We Need to Talk About Research Security on Campus
Governments are strengthening security safeguards – sometimes with unintended consequences. It is time for an open dialogue where these are brought to the table.
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Request for Delay to Horizon Europe Calls As War in Israel Stalls Science
Israeli scientists have described how Hamas's attack on the country has all but brought research to a standstill, with researchers now called up for a military assault on Gaza.
Horizon Europe Successor Needs €200B to Meet Future Challenges, Say MEPs
Horizon Europe Successor Needs €200B to Meet Future Challenges, Say MEPs
The European Union's next seven-year science funding programme has to have a budget of €200 billion to ensure that future challenges can be met, say two of the European Parliament's top voices on research and innovation policy, Christian Ehler and Maria da Graça Carvalho.
Swiss Eye 'window of Opportunity' for Horizon Europe Association After Federal Elections
Swiss Eye 'window of Opportunity' for Horizon Europe Association After Federal Elections
Swiss voters will go to the polls on October 22 as the country's scientists endure another year locked out of Horizon Europe, the EU's research and innovation programme. In May 2021, Swiss leaders walked away from negotiations to agree a new overarching deal between Brussels and Bern, citing fears that it would allow EU citizens working in Switzerland to claim equal welfare payments.
Commission Gears Up to Confront the Risks Generative Artificial Intelligence Poses to Science
New Zealand Trumpets Flying Start in Horizon Europe
New Zealand has won four Horizon Europe bids so far, outperforming its own expectations but raising questions over how it can control participation costs if they spiral beyond Wellington's forecasts.
European Universities Brace for Mountain of Bureaucracy After US National Institutes of Health Changes the Rules
European Universities Brace for Mountain of Bureaucracy After US National Institutes of Health Changes the Rules
European universities and research institutes say rule changes by the US's main health research funder will force them to hire staff to deal with vast amounts of new paperwork, potentially delaying projects and weakening transatlantic collaboration.
Europe Eyes Closer Research and Innovation Cooperation with Africa
Europe Eyes Closer Research and Innovation Cooperation with Africa
Africa is fast becoming a key priority on the EU's foreign policy agenda and research and innovation has a role to play in deepening the partnership - but investment and integrated strategies are needed to encourage more cooperation.
Swiss Expect to Wait Until at Least 2025 for Association After UK Horizon Europe Deal
Swiss Expect to Wait Until at Least 2025 for Association After UK Horizon Europe Deal
Swiss university leaders expect to have to wait until at least 2025 before associating to Horizon Europe after the UK struck a deal with Brussels last week. Switzerland, like the UK, has been excluded due to wider political disagreements with the EU. But while the UK solved its dispute over the Northern Ireland protocol in February this year, Switzerland hasn't even formally re-started talks with Brussels that could pave the way for association.
Viewpoint: Will AI Help Big Tech Dominate Science?
Only a very few global actors like Microsoft, Google and Apple may end up dominating the AI market, due to their scale and market power. How this will shape the future of science, the source of AI's power, has only begun to be discussed.
How the UK and EU Did a Deal over Horizon Europe
The UK now has guarantees that it won't have to make more than a 16% net contribution to Horizon Europe, according to UK and EU sources, a reassurance that has allowed today's deal to go ahead. Since February, negotiators have been locked in discussions over a technical part of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), agreed back in 2020 setting out post-Brexit relations, including what the UK will pay for association.
Ivanova's To-do List: Time to Lay the Foundations for the Next EU Research Programme
Pending Parliament's approval, Iliana Ivanova will take the reins as commissioner for research, innovation and education later this month. With European elections due in June 2024, interest groups in Brussels now want her to look beyond what will be a short tenure and focus on the first phases of shaping the next EU research framework programme, due to start in 2028.
US Extends Science and Technology Agreement with China, Buying Time to Renegotiate the Deal
US Extends Science and Technology Agreement with China, Buying Time to Renegotiate the Deal
The US has extended a historic science and technology agreement (STA) with China by six months, but now needs to renegotiate the deal to mollify concerns that it aids Beijing's technological and military rise and fails to ensure a reciprocal research relationship.
Work on Creating a Single European Market for Research Enters the Next Phase
Work has started on the 2025 - 2027 policy agenda of the European Commission's ERA Forum for Transition, the expert group set up to shape the European Research Area (ERA) and create a borderless, single market for research, science and technology.
Universities of Applied Sciences Are Shaping Up to Boost EU Research Outputs
Universities of Applied Sciences Are Shaping Up to Boost EU Research Outputs
There's a new player in Horizon Europe - the universities of applied sciences (UAS), a broad term for second tier higher education institutes such as polytechnics, regional colleges and institutes of technology that were set up as teaching-only bodies but which over time have moved into research. Given their roots, UAS were historically left out of the EU's research programmes but are slowly improving their standing as EU-funded research becomes more policy-heavy and market-oriented.
