Changes at the Joint Research Centre
The European Commission has introduced a series of modifications to the structure and organisation of its Joint Research Centre. This entails a radical change in the management and cooperation mechanisms between the Commission and the scientific teams operating at the JRC. The JRC is currently composed of seven institutes located in five European countries, with the mission of providing technical and scientific support to the development, implementation and control of Community policies. The most significant change is the creation of the Institute for Health and Consumer Protection (IHCP) which will concentrate on the consumer protection issues formerly within the remit of the Environment Institute. This Institute will now concentrate more on today's main environmental issues such as the greenhouse effect and climate change, waste management, water and renewable energy. The Institute of Advanced Materials, which was formerly managed in two sites, will now be managed from one site only and all institutes have been allocated a specific management unit. It is envisaged that these changes will reinforce the JRC's capacity to respond to the scientific needs of the Commission.