Final Report Summary - ICRI2012 (Copenhagen International Research Infrastructure Conference 2012)
Executive summary:
The aim of the project has been to support the organisation of the first International conference on RI (ICRI2012), which took place in Copenhagen from 21 to 23 March 2012 under the Danish Presidency of the European Council in collaboration with the European Commission (EC).
The Danish Presidency recognises the importance of RIs to the European Union's (EU) competitive edge and believes it is vital to strive to ensure stable financing of the construction and operation of excellent RIs (RIs) and ensure access to the best existing RIs. The conference topics correspond well, with Denmark long-term strong political focus on issues relating to climate change, sustainable energy, information and communication technologies (ICT) and health.
The conference was for the first time focussed on the international dimension, but otherwise followed the structure and outline of the past six European conferences on RI (ECRI), of which the latest was held in Barcelona in 2010 under the Spanish Presidency.
ICRI 2012 had its main objectives in increasing international collaboration on RI in order to manage the grand challenges in today's societies. RIs play a crucial role for the promotion of knowledge and technology and are of central importance to drive excellent science.
Project context and objectives:
The conference has its main objectives in increasing international collaboration on RIs in order to manage the grand challenges in today's societies. RIs play a crucial role for the promotion of knowledge and technology and are of key importance to drive excellent science. Never before has there been such an urgent need to act globally to tackle the grand challenges before us on climate change, health, energy supply etc. Every discipline from humanities and social sciences through to physical and environmental sciences is joining forces to create contemporary international RIs focussed on these pressing needs on a global scale. RIs are not just large physical facilities; they are physically dispersed, virtual and data infrastructures managed as international entities. In this new global context ICRI2012 address the following questions:
1. why do we need global RIs? Which types of world-class infrastructures are best suited for a global approach?
2. how to increase the use of these facilities and how to support access to them based on excellence?
3. how to strengthen international cooperation in the implementation, governance, operation and use of RIs?
4. how to nurture synergies between RIs from differing disciplines and promote interdisciplinary approaches?
5. how to manage large international RIs focussed on global challenges?
6. how to increase awareness of the education and training possibilities that RIs offer?
7. how to tackle data, in particular how to address the distributed nature of either the facilities themselves or the user communities?
To answer these questions, ICRI2012 would draw on existing experience, including:
1. lessons to be learnt from existing RIs across different fields. Are there specific additional needs for managing those addressing global challenges? If so, in which areas? Are there common characteristics?
2. the experience that existing global RIs and other bodies can share, e.g. the global Earth observation system of systems (GEOSS), global science forum of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and group of senior officials on global RIs.
The purpose of the conference was to make specific recommendations on how international cooperation for RIs can be effective in the future. This included calling for a coordinated support to (and strengthening of) existing initiatives, highlighting possible needs for additional effort and developing a vision for an open science and a global ecosystem of RIs and the actions needed to achieve it. ICRI 2012 would also provide important input to the European Strategy and to the implementation of the next EU Framework Programme 'Horizon 2020'.
The conference was structured in a way which underpinned the objectives of the conference. The conference was an event that spanned three days. Day one of the conference was used to set a common frame and understanding of RI and its importance in facing global challenges. This part of the conference outlined different perspectives on how to promote the international collaboration on RI.
The speakers represented high level stakeholders from different countries across the globe, as well as highly profiled representatives from key political institutions, including the United Nations (UN), EC Commission, the World Bank and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
By offering high level inspiring presentations on conference day one vital experiences and ideas that could help generate a solid conference output was brought into play. Day one ended with a standing buffet dinner in the exhibition area together with a dedicated poster session. Having the buffet dinner in the poster area ensured maximum impact of the poster session.
On conference day two ICRI2012 had four expert-facilitated parallel sessions within the four different subthemes of the overall conference topic 'Health, climate change, energy and e-infrastructures', during which the participants exchanged knowledge and experiences and developed ideas for future actions and recommendations. The parallel sessions was based on a participatory approach and carried out by means of expert moderators and rapporteurs, which documented the proceedings of the individual sessions.
The parallel sessions was followed by a plenary session, in which former European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructure (ESFRI) chair John Wood summed up the conclusions from the parallel sessions. Thus, the conference format was based on interaction and dialogue and thereby served as inspiration to the conference participants. The goal was to stimulate discussions on global RI collaboration.
Lastly, during the last day of the conference, the results of the workshop discussions was presented in a high level panel discussion and afterwards qualified by the conference participants (conference day three). In order to facilitate this discussion a conference conclusion paper was presented and used in the discussions. ICRI 2012 ended with a closing address by commissioner Hedegaard.
