Scientific Council. European Research Council Excellence in Research through Competition erc

Transcription

1 Scientific Council European Research Council ERC LAUNCH CONFERENCE erc erc

2 European Research Council ERC LAUNCH CONFERENCE 27 and 28 February 2007, Berlin IMPRINT Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) Kennedyallee Bonn Germany Tel Fax Photos: Copyright DFG, European Commission

3 CONTENTS Preface 6 Prof. Matthias Kleiner President of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) Opening Remarks 7 Supporting the Established and Next Generation of Top Research Leaders in Europe Prof. Fotis C. Kafatos ERC President and Chair of its Scientific Council On the ERC The ERC A Success Story of European Integration 8 European Commission Frontier Research A New Chapter in European Research 9 German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) Conference Programme Session The ERC: a new impulse for top-level research in Europe Session 2 The ERC: a contribution to society and the knowledge-based economy Session 3 The ERC: a European player with an international reach Information 4

4 Preface Prof. Matthias Kleiner, President of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) Opening Remarks Supporting the Established and Next Generation of Top Research Leaders in Europe The launch of the European Research Council (ERC) marks a historic moment in European research policy. In addition to making frontier research a political priority, it opens up new opportunities for the most talented and creative researchers from all over the world. Excellence, a bottom-up approach and peer-reviewed competition are the key characteristics of the ERC. They guarantee a science-driven mode of funding and lay a firm foundation for the sustainable success of the first pan-european funding agency for frontier research in Europe. In view of Germany s Presidency of the Council of the European Union, the German government has asked the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) to organise the ERC Launch Conference. The DFG has arranged this event in coordination with the Alliance of German Science Organisations and in cooperation with the European Commission, the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research and the Scientific Council of the ERC. The aim of the event is twofold: while it provides an occasion to celebrate and raise awareness of this historic achievement, it also creates an opportunity to set the stage and look beyond today s challenges. A total of 280 scientific experts from around the world have been invited to attend the ERC Launch Conference. Together with the Scientific Council they will exchange views on the strategic and programmatic intentions of the ERC. They will discuss its future function as an important driving force for frontier research in Europe, its contribution to society and the knowledge-based economy, and its role as a European player with an international reach. In this respect, the interplay between the ERC and existing national funding agencies will be of crucial importance. A fruitful and productive partnership is a prerequisite for the promotion of excellence in research through competition. The ERC Launch Conference will certainly contribute to fostering this partnership, which in turn will maximise the added value of the ERC to the European research landscape. The creation of the European Research Council (ERC) by the common action of the political institutions of the European Union (the Commission, the Parliament and the Council of Ministers) represents a landmark event for science policy in our continent. By this action, Europe is taking a decisive step towards a common European Research Area. The ERC will be the first pan-european funding agency for frontier research in all fields of knowledge, from the Humanities and Social Sciences, to the Life Sciences and to the Physical and Engineering Sciences. The Scientific Council is the autonomous policy-setting body of the ERC. It consists of 22 distinguished scientists from a broad range of fields, who have been selected by an independent procedure and appointed by the Commission in a personal capacity for 4-year terms. Their mission is to develop the ERC s scientific Prof. Fotis C. Kafatos, ERC President and Chair of its Scientific Council strategy and operational programme, including creation of a top quality evaluation system to select the best proposals at the frontier of knowledge in accordance with the highest standards of science and scholarship. The Scientific Council works in partnership with the Commission s Dedicated Implementation Structure (DIS), which handles the operational aspects including funding. For greater flexibility, the DIS will be incorporated soon in an ERC-specific Executive Agency. The Scientific Council is fully aware of the responsibility that the creation of the ERC, funded with 7.5 bn Euro over 7 years, represents. It pledges to continue to work diligently in the next 4 years, as in the preparatory 14-month phase to date, to promote leading-edge, individual investigatorinitiated research and thus to contribute to the creativity and competitiveness of Europe. Starting-stage as well as fully established investigators, irrespective of nationality and located in, or moving to, any member or associated state of the Union, will be able to compete for support under the Starting and Advanced Grant schemes of the ERC, respectively, with scientific excellence as the sole criterion for funding. We are committed to establish the ERC as an outstanding research funding agency that attracts the very best researchers, beginning in 2007 with those who are embarking on or consolidating their independent careers. 6 7

