Policy

Research excellence relies not only on funding but also on the right governance and culture, according to experts. Credit — Pixabay/ jarmoluk

01 February 2018

Life scientists unite to close EU's innovation gap

Nepotism, a lack of transparency and poor governance are among some of the challenging conditions faced by researchers in Central and Eastern Europe, according to a consortium of life scientists who have set up a project to raise the level of research excellence in those countries.

Energy poverty is caused by income limitations and energy inefficiency, according to experts. Credit – Max Pixel/ image is in public domain

energy | policy

31 January 2018

Online observatory aims to combat energy poverty

If you have ever run up arrears on your bills or shivered without turning on the heat at home during winter because you are concerned about the cost, then you may be experiencing energy poverty.

Sea-based agriculture that cultivates large quantities of algae could help triple or quadruple the amount of food we get from our oceans. Credit - pxhere/ picture is in public domain

agriculture | environment | policy

08 December 2017

Algae and krill may be a tough sell for European consumers

People will need to be persuaded to eat new types of seafood if we are to extract more food from the oceans and feed growing human populations, according to fishing industry experts.

The European open science cloud will tie researchers together in a collaboration space. Credit — pxhere/ picture is in public domain

open science | policy | ict

30 November 2017

Nine things we now know about the European open science cloud

The idea of creating a shared online repository that would make all data from publicly funded research available for anyone to investigate and use, sounds like a laudable and ambitious plan. But how exactly would a European open science cloud (EOSC) work in practice? On 28 and 29 November, data experts, policymakers and scientists gathered in Brussels, Belgium, to discuss the way forward. Horizon went along and here are nine things we learned.

We need to make sure everyone benefits from new technologies so as not to widen inequality, a social innovation conference has heard. Credit — by École polytechnique - J.Barande, licensed under CC BY-SA 2.0

open innovation | policy

29 November 2017

Could the fourth industrial revolution combat inequality?

New technologies like artificial intelligence, self-driving vehicles and the internet of things could be used to reduce the widening economic gulf that is emerging in modern societies.

Europe's top innovation problem is how to scale up companies, according to Dr Hermann Hauser. Credit – Flickr/ Franz Johann Morgenbesser

interview | open innovation | policy

21 November 2017

You are never going to have breakthrough ideas without risk – Dr Hermann Hauser

High-risk, high-reward ideas in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and synthetic biology are typical contenders for support from the EU’s new European Innovation Council (EIC), which aims to help European innovators and entrepreneurs scale up their ideas internationally, according to Dr Hermann Hauser, serial entrepreneur, who is a founding partner of Amadeus Capital and founder of ARM in the UK.He heads up the EIC advisory board, which on 20 November published their first set of recommendations for the future direction of the EIC.

A 10-year research partnership between Mediterranean countries will tackle water scarcity and food insecurity in the region. Image credit – CC0

policy | open to the world

13 November 2017

Jordan joins Mediterranean research effort to tackle water, food insecurity

Jordan has become the latest country to sign up to an international research effort to tackle water scarcity and food insecurity in the Mediterranean region.

Commissioner Moedas says that political leaders should talk more about science and innovation. Credit – Flickr/ Web Summit

policy | open innovation

09 November 2017

European taxpayers are changing lives, but people don’t always know it - Commissioner Moedas

Carlos Moedas, EU Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation, has called for political leaders to speak more about science and innovation to connect people with the life-changing research that is funded by their taxes and has the potential to combat urgent global problems.

Paris, France, is home to the world's largest start-up campus. Credit – Station F / Patrick Tourneboeuf

policy | open innovation

07 November 2017

Paris is named the 2017 innovation capital of Europe

Paris, France, has been named 2017's European Capital of Innovation thanks to an 'inclusive innovation strategy', which saw it scoop the EUR 1 million first prize in the EU's iCapital awards. The awards, which are designed to recognise the most innovative cities in EU countries and those associated to the Horizon 2020 funding programme, were announced on 7 November at the Web Summit in Lisbon, Portugal. Two runner-up prizes of EUR 100 000 were awarded to Tallin, Estonia and Tel Aviv, Israel, and the prize money will be used to scale up and further expand the cities' innovation efforts.

The last EUR 30 billion of Horizon 2020 includes priorities for start-ups, open science, digitalisation and tackling extremism. Credit – European Union, 2017/ Audiovisual Service/ Georges Boulougouris

policy

27 October 2017

EUR 30 billion in research spending allocated for 2018-2020

The final three years of the EU’s Horizon 2020 funding programme will see EUR 30 billion go towards tackling challenges such as low-carbon living, digitalisation, the circular economy and security, as well as backing to promote market disrupting innovation.