Project results:
Description of main science and technology (ST) results and foregrounds
This section describes the content and main results of the work packages (WPs) included in the overall project, namely WP1 (Manage), WP2 (Prepare), WP3 (Communicate) and WP4 (Execute).
This section also contains pictures from the conference, overview maps and publication examples.
WP1: Manage
Overall the consortium management consisted of several intermingled tasks. Most importantly was the monitoring of the progress of the project, including ensuring that timetables was kept and deliveries met, within the constraints of the budget. To this end the consortium management has been very successful, given that there have been no major delays and all deliverables have been met, without any major budgetary discrepancies. Communication was also an extremely important management issue, for the success of the event. The project coordinator spent considerable resources communicating with the commission who was a very large stakeholder in the event and part of the project team. The relationship between the DASTI organisers and the commission organisers was excellent, based on mutual respect and a common understanding of the tasks and requirements entailed in such an event. In the day to day running of the project communicating with subcontractors was an important task, in order to ensure that the requirements and suggestions of the project, was being taken care of by the subcontractors. Continuous quality control of the work performed was also part of the consortium management.
Management structure %
The coordinator Troels RASMUSSEN had the overall responsibility for overseeing the progress of the project. This includes ensuring that deliverables were being delivered in due time and that milestones was being met. The coordinator also had the responsibility for communicating with the EC programme officer, including reporting progress and delivering financial statements and activity reports at the end of the project. The coordinator had formal authority to ensure that decisions and spending are kept within the framework of the grant agreement and other legal constraints.
The ICRI 2012 pilot committee had the sole task of monitoring the progress of the preparation of the conference and to intervene if necessary. The pilot committee had no active role in the decisions made in relation to the conference, except if no agreement could be reached otherwise. The role of the pilot committee was primarily to resolve disputes and disagreements that could not be resolved in the programme or organising committees (OCs). No such incidence occurred during the project. The pilot committee was made up by DASTI deputy director Hans Müller and directorate general (DG) research, directorate B, director Octavia Quintana Trias.
The ICRI 2012 programme committee (PC) was responsible for the detailed operations concerning the programme preparation and overall planning of the conference. The committee was made up of key persons involved in RI policy, including ESFRI, DG Research, e-infrastructure reflection group (e-IRG) and as host DASTI. The input from the PC was vital for the formulation of themes for the conference and for identifying the best speakers for conference both with regard to their knowledge and presentation abilities.
The PC was chaired by head of unit, DG Research and technological development (RTD) RIs. Due to the change of position of Hervé Pero, the PC was chaired by Peter Sloth in the intervening period until the new head of unit Ana Arana-Antelo was in place.
The PC members are:
1. DASTI, Peter Sloth, head of division, RI
2. DASTI anders Kjaer, senior adviser, RI
3. EC, Hervé Pero, head of unit, fission, DG RTD, K4
4. EC, Ana Arana-Antelo, head of unit, DG RTD, RIs
4. EC, Pekka Karp, deputy head of unit, DG information society (INFSO), GEANT and e-infrastructures
5. EC, Mary Kavanagh, DG RTD, international cooperation
6. EC, Elena Righe Steele, DG RTD, RIs
7. ESFRI, Beatrix Vierkorn Rudolph, ESFRI chair
8. e-IRG, Gudmund Host, e-IRG chair
9. Australia (AU), Martin Gallagher, Australian Mission to the European Union
10. South Africa (SA), Daan du Toit, South African Mission to the European Union
11. Sweden (SE), Terry Callaghan, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
12. United Kingdom (UK), John Wood, Association of Commonwealth Universities
13. Denmark (DK) Liselotte Hojgaard, Copenhagen University Hospital.
The PC observers are:
1. coordinator Troels Rasmussen, DASTI, RIs
2. Agnès Robin, EC, RIs, OC
3. Sharon Kearney, EC, RIs, OC.
The PC worked very closely together with the OC, which was also present at PC meetings as observers. The OC was the central committee of the conference linking the programme and conference plans outlined by the PC with the actual preparation of the conference. The OC was the communication hub within the organisational set up, which ensured exchange of information and monitoring of the progress in the various work packages, including logistics, communication, reporting and invitations. The ICRI OC was chaired by Anders Kjaer, senior adviser at DASTI.