5 On the ERC The ERC A Success Story of European Integration European Commission Frontier Research A New Chapter in European Research German Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) The launch of the ERC is both a great moment for research in Europe and a significant achievement for the European Union. It is a concrete expression of the EU s commitment to a future based on knowledge, Europe s greatest resource. Financed from the EU s research budget, the European Research Council will for the first time provide Europe with a mechanism dedicated exclusively to funding the brightest and best ideas pushing forward the frontiers of knowledge, whether from multi-national teams or individuals. Advances in such basic understanding can provide us with knowledge that will equip us to address the many varied challenges that we face today and in the future. So the European Research Council fits squarely into the EU s vision of a globally competitive, knowledgebased society and economy. Looking more closely at European research, there is a shared ambition to create a European Research Area an integrated well-functioning research policy system within Europe that makes the most of what we have. The ERC will make an important contribution to that process. It will be in an unrivalled position to shape a truly European research landscape, working with academia and industry, researchers and policy-makers at regional, national and European level. In the past, support of basic research was provided by national research funding schemes only, whereas the Framework Programmes concentrated on industrial research. With the establishment of the European Research Council (ERC) as an instrument of support for frontier research under the 7 th EU Research Framework Programme, a new chapter in European research funding is being opened. The generation of new knowledge accelerates the development of future innovations and provides a perfect starting point for establishing and opening up markets. Innovations based on excellent frontier research will help to overcome barriers, create new jobs and secure existing jobs. The German Council Presidency will contribute towards identifying the changing needs of a modern European society and towards taking sufficient account of these needs with regard to innovation and competitiveness. The aim is to overcome supposed contradictions, to strengthen pioneer research as a link in the valueadded chain and to establish it within the innovation process. The ERC will start its work under the German Council Presidency in the first half of To celebrate this important new element of the 7 th EU Research Framework Programme, the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF) asked the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) to organise the ERC launch conference in cooperation with the national science organisations, the European Commission and the BMBF. With this conference, the DFG is aiming to initiate a continuous dialogue between the ERC and the international scientific community to ensure that the European Research Council will develop its full potential to the benefit of science and research as well as the European society as a whole. 8 9

