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Spring 2008
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Stempra newsletter
Eurochat Bonne année to you all. Over here in Belgium our main Christmas present has been an interim government. The country had managed just over six months without an effective administration and edged close to complete schism before the old (and very heavily defeated in the June election) Prime Minister Verhofstadt managed to patch up a temporary deal that places him back in charge. The exercise demonstrated one of the main strengths of the membership of the Euro-zone. The stability of your national currency no longer depends on the competency (or indeed existence) of a national government. On January 1 Malta and Cyprus entered the Euro zone taking the total number of EU nations in the zone to 15 – a majority in the enlarged EU. The rise of the Euro over the past year against the dollar (in January 2007 a Euro was worth under US$1.30, now it trades at around US$1.50) has been consistent and there is a clear trend towards the Euro supplanting the mighty dollar as the currency of choice for global reserves. In my view the UK should jump aboard now before it is too late! WISE in Slovenia But back to the science. And welcome to the Slovenian Presidency that takes the chair of the EU until 30 June. High on the Slovenian’s RTD agenda is "unlocking the enormous potential of women in the world of science and research". The Slovenian Presidency hopes to bring a new impetus to this issue by introducing examples of best practice for "family-friendly scientific careers" and to "improve the situation of researchers, in particular of young researchers and women.". The unique feature of this initiative is that it will not be led by a balding old bloke but Slovenian Minister of Higher Education, Science and Technology Mojca Kucler Dolinar who is not only a woman but also relatively young - being in her mid-thirties. Other RTD priorities for the presidency are to promote the more effective inclusion of the Western Balkan Countries into the European Research Area (ERA), to evaluate the role and importance of research infrastructures with a strong focus on regional aspects and the ERA, the active continuation of work on new instruments such as the Joint Technology Initiatives (JTIs), the initiatives under Article 169 of the Treaty (aka mega projects) and – last but certainly not (unfortunately) least – the next steps in the establishment of the "visionary European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT)". An idea already well past its sell-by-date. ERC lottery Ironically, in the light of the Slovenian aims, the final results of the European Research Council (ERC) call for independent researcher grants (aka starter grants for younger researchers) was announced just before Christmas. The ERC received over 9000 applications and will award around 300 researchers with big grants during 2008. The successful projects involve researchers from 170 host institutions in 21 countries representing 32 different nationalities. The average age of successful applicants is 35 (i.e. some are not so young) and 26% are women. You will be pleased to know that the UK has the most successful host institution ‘hit-rate’ representing almost 20% of the top 300 proposals, while German researchers represent the most successful nationality at just under 14%. However, the overall 3% success rate is very low and the whole process has been described as a “real lottery” by some Commission officials (who should know) so it’s a big question whether the ERC’s latest grant scheme – the Advanced Grant scheme for experienced researchers – will draw quite such a response. This flagship initiative aims to channel some € 4 billion to the very best research projects and the most talented researchers working in Europe over the next 6 years. Prizes galore! Talking of excellence, on 12 March the gala European Science Awards ceremony will take place in Brussels. This event will cover the prestigious annual Descartes Prize for Collaborative Research (worth a share of almost €1.5 million to the winners), the Marie Curie Excellence Awards and the Science Communication Prize. As I am writing the brochure, I know who has won, but am obviously sworn to secrecy. However I can reveal that there should be champagne all round for at least one UK research institution on the night! A bientôt - Tim |
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