The ICRI 2012 OC:
1. DASTI, Troels Rasmussen, project coordinator, RIs
2. DASTI anders Kjær, RIs
3. EC, Agnès Robin, DG RTD RIs
4. EC, Sharon Kearney, DG RTD RIs.
The OC is supported by a communication team (CT), which had the main responsibility for the dissemination and communication activities. The CT was the focal point for dissemination of key messages from the conference to the press and media, encouraging interaction with prominent speakers in order to ensure visibility of international infrastructure and the discussion on global challenges. Another vital part of the committee's task was to facilitate a successful and interactive outcome of the poster sessions, in order to highlight a number of successful RIs and projects.
The members of the communication committee were:
1. DASTI, Steen Bruun Jensen, communication officer
2. DASTI, Anne Birgitte Klitgaard, RIs
3. DASTI, Faisel Khan, RIs
4. DASTI, Per Kolbech Nielsen, RIs
5. EC, Sonia Spasova, DG RTD, RIs
6. EC, Janine Delahaut, DG RTD, RIs
7. EC, Ruiz Carrillo de Albornoz Salvado, DG RTD, RIs.
WP2: Prepare
ICRI 2012 was the first international conference on RI and a major event during the Danish Presidency. The event has generally been acknowledged as a very successful one, based on the responses from stakeholders and delegates. The overall planning of conference content and format was done mostly locally at DASTI with important support of the project organisers from DG Research (DGR) and with strong input from the PC. Particularly the planning of the PC meetings was done in close cooperation between DGR and DASTI.
Overall programme
One of the most important tasks during the preparatory phase was to get speakers for the conference. Due to the format of the conference, particularly having four parallel sessions, the conference required a very large number of speakers, chairs and rapporteurs. For all sessions a total of 96 speakers, chairs and rapporteurs were required. Due mainly to the fact that some chairs covered more than one session, a total of 77 people, acting as speakers, chairs or rapporteurs, were needed for the entire event.
The project was generally very successful in recruiting relevant speakers. The good result was no doubt helped by the huge amount of contacts that the PC members had. The outstanding list of speakers could not have been achieved without PC members using these contacts to get speakers committed.
Noticeable speakers
1. Danish Minister of Education Morten Østergaard
2. Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn
3. Commissioner Neelie Kroes
4. Commissioner Connie Hedegaard
5. Cypriot Minister for Health Stavros Malas
6. Russian Deputy Minister of Science Sergey Mazurenko
7. Nobel Prize Laureate Dan Schechtman
8. Professor Hans Rosling of Mindgap
The sessions were organised and planned in the OC and PC. In the last months before the conference, the chairs of the individual sessions were also used as advisors concerning the programme. Both speakers and chairs received instructions from the organisers on the context and format of the sessions, in order to facilitate a common understanding of the expected outcome. All speakers were contacted both by DASTI with regards to practical information and by the chairs with regards to the format of the sessions. This ensured good communication between the organisers and speakers, which was also helpful with regards to the running of the conference as the speakers could easily communicate with the organisers in cases where there were any issues with their presentations or the format etc.
Professional conference organiser (PCO)
The PCO for ICRI 2012 was the private company Crone & Co (refer to http://www.croneandco.com(opens in new window)). The PCO was hired by the Danish Presidency to handle registrations and hotel reservations and to handle other event specific tasks for the Presidency events taking place in the Copenhagen area including ICRI 2012.
The registration tool allowed attendees to register, using a password sent to them in the invitation letter. Apart from registering their personal data, the registration module also allowed participants to register their date of arrival and which sessions they would attend. This was particularly important in relation to the parallel sessions. Attendees were also requested to register which of the dinners they would be attending, thus ensuring that the catering orders matched the actual number of people attending the dinners.
The registration tool also contained an abstract and presentation tool used by the speakers for the conference to upload their presentations. Some speakers uploaded their presentations in advance and some speakers only uploaded when they registered at the registration desk. Regardless, the abstract and speaker tool was very valuable, as it made it possible to download the right presentations for the specific sessions by the Bella centre staff handling the sound and vision for the individual sessions.
The PCO also handled hotel reservations in connection to registration. The PCO provided DASTI with an administrator login, which allowed DASTI to monitor the total and daily number of registrations. This was a very valuable tool. In particularly the tool was valuable in deciding when to send out reminders, based on the registration activity. It was also helpful in providing insight into the distribution of delegates per country and on sessions. The PCO provided a hotline to which the delegates could call in relation to any issues regarding hotel reservation. The PCO also monitored the number and distribution of hotel reservations made by the delegates and ensured that the lump bookings made with the hotels was adjusted accordingly. Approximately half the non-Danish delegates chose not make their hotel reservation through the conference website and accordingly the PCO cancelled a number of reservations before the event. In general the working relationship with the PCO worked extremely well. The PCO was very flexible and very responsive to our wishes. Also the PCO handled the integration of the conference website and the registration system.
