future opportunities. During the conference, there was “a palpable sense of excitement that we are now firmly moving away from a low-level operational and voluntary approach, towards a high-level, bold, coordinated and mandatory, continent-wide push,” Björnmalm said. The R&I union, the ERA act, and the fifth freedom are different labels for the same fundamental goal. The priority should be “tangible progress in the funding landscape to prevent falling further behind global leaders”, coupled with “a robust legislative framework to support the free flow of researchers and innovation across Europe”, he said. More quotes in article below! https://lnkd.in/eXpgHvab

To all policymakers in my network, this might be of interest, especially if you work in science and research policies 🥽 👩💻 Last week, Science Europe published the concluding statement of the 2024 High Level Workshop on #ERA. See below and stay tuned for the full report, which will be published soon! A commitment to the following priorities is required: 🌍 Guarantee freedom of scientific enquiry across Member States as a cornerstone of excellence and innovation. 🌍 Secure autonomy of scientific and institutional governance within a clear framework of accountability, grounded in the principle of freedom of scientific inquiry. 🌍 Improve conditions for researcher mobility across Europe and beyond to attract and retain talent. 🌍 Increase both European and national funding (the latter to 3% of GDP) for R&I, as a primary means to further strengthen the competitiveness of Europe. 🌍 Make reciprocal conditions for collaboration a guiding method towards tackling global challenges. 🌍 Foster Open Science practices as the main way to accessing scientific knowledge equitably. See the full statement here: https://lnkd.in/eQ2GF_YT #R&I #innovation #ERA #competitiveness

President Ursula von der Leyen's plan to introduce a European Research Area (#ERA) act could mark a significant step towards establishing #research and #innovation as the fifth freedom of the EU's single market. The goal of creating a single space for knowledge, #education, and research has been discussed for years but has faced political obstacles. Now, with growing support from experts and political leaders, there is renewed optimism that this vision could finally become a reality, providing a major boost to Europe's #competitiveness in #science and innovation. 📌 More: https://lnkd.in/ewcmK3zv

A plan for an European Research Area (#ERA) Act is expected to pave the way for #research and #innovation to become the fifth freedom of the single market https://lnkd.in/eUTvfwVp

Hardly can wait to the Association happening and even more innovation projects funded with Swiss partners on board! #swissinnovation #switzerland #europeancommission #europeanfunding #innovationfunding #researchinnovation #sme #innovation #innovationmanagement #enterpreneurship #swissstartups #industry #university #appliedresearch #fundingopportunity scienceindustries InnoGrant Advisors KLG Innosuisse State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation SERI Euresearch Science|Business

📢 Join our event on the EU budget for #Research and #Innovation! 2 October - 15:45-17:00 in Brussels Enrico Letta will introduce his view on European R&I and why it is crucial to radically step up the investments in EU’s next budget  Maria Leptin will discuss the benefits of frontier research and innovation. More speakers will be announced soon Programme and registration: https://lnkd.in/dPjFK7sM 2 October - 15:45-17:00 in BrusselsThis autumn, the newly elected European Parliament will begin developing their positions, and the candidates for the future European Commission will be announced. These leaders will play a crucial role in shaping Europe's future through the development and adoption of the next long-term EU budget. The newly published Draghi report urges Europe to increase investments in R&I. As part of the Research Matters campaign, this event offers a platform for discussing the vital importance of investing in research and innovation in a way of addressing current and future geopolitical and societal challenges. The discussions will take place ahead of the publication of the first proposal for the Multiannual Financial Framework (MFF), expected in the first half of 2025.  Where? CSIC Office, Rue du Trône 62, Brussels. Our partners: CESAER European University Association The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities Coimbra Group EASSH – European Alliance for Social Sciences and Humanities Science Europe League of European Research Universities (LERU)European Round Table for Industry - ERT University of Bergen UnILiON - Universities Informal Liaison Offices Network YERUN - Young European Research Universities EU-LIFE #EUPRIO - European Association of Communication Professionals in Higher EducationEARMA Arces EuroTech Universities Alliance

"It's optimists who change the world." Could not agree more with former commissioner Janez Potočnik's final words at last week's Conference on the European Research Area in Brussels, supported by our amazing INSPIRING ERA consortium. Specifically in this case, it seems like a true European single market for R&I really is moving further into reach right now. Whether it concerns free access to data or better working conditions for researchers - this could provide an invaluable push for research, innovation, knowledge and education all across Europe. https://lnkd.in/e7Ru6WeR

We now have a name for the next research and innovation commissioner, but today's announcements raise just as many questions as they answer. Why separate R&I from education? And why no mention of Horizon Europe's successor programme in the letters to commissioners? For those wondering what to make of the new college, Science|Business has published three stories today on Ekaterina Zaharieva and the other commissioners who will have a role in shaping R&I policy. Links to the others in the article below! https://lnkd.in/euPQdSQM

Mercredi 6 mars, le STS Lab de Université de Lausanne a le plaisir d'accueillir Alexandra Hofmänner (Université d’Aachen et Université de Bâle) pour parler de politiques scientifique en Suisse. Some reflections on science and the state in Switzerland Collaboration between science and policy sparked unusually intense and polarizing public debates during the Covid-19 pandemic. Public attention on the interplay between science and policy, however, swiftly diminished even before the Swiss National Covid-19 Science Task Force was dissolved at the end of March 2022. When the Swiss Federal Council in December 2023 approved of a framework agreement on how to activate national scientific expertise in future crises, this news received minimal coverage in the daily press. This presentation offers a brief overview and examination of recent developments, placing them within a broader legal and historical context. The analysis highlights a fundamental discord between legislative norms and expectations regarding the relationship between science and the Swiss state. The roots of this discord can be traced to the wording of the Swiss federal constitution, which addresses “research”, “innovation”, and “teaching” but notably omits "science". This omission carries far-reaching implications for the promotion of science in Switzerland and, ultimately, impacts public trust in the collaboration between science and policy. Disucssion: Marc Audétat (Université de Lausanne) Plus d'info ⬇ https://lnkd.in/e2yQsJ-h