Commission's Research Directorate to Develop a New Artificial Intelligence in Science Policy
Commission's Research Directorate to Develop a New Artificial Intelligence in Science Policy
The European Commission is to add a new unit with a brief to set down guidelines for the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI) in science, according to a leak on the upcoming restructuring of the research and innovation directorate general, DG RTD.
Back to School: What's on the European Research and Innovation Policy Agenda This Autumn
Back to School: What's on the European Research and Innovation Policy Agenda This Autumn
After a summer of fun, the EU research and policy bubble is back in business and bracing for a busy run up to Christmas: a new research commissioner, negotiations on the EU's ambitions to be a leader in critical technologies and (hopefully) a much-anticipated final sprint for UK association to Horizon Europe.
Bans, Flagships, and a Green Pivot: The State of EU-China Research Relations
Bans, Flagships, and a Green Pivot: The State of EU-China Research Relations
China's involvement in Horizon Europe is becoming increasingly restricted to environment-focused and basic research, but is still holding up despite geopolitical headwinds and the disruption to face-to-face contact caused by the pandemic.
Shortage of Funding and Lack of Scale Are Holding Back EU Industrial Policy
Since March 2020 the European Commission has been making moves to improve Europe’s industrial competitiveness. Experts say things are moving in the right direction, but warn there is not enough money or enough focus on scaling up.
European Universities Need a Fine-grained Approach to Economic Security Risks
European Universities Need a Fine-grained Approach to Economic Security Risks
The newly launched European Economic Security Strategy aims to address Europe's economic vulnerabilities at a time of heightened geopolitical tensions. Among other objectives it sets out to better define technologies that are critical for Europe, or which have potential dual civil and military use.
EU Proposal on Research Careers Seen As a Step in Right Direction, but Falling Short on Ambition
EU Proposal on Research Careers Seen As a Step in Right Direction, but Falling Short on Ambition
The European Commission's long-awaited proposal to improve career pathways for researchers put forward last week is viewed an important step in the right direction, but advocates want to see more ambition and political pressure to usher in change.
'We Can't Afford to Stop Science': EU Research Infrastructures Call for Help with Their Energy Bills
'We Can't Afford to Stop Science': EU Research Infrastructures Call for Help with Their Energy Bills
A new report sets out the dramatic impact that rising costs are having on some of Europe’s critical science facilities and calls on governments and the Commission to step in.
Commission's Plan to Increase Funding for the Missions Met with Disapproval
Commission's Plan to Increase Funding for the Missions Met with Disapproval
With the research budget already overstretched, any more funding for the Missions cannot be at the expense of other parts of Horizon Europe, critics say
EU Commission Announces Plan to Improve Working Conditions for Young Researchers
EU Commission Announces Plan to Improve Working Conditions for Young Researchers
The European Commission has announced three new measures aimed at improving career paths and working conditions for young researchers in the European Research Area (ERA). The proposal, put forward today by the Commission, includes a new European framework for research careers, a new charter for researchers and a new European competence framework for researchers.
Researching the Future: Head of the EU Research Directorate Has a Plan for Shaping the 2028 - 2034 Framework Programme 10
Researching the Future: Head of the EU Research Directorate Has a Plan for Shaping the 2028 - 2034 Framework Programme 10
Marc Lemaître, recently installed as head of the EU research directorate, is ready to lead the charge as the European Commission starts laying the foundations for the next Framework research programme.
Spanish EU Presidency to Spearhead Strategic Direction for Research and Innovation Policy
Spanish EU Presidency to Spearhead Strategic Direction for Research and Innovation Policy
Europe, closer: with that statement of intent Spain has kicked off its six-month stint leading the EU. For science this means a focus on expanding the reach of research and innovation and at the same time advancing with North Africa and Latin America.
The Security Crackdown by Canadian Government is Hampering Research Collaboration with China
The Security Crackdown by Canadian Government is Hampering Research Collaboration with China
The Canadian government's stepped up security for foreign research collaborations has created a climate of fear in which some scientists have stopped submitting grant applications and others have quietly severed ties with collaborators in China.
Brussels' Research Bubble Has High Hopes for New Commissioner Nominee
Research policy experts are breathing a sigh of relief that Brussels is about to get a new research commissioner who has credentials suggesting she's up to the task, after the European Commission president picked Iliana Ivanova to take over the running of the EU's €95.5 billion Horizon Europe R&D programme. Ivanova is a Bulgarian member of the European Court of Auditors (ECA) and a former member of the European Parliament. Her experience as an EU auditor is seen as a positive sign.
European Research Integrity Code Updated to Reflect Advances in Artificial Intelligence
A new version of the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity has been published that includes guidance on artificial intelligence (AI), navigating EU data protection laws and how to approach changes to research impact assessments.
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