Venue Bella Centre
The area of the Bella Centre allocated to ICRI 2012 consisted of a large registration area, four meeting rooms and an exhibition area, split into a poster and a booth area. In addition to this the delegates had the possibility of using a work station area equipped with 40 computers. Also, several smaller meeting rooms and offices were available at the first floor and for the official dinner a separate area was used adjacent to the exhibition area.
The exhibition area for ICRI 2012 took place in the main hall adjacent to the conference rooms. It was split into the booth area and the poster area. The poster area also doubled as the main catering area. In total 80 RI projects was on display in the exhibition area. The exhibitors were required to submit an application that besides contact details included an abstract and the main research area of the RI.
The main hall, with its large open space and glass roof, was an excellent meeting place, ensuring maximum exposure of the exhibitions on display and good interaction amongst delegates.
DASTI sent out a poster manual to the exhibitors with instructions on the requirements for being displayed at ICRI 2012.
Poster instructions:
Please respect the following instructions indicated below:
1. Each Poster Stand must be staffed during the poster session on Wednesday 21 March 2012 from 18.00 to 19.30. Furthermore, we recommend that all poster stands are staffed during the conference as needed, for example during coffee breaks.
2. Hanging of posters must be done before the start of the conference on Wednesday 21 March 2012 between 09.00 and 13.00 at the venue Bella Centre. Due to venue constraints, it is not possible for posters to be hung outside the time slot allocated. Please note that hanging of posters is expected to be carried out by the exhibitors themselves.
3. Information on poster location will at the latest be given when registering at the conference venue.
4. Please adhere to the poster stand size allotted to each exhibitor, namely 243 x 200 cm (height and width). It is recommended not to fill out the allotted space completely but to leave an empty margin around your poster giving the full poster session a more harmonious impression.
5. There are no printing services offered at the venue Bella Centre.
6. For any storage needs, please contact ICRI 2012 secretariat on-site.
7. Spot lights will be pre installed at each poster stand. If a power outlet is needed please contact the ICRI 2012 secretariat.
8. Any use of audiovisual (AV) equipment is at the exhibitor's own risk and responsibility. Unfortunately, no technical assistance from the conference organisers can be expected.
9. Posters can be attached to the stands with double sided tape or poster putty and blu-tack. This can be acquired from the ICRI 2012 secretariat.
Before the event the organisers distributed the poster projects in the exhibition hall, clustering the projects within the main scientific fields, i.e. social sciences, bio-med, environment, physical sciences, energy, e-science and materials and analytical facilities. This allowed the organisers prepare a map, which went into the poster booklet.
The booths were mainly reserved for larger organisations and institutions. Since the space available only allowed for eight booths, the actual decision on which institutions to have a booth rested solely with the organisers. DASTI and the commission each had a double booth. The other booths went to the European x-ray laser project (XFEL), European Spalation Source (ESS) Scandinavia, ESFRI, European Industrial Relationships Observatory (EIRO), European Environment Agency (EEA), European Joint Research Centre (JRC), GEOSS and GEANT.
Each booth was three by three meters and had as standard equipment a counter table and a stool. The booths were equipped with power sockets, three spotlights and a Sign Fascia board. In addition the booth exhibitors were able to order additional equipment for their booth. This included chairs and tables, book and brochure racks, computer monitors, digital versatile disc (DVD) players and television sets.
Social programme
The social programme for ICRI 2012 delegates consisted of a standing buffet dinner at the end of day one and a seated networking dinner at the end of day two. Before the dinner the delegates were invited to enjoy some refreshments while being entertained by the Aavat Choir, a Copenhagen based choir consisting of Greenlanders, performing the songs and dances of their native Greenland. Later in the evening the choir also gave a farewell song on the balcony overlooking the dining area.
The Danish Minister of Education invited the high level speakers of day one and other very important persons (VIPs) to attend a special luncheon prior to the opening of ICRI 2012. The luncheon was held on the top floor of the Bella Sky hotel for around 40 people.
Visual identifier and signage
The visual identifier for ICRI 2012 was prepared by web designer Sam Mansoor for DASTI. The identifier was used extensively throughout the project, i.e. on invitation letters, emails, website, printed materials and the signage for the conference, alongside the overall visual identity for the Danish Presidency.