6 SESSION 1 The ERC: a new impulse for top-level research in Europe CONFERENCE PROGRAMME Tuesday, 27 February 2007, Berlin Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BBAW) 12:00 pm Registration and Lunch 12:00 pm Press Conference 1:15 pm Dr. Janez Poto č nik, Dr. Annette Schavan, Dr. Angelika Niebler, Prof. Fotis C. Kafatos, Prof. Ernst-Ludwig Winnacker, Prof. Matthias Kleiner 1:30 pm Welcome and Opening Remarks Prof. Matthias Kleiner, President of the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft (DFG, German Research Foundation) 1:35 pm Dr. Angela Merkel, President of the European Council and Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany 2:00 pm Dr. Janez Poto č nik, European Commissioner for Science and Research 2:15 pm Dr. Angelika Niebler, Member of the European Parliament, Chair of the Committee Industry, Research and Energy, Rapporteur for the FP7 Specific Programme Ideas A Europe-wide competitive funding structure for frontier research executed by individual teams is a key component of the European Research Area and complements other Community and national activities. Such a structure will help to reinforce Europe s dynamism and attractiveness for the best European and international researchers, but also for industrial investors and sponsors. 2:30 pm Keynote Speech Prof. Fotis C. Kafatos, ERC President and Chair of its Scientific Council, Greece 3:00 pm Coffee Break 3:30 pm Panel Discussion 5:15 pm Moderator: Prof. Margret Wintermantel, President, German Rectors Conference (HRK), Germany Prof. Jüri Engelbrecht, President, All European Academies (ALLEA), Vice President, Estonian Academy of Sciences, Estonia Dr. Daniel Estève, ERC Vice President and Vice Chair of its Scientific Council, France Prof. Dieter Imboden, President, Swiss National Science Foundation (SNSF), Switzerland Dr. Robert Aymar, Director General, European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), Switzerland Prof. Maciej Zylicz, President, Foundation for Polish Science (FNP), Poland Dr. Angelos Michaelides, EURYI award winner 2005, UK 5:15 pm Session Conclusion 5:30 pm Prof. Federico Mayor Zaragoza, ERC Expert Group, Chairman, Foundation for a Culture of Peace, Spain 7:00 pm Reception It will actively contribute to strengthening and increasing Europe s capacities in world-class research in all fields of science and technology. Europe needs to attract and retain the very best researchers. This not only requires the necessary resources but also the autonomy and flexibility needed to turn goals into reality and to master the most ambitious challenges. This session will consider how the ERC can initiate, stimulate and catalyse the structural adaptation of the European research base. More precisely, it will discuss how the positive impact of the Conference Dinner axica Congress Centre, business attire/shuttle service see page 15 ERC can be maximised to create complementarities between the ERC and national/multilateral research funding organisations and funding systems. In this respect, it will be important to discuss the communication channels and decision-making processes of the participating players at strategic, programmatic and operational levels. Consequently, the discussion will contribute to explaining how the ERC can adapt to the European research environment and vice versa. 7:30 pm Welcome Speech: Prof. Matthias Kleiner, President of the DFG 7:45 pm Dinner 9:00 pm after Dinner Speech: Prof. Sir David King, FRS, Chief Scientific Adviser to HM Government, UK 10 11

7 Wednesday, 28 February 2007, Berlin Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities (BBAW) SESSION 2 The ERC: a contribution to society and the knowledge-based economy Investigator-driven frontier research is a key driver of wealth and social progress as it opens up new opportunities for scientific and technological advancement and is instrumental in producing new knowledge that leads to future applications and markets. In establishing the ERC, Europe will finally have the structure that enables it to make the most of its research potential and resources, to generate knowledge and to translate it into economic value and social welfare. This session will address the benefits that the ERC delivers in supporting frontier research in new or rapidly-emerging fields that may lay the foundations for future prosperity and growth in Europe. Important aspects will be how the ERC succeeds in establishing partnerships with the industrial world to stimulate and increase private investment in fundamental research and to translate cutting-edge knowledge into leading innovation and economic benefit. 9:00 am Keynote Speech Prof. Andrea Bonaccorsi, University of Pisa, Italy 9:30 am Panel Discussion Moderator: Dr. Ekkehard D. Schulz, Chairman, Executive Board of ThyssenKrupp AG, Germany Prof. Imre Kondor, Rector, Collegium Budapest, Hungary Hubert Jacobs van Merlen, President and CEO, IIE SA, Luxembourg Prof. Helga Nowotny, ERC Vice President and Vice Chair of its Scientific Council, Austria Dr. Mark J. Walport, Director, Wellcome Trust, UK Dr. Arend Oetker, Chairman, Donor s Association for the Promotion of Sciences and Humanities in Germany (Stifterverband), Germany Dr. Massimiliano Cavallini, EURYI award winner 2006, SCRIBA Nanotecnologie/CNR-ISMN Bologna, Italy SESSION 3 The ERC: a European player with an international reach The ERC s openness to third countries and its appeal to industrial investors and foreign researchers will make it a strategic partner in the global international research landscape. The ERC will develop partnerships with major national funding agencies and with research performers, including universities, thereby taking into account the creation and transfer of knowledge. This session will address the ERC s potential international strategies, with a view to quickly establishing relations with matching structures in industrialised countries and emerging economies, as well as playing a constructive role in developing countries. Furthermore, it will aim to contribute to the advancement of science and mankind s well-being at the global level. 1:30 pm Keynote Speech 2:00 pm Dr. Elias A. Zerhouni, Director, National Institutes of Health (NIH), USA 2:00 pm Panel Discussion Moderator: Prof. Leena Peltonen-Palotie, ERC Scientific Council, Finland Prof. Peter Gruss, President, Max Planck Society (MPG), Germany Prof. Catherine Bréchignac, President, Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), France Prof. Motoyuki Ono, President, Japan Society for the Promotion of Science (JSPS), Japan Prof. Xu Zhihong, President, Peking University, China Prof. Georg Winckler, President, European University Association (EUA), Austria Dr. Brian O Neill, International Institute for Applied Systems and Analysis (IIASA), USA 3:30 pm Coffee Break 4:00 pm Key Conclusions and Future Prospects Prof. Ernst-Ludwig Winnacker, Secretary General of the ERC, Germany 4:30 pm Closing Remarks Prof. Matthias Kleiner, President of the DFG 11:00 am Coffee Break 11:30 am Session Conclusion 11:45 am Prof. Carlos Martínez Alonso, President, Spanish National Research Council (CSIC), Spain 12:00 pm Lunch 12 13

