ERAB calls for 'new renaissance' in Europe
The European Research Area Board (ERAB) has released its first annual report, highlighting the need for a new spirit to be instilled in European research by 2030. The overriding message in the publication is the need for the kind of fervour for change that swept through Europe during the Renaissance period in the 15th and 16th centuries. Today, an equivalent revolution in thought, society and science is needed to deal with the undeniable challenges that confront the soon-to-be world population of nine billion people. 'As an advisory body, we have a mandate to sketch a view of Europe's future in research, and to suggest ways to achieve it,' the board members explain. 'We believe it an important contribution to our common future to stimulate thought and action on these two basic questions: Where do we want to go, and how do we get there?' ERAB has identified six broad policy areas where the 'new Renaissance' can be realised: (1) the creation of a united ERA; (2) solutions to grand challenges; (3) the interaction of science and society; (4) the collaboration of public and private sectors in open innovation; (5) the encouragement of excellence; and (6) the promotion of cohesion. For each topic, the board has also set milestones as indicators with which to measure progress. The members note that, above all, trust needs to be reinstated between science and society, which they liken to the need for a social contract based on three 'Rs': rigour in decision making, respect for one another and the environment, and taking responsibility for our actions. In his accompanying foreword to the report, EU Commissioner for Science and Research Janez Potocnik explains that no citizen can afford to bury their head in the sand when it comes to engaging with the consequences of the changes taking place around us. 'This holistic thinking and approach epitomised the first 'Renaissance', where scholars and artists moved relatively freely around Europe among the centres of learning and culture,' Commissioner Potocnik writes. 'While this privilege was the domain of a few at that time, it should be our ambition, in the new 'Renaissance', that this should be the expectation of all citizens, especially in the field of research and innovation.' Chaired by Professor John Wood of Imperial College London in the UK, ERAB comprises 22 eminent members from the fields of science, academia and business who have been asked to provide independent advice to the European Commission on the realisation of the European Research Area (ERA). The ERA vision was formally launched in 2000 with the aim of unifying research in Europe, so that joint, cross-border programmes could be developed, knowledge could be shared, and researchers could collaborate more effectively. The report, 'Preparing Europe for a New Renaissance - A Strategic View of the European Research Area', represents the culmination of the board's first year of activity.