Conference delegates and other attendees
The list of participants was collected by the OC and included the following groups:
1. EC representatives, DG Research and DG INFSO
2. Members of the European Parliament and the Danish Parliament
3. Government representatives from the 27 research ministries of Europe and internationally, including Brazil, Russia, India, China (BRIC), South Africa, Japan, United States of America (USA), Australia and others
4. Representatives from the national contact points and PC for RIs in Europe
5. ESFRI delegates
6. e-IRG delegates
7. Managers of research institutes operating major RIs
8. Representatives from the European funding research agencies and national science foundation (NSF)
9. Representatives from major European research institutes (EIROForum) and international institutions (ITER)
10. High level invited scientists representatives from overseas countries (depending on their talk to be confirmed by the PC)
11. Representatives from the European regions leader in supporting the RIs
12. Operators of public and private RIs
13. Principal investigators of ESFRI-agreed projects
14. Coordinators of Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) RIs funded projects
15. European wide financing bodies and banking organisations
16. Young researchers' representatives of the future of RIs.
The full list of participants was published as a conference pamphlet and is available for download from the ICRI 2012 website.
WP3: Communicate
Press handling
The CT was responsible for formulating newsletters and marketing the event to the press, the commission communication team handling the foreign press and DASTI handling the domestic press. A press tour was arranged for the members of the press who so wished. Since there was no budget for covering the press travel costs, the event did not have the number of journalists present as for the ECRI 2010 event in Barcelona. For this reason the press tour was kept very flexible, trying to accommodate the wishes of those journalists present for the event. Instead of having a large press conference, the choice was made to have a more informal doorstep event in which the Danish Minister of Science and the European Commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn met with the press. This worked very well.
Conference materials included the overall programme, a presentation of speakers' pamphlet and a presentation of the ICRI 2012 exhibitors. This material was given to the entire participant upon arrival. In all 800 copies of each pamphlet was printed. The materials were also available for download on the ICRI 2012 website in pdf and html formats.
Website
The conference website was developed with the help of the PCO. The website contained all relevant information, including programme, venue location, description of the context of ICRI 2012 and relevant information about Copenhagen area and Denmark. The website also contained a metro map and descriptions to getting around Copenhagen. OF great importance was the registration module handled by the PCO, in which the participants registered for the event and the specific sub events and accommodation. The website also contained contact information, i.e. a ICRI 2012 hotline.
An initial webpage was prepared in cooperation with the PCO, as part of the registration modules, in order for it to be ready for the preannouncements. We were extremely fortunate to have on our staff an employee who had past experience with web design and web programming who were able to instruct the PCO on any changes to the webpage had to be done by them on instructions given by DASTI. DASTI managed to have a working website ready for the invitations for the delegates to be sent out, which was deemed absolutely critical and we were able to improve the website continuously throughout the project. Furthermore, we have made hosting arrangements, which will ensure that the website remains open for at least five years after the event, thereby ensuring that the information on the website is accessible.
Registration
The conference was 'by invitation only'. The first batch of invitations was sent out by email from the ICRI secretariat at DASTI just before Christmas 2011. The formal invitation signed by DASTI Director Hans Müller Pedersen and DG RTD directorate B director Octavia Quintana Trias. Along with the invitation a link to the registration was provided along with a logon password.
During the month of January 2012 an invitation was sent out to potential exhibitors, mainly ESFRI project and large scale RI communication officers. The registration module allowed people invited as delegates to attend as exhibitors and vice versa and several people invited as delegates registered as exhibitors.
Printed materials
Conference materials included the overall programme and a presentation of speakers pamphlet, a presentation of poster projects and a list of attendees. This material was given to all participants upon arrival. In all 800 copies of each pamphlet was printed. The material was also available for download on the ICRI 2012 website in PDF and HTLM formats. All printed handouts for the conference was designed and drafted by the DASTI ICRI 2012 team. The development of the conference website (at http://www.icri2012.dk(opens in new window)) as well as conference materials, including the visual identity and logo was done at DASTI, with comments coming from the commission communication team.
WP4: Execute
Running of the event
DASTI enrolled a large contingent of DASTI personnel in the conference and provided service throughout the whole conference. A total of approximately 50 people from DASTI had tasks related to the running of the event, during the three-day period, thereby saving a substantial project cost related to hiring profession on site staff. The team from DASTI had an overall responsibility for the running of the various sessions, contact with speakers and moderator and taking conference minutes that were used in the conference report and as input to the main output of the conference.
DASTI staff performed the following tasks and roles:
1. Manning the information and registration desk
2. Picking up VIPs from airport
3. VIP handling at Bella Centre
4. Area guides helping delegates finding their way around the Bella Centre
5. Liaison officer with the exhibitors
6. Liaison officer with Bella Centre organisers, sound crew and catering
7. Communication officer
8. Meeting room logistics
9. Transportation logistics.
The organisers received several comments from both speakers and participants which expressed appreciation of the professional way the conference was conducted. On the practical side, it was worth noting that DASTI made sure that the number of people available for assistance was sufficient, something that contributed greatly to a good experience on behalf of the participants. The DASTI staff was service minded and welcoming and ready to take on any task given to them. On the technical side, Bella Centre staff assisted continuously so that all the various versions of presentations and visualisations ran smoothly throughout the conference.
