Busquin says IST will play major role in construction of ERA
Research Commissioner Philippe Busquin has said that information society technologies (IST) will play a key role in constructing the European research area (ERA). Speaking on at the IST 2001 conference in Düsseldorf, Germany on 3 December, Commissioner Busquin said that: 'The information and communication technologies industry is writing one of the most fascinating pages in the history of mankind. The information society primarily holds the promise of equal development on a global scale, by increasing opportunities for education, health and security.' Mr Busquin said that these new technologies will be key to the implementation of the ERA in four areas. Firstly, the growth of broadband Internet connection will help to match growth in user demands. New technologies will also aid the sharing of scientific resources through specialist databases, remote access to equipment and networking of public and private laboratories. Furthermore, information and communication technologies (ICT) will give rise to new methods of working in all scientific sectors, through, for example, new methods of visualisation, modelling and data exploitation. Finally, the Commissioner said that new technologies are changing the scientific community itself, highlighting new technologies which enable researchers to register an article on a Web-based database before it has been published. He cited the e-BioSci project, supported under the 'Quality of life' programme of the Fifth Framework programme for research, which has received 2.4 million euro of funding to develop databases and electronic publications in the fields of genomics and proteomics. To tackle these new challenges, Mr Busquin and Enterprise Commissioner Erkki Liikanen have proposed a new priority for the Sixth Framework programme, (FP6) - 'Knowledge technologies and their interfaces.' Commissioner Busquin emphasised that the new Framework programme will be more than just the instrument of Community research policy, but will become the financial instrument 'par excellence' for supporting the ERA. He explained that two of the 'new instruments' around which FP6 will be structured - networks of excellence and integrated projects - are particularly well adapted to meet the needs of research on new technologies. Networks of excellence aim to help research entities come together to carry out common programmes of activities, while integrated projects are large scale partnerships which will mobilise significant resources around precisely defined research objectives. The 'critical mass' and increased integration created by these instruments will help to drive forward work in areas such as mobile and satellite communications, micro-electronics, nanotechnologies and transaction security, Mr Busquin said. 'Our major objective over and above scientific and technological development,' he explained, 'is to contribute to the development of a strong industry base in Europe, above all in the area of high technology.' Mr Busquin said that he proposed the European research area (ERA) initiative in order to tackle Europe's research weaknesses and put Europe at the head of global scientific and technological excellence. He explained that information technology is one area where Europe has fallen behind, giving the example of the World Wide Web, invented in Europe but subsequently developed in the USA. He also highlighted the creation and growth of high technology start-up companies and high technology experts as areas where further work is needed. But the outlook is not all gloomy, according to Mr Busquin, with Europe leading the way in several strategic areas such as aeronautics, chemistry and mobile communication innovations such as the mobile phone. He said that new technologies will also be decisive in helping to boost Europe's role in global efforts to tackle issues such as climate change and the fight against disease and hunger. The Commissioner also remains confident that despite the current world economic climate, the new technologies sector will weather the storm and retain its dynamism. He said that in order to achieve this, 'we must mobilise all our efforts and talent, especially that of our young scientists, in our universities and - above all - in our businesses.'