8 Dinner location 2 axica Kongress- und Tagungszentrum Pariser Platz 3 Please note: There will be a shuttle service from the conference venue BBAW to the axica via your hotel. Accommodation suggestions 3 Hilton Berlin Mohrenstrasse 30 (Gendarmenmarkt) Tel Fax Distance to conference venue BBAW: walking distance 5 Jolly Hotel Vivaldi Berlin Friedrichstrasse 96 Tel Fax Distance to conference venue BBAW: walking distance 4 6 Information Conference Office Conference Venue Maritim proarte Hotel Berlin Friedrichstrasse 151 Tel Fax Distance to conference venue BBAW: walking distance Park Plaza Wallstreet Wallstrasse D Berlin Tel Fax Distance to conference venue BBAW: 10 minutes by taxi Ms. Andrea Klein DFG Berlin Office WissenschaftsForum Markgrafenstrasse 37 Tel Fax Mobile andrea.klein@dfg.de 1 BBAW Berlin Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities Jägerstrasse 22/23 The BBAW is located at the Gendarmenmarkt in the city centre of Berlin. It can be reached by taxi, bus or subway. For transfer to the conference venue please take the following information into account: from Berlin Tegel Airport by taxi: 30 minutes by bus: 25 minutes drive and 10 minutes walk (bus stop Unter den Linden ) by subway: at least 40 minutes from Berlin Tempelhof Airport by taxi: 20 minutes by subway: 20 minutes from Berlin Schönefeld Airport by taxi: 40 minutes by subway: 35 minutes from Berlin Central Station by taxi: 10 minutes by bus: 15 minutes by subway: 15 minutes For details on public transport see extra flyer Berlin City Map. Reichstag Tiergarten Ebertstraße Luisenstraße Museumsinsel Brandenburger Tor Dorotheenstraße Pariser Platz 2 Holocaust Mahnmal S1 Friedrichstraße Unter den Linden Unter den Linden Luisenstraße RE Behrenstraße U2 Oranienburger Straße U6 4 5 Spree S Friedrichstraße Friedrichstraße U6 S1 S2 S25 S5 S7 S75 S9 Französische Straße U2 S1 Staatsbibliothek Oranienburger Unter den Linden Französische Straße U6 Stadtmitte 3 Humboldt- Universität 1 Mohrenstraße Leipziger Straße Jägerstraße Straße Monbijoupark Spittelmarkt Gendarmenmarkt Hausvogteiplatz U2 Lustgarten Schlossplatz Hackescher Markt S Spandauer Straße Breite Straße Mohrenstraße Hackescher Markt S5 S7 S75 S9 Nikolaiviertel U2 Gertraudenstraße Berliner Rathaus Wallstraße Fischerinsel