With regards to the running of the parallel sessions, DASTI had senior employees who acted as support for the chair and rapporteur for each of the parallel sessions, both before, during and after the session, in order to ensure maximum feedback from each session in sync with the objectives of the conference.
Press doorstep
Instead of having a large press conference, the choice was made to have a more informal doorstep event in which the Danish Minister of Science and the European Commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn met with the press. This worked very well.
Coordination with other events
ICRI 2012 was an event which had a number of other events revolving around the conference. None of the costs or man-hours of DASTI associated with these events has been funded by this project. DASTI helped by coordinating the activities, which included the following:
1. ESFRI meeting: An ESFRI meeting was held on 20 March 2012. The meeting agenda was planned in its entirety by the ESFRI secretariat. DASTI provided the logistical and venue planning for the meeting. The meeting took place at Statens Serum Institut, with a dinner taking place in a nearby restaurant. The venue was provided free of charge by Statens Serum Institut. DASTI paid the costs associated to dinner, catering and sound.
2. ESFRI board meeting: The board of ESFRI had a meeting on 19 March 2012. This meeting was arranged at the DASTI premises in central Copenhagen.
3. Meeting of the Association of European Research Facilities (ERF): a meeting for the ERF was arranged. This was done with the ERF executive secretary Jean Pierre Caminade. The meeting took place on the morning of 20 March 2012 at DASTI.
4. Biobank Denmark Inauguration: The inauguration of the Danish National Biobank facility at Statens Serum Institute was held on 21 March at 10.45 thus allowing both the Danish Minister of Science and Commissioner Geoghegan-Quinn along with several other ICRI 2012 VIPs to attend the inauguration and a tour of the facility, before the VIP Luncheon and the official opening of ICRI 2012. The inauguration was funded entirely by Statens Serum Institut.
5. Data Workshop: A large data workshop hosted by Copenhagen University was held as a 12-12 meeting on 20 and 21 March. This workshop was planned by Prof. Peter Wittenburg with the support of DASTI and Copenhagen University at which the workshop was held. A total of 39 people attended the workshop prior to ICRI 2012. Approximately one third of the attendees to this workshop were internationals, recruited by Prof. Peter Wittenburg. This helped increase the number of internationals attending ICRI.
6. Presidency Coordination Denmark / Cyprus: Before the final session of ICRI 2012 a meeting was held in order to coordinate actions to be taken by the Danish and the Cyprus presidencies respectively, following ICRI 2012. The meeting was attended by the Cyprus minister for Health Stavros Malas and DASTI director Hans Müller Pedersen.
Conference conclusion paper
The OC was dedicated to formulating the ICRI 2012 conclusion paper, during the conference. Several meetings were held with the Danish and the Cypriot presidency representatives as well as key members of the PC in order to extract the messages from the conference and formulate them in a presentable form for the delegates.
ICRI 2012 conclusions
Recognises:
1. need to invest better in research and innovation to stimulate growth, boost competitiveness and create jobs
2. importance of RIs to tackle global societal challenges
3. new approaches needed to deal with data.
Encourages global exchange of views in:
1. decision-making and prioritisation
2. governance, management, cost containment
3. an access policy based on excellence
4. supporting global cooperation and trust building through open access to publications and data
5. a dissemination policy to raise citizen awareness
6. maximise economic and social impact
7. strengthen links with industry
8. governance structures to meet cross-border and international needs
9. capacity building with focus on training and mobility.
ICRI 2012 From Denmark to Cyprus: Taking recommendations forward
% 1. maintain international momentum and the cooperative spirit generated in ICRI 2012
2. joint initiatives such as international conferences should continue
3. a framework for training and mobility across borders
4. further development of e-infrastructures to ensure availability of scientific data, across disciplines
5. stimulation and facilitation of the setting up of new global RIs and the operation of existing ones (including e-Infrastructures), such as a global network of policy makers, building upon achievements of group of senior officials (GSO) and adopting the coordinated approach of existing intergovernmental fora (ESFRI, GEO).
The conference conclusion paper was presented and discussed during the final plenary session of the conference. The conclusion paper was published on the ICRI 2012 website and brought forward to the Competiveness Council's May meeting by the Danish Presidency.
Questionnaire
Due to the limitations on the website, we chose not to make an online survey in conjunction with the ICRI2012 webpage. Instead we opted for a simpler solution of making an electronic questionnaire in PDF format and send them to the delegates by email. Less than a 100 returned the questionnaire, which was unfortunate and can probably be attributed to the requirement of actively sending the questionnaire back. On the positive side, the total result of the delegate evaluation was extremely favourable. Around 94 % of the attendees found the organisation of event to be excellent (64 %) or very good (30 %) - based on the questionnaire replies. About 6 % found the event to be satisfactory and no one found the event to be either acceptable or poor.
Conclusion
ICRI 2012 has been a very successful event by making an important contribution to the development and further integration of global collaboration on RI, highlighting the importance of international collaboration on facing the global challenges concerning health, climate change, energy and e-infrastructure. Building on the GSO on RI, the foundation for establishing an international collaborative structure and thereby continuing the progress made by the GSO was established at ICRI 2012.
The event has also made a substantial contribution to the ongoing discussions on Horizon 2020 The ICRI 2012 conclusions pinpoints specific target areas for funding within the funding programme. The ICRI 2012 conclusions was presented on the competitiveness council's May meeting, thereby ensuring that the conclusions was brought forward to the political level, thus ensuring maximum impact.
The event was attended by 650 people from 48 countries. Although this was slightly less than expected, the attendees was indeed very high level policy and funding level representatives from across the globe, including national representatives of BRIC countries, Canada, the USA, Australia, South Africa and Europe. The interest in the event was also reflected in the very strong programme for the event, with many key stakeholders speaking at ICRI 2012.
Being the local organisers for the event on behalf of the Danish Presidency, the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation is very proud and honoured by the fact that 94 % of the attendees found the organisation of event to be excellent (64 %) or very good (30 %) based on the questionnaire replies. Almost 6 % found the event to be satisfactory and no one found the event to be either acceptable or poor.
Potential Impact:
The Danish Presidency has worked specifically to promote the results of ICRI 2012 towards political decision makers. The Danish Presidency has also worked closely with the Commission and the Cyprus presidency in order to ensure that the results of ICRI 2012 will be carried forward. ICRI 2012, as the previous ECRI's has been carried out in close cooperation between the Presidency and the Commission. As local organiser and host the Danish Presidency has had the main responsibility for ensuring impact of the conference during its tenure. In the longer term the responsibility for ensuring exploitation of results and impact lies with the Commission.
ICRI 2012 was specifically focussed on discussing the possibilities for working together at a global scale on RI in order to face global challenges in relation to some of the biggest challenges facing modern society, i.e. health, energy and the environment. ICRI 2012 also had targeted sessions on e-science, in relation to the global challenges.
The conclusions from ICRI 2012 were an important input into creating a common vision for the next decade both at European level and globally. The conference has helped to identify gaps in the existing RI landscape and the challenges of sharing data from different RIs across the globe, thus identifying the needs and actions required to face global challenges.
ICRI 2012 was an important forum for discussing the challenges facing Europe on establishing new RI in the face of the economic recession. RI and the critical mass of researchers are important drivers of economic growth, creating new economic activity as well as new job opportunities. But there are challenges in establishing new RI and to ensure usage of the facilities already in place. How to face these challenges and how to stimulate the funding mechanisms for speeding up the implementation of the ESFRI roadmaps was important input from the conference both to national funders and to the ongoing discussions on Horizon 2020.
The conference also stimulated international dialogue between RIs policymakers, which is vital for moving research forward on the global challenges. It was important for the event that the discussion on how to strengthen the interaction between RIs took place at an international level. The challenges faced by most countries around the world on health and energy and climate change are the same. Therefore it was important to establish a common understanding of RI needs and to discuss how different resources could be pooled into collaborative platforms to be established at an international level. Thus, the conference was very successful in influencing the development towards more integrated RI policies at European and international level.
The ICRI 2012 was instrumental in contributing to the Innovation Union commitment number 32 'to step up EU cooperation on the roll-out of the global RIs'. The conference was an important tool in formulating the EU's input to the GSO on Global RI, as well as a platform for presenting and discussing ideas from the GSO. Building on the GSO on RI, the foundation for establishing an international collaborative structure and thereby continuing the progress made by the GSO was established at ICRI 2012.
The conference is a disseminating activity. And for that reason the conference had as one of its main objectives to communicate the contents of the conference to the scientific community, to political stakeholders and in particular to the specialised press in Europe.
The discussions of the parallel sessions and plenary sessions were documented and a final conclusion paper from the conference including ideas and recommendations for action was formulated and published. The conference conclusions, was published on the conference website and distributed to important target groups The ICRI 2012 conclusions was presented on the competitiveness council's May meeting, thereby ensuring that the conclusions was brought forward to the political level, thus ensuring maximum impact. The event has therefore also made a substantial contribution to the ongoing discussions on Horizon 2020.
Main results achieved:
1. a total of 1 469 invitations was sent out
2. a total of 652 people attended ICRI 2012, of which 527 were delegates and/or exhibitors, 77 was invited chairs/speakers and 48 were DASTI personnel. Conference attended by 650 people from 48 countries, including, BRIC, USA, Canada, South Africa and Australia.
3. three days event with both plenary and parallel sessions
4. exhibition area with 80 posters and 8 booths
4. conference networking dinner for approximately 500 people.
5. speakers including Danish Minster of Education, Cyprus Minister of Health, Russian Deputy Minister of Science, EU Commissioners Márie Geoghegan-Quinn, Neely Kroes and Connie Hedegaard. The Australian Chief Scientist, Hans Rosling of Mindgap and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry 2011 Dan Schechtman
5. VIP luncheon for 40 people, including Commissioner Geoghegan- Quinn and Danish Minister of Science Morten Østergaard
6. conference paper on recommendations for further international collaboration on RI
7. three printed booklets for ICRI 2012, including the conference programme, presentation of speakers and presentation of exhibitors as well as a conference website including registration module.
List of websites:
'http://www.ICRI2012.dk'.
The aim of the project has been to support the organisation of the first International conference on RI (ICRI2012), which took place in Copenhagen from 21 to 23 March 2012 under the Danish Presidency of the European Council in collaboration with the European Commission (EC).
The Danish Presidency recognises the importance of RIs to the European Union's (EU) competitive edge and believes it is vital to strive to ensure stable financing of the construction and operation of excellent RIs (RIs) and ensure access to the best existing RIs. The conference topics correspond well, with Denmark long-term strong political focus on issues relating to climate change, sustainable energy, information and communication technologies (ICT) and health.
The conference was for the first time focussed on the international dimension, but otherwise followed the structure and outline of the past six European conferences on RI (ECRI), of which the latest was held in Barcelona in 2010 under the Spanish Presidency.
ICRI 2012 had its main objectives in increasing international collaboration on RI in order to manage the grand challenges in today's societies. RIs play a crucial role for the promotion of knowledge and technology and are of central importance to drive excellent science.
Project context and objectives:
The conference has its main objectives in increasing international collaboration on RIs in order to manage the grand challenges in today's societies. RIs play a crucial role for the promotion of knowledge and technology and are of key importance to drive excellent science. Never before has there been such an urgent need to act globally to tackle the grand challenges before us on climate change, health, energy supply etc. Every discipline from humanities and social sciences through to physical and environmental sciences is joining forces to create contemporary international RIs focussed on these pressing needs on a global scale. RIs are not just large physical facilities; they are physically dispersed, virtual and data infrastructures managed as international entities. In this new global context ICRI2012 address the following questions:
1. why do we need global RIs? Which types of world-class infrastructures are best suited for a global approach?
2. how to increase the use of these facilities and how to support access to them based on excellence?
3. how to strengthen international cooperation in the implementation, governance, operation and use of RIs?
4. how to nurture synergies between RIs from differing disciplines and promote interdisciplinary approaches?
5. how to manage large international RIs focussed on global challenges?
6. how to increase awareness of the education and training possibilities that RIs offer?
7. how to tackle data, in particular how to address the distributed nature of either the facilities themselves or the user communities?
To answer these questions, ICRI2012 would draw on existing experience, including:
1. lessons to be learnt from existing RIs across different fields. Are there specific additional needs for managing those addressing global challenges? If so, in which areas? Are there common characteristics?
2. the experience that existing global RIs and other bodies can share, e.g. the global Earth observation system of systems (GEOSS), global science forum of the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) and group of senior officials on global RIs.
The purpose of the conference was to make specific recommendations on how international cooperation for RIs can be effective in the future. This included calling for a coordinated support to (and strengthening of) existing initiatives, highlighting possible needs for additional effort and developing a vision for an open science and a global ecosystem of RIs and the actions needed to achieve it. ICRI 2012 would also provide important input to the European Strategy and to the implementation of the next EU Framework Programme 'Horizon 2020'.
The conference was structured in a way which underpinned the objectives of the conference. The conference was an event that spanned three days. Day one of the conference was used to set a common frame and understanding of RI and its importance in facing global challenges. This part of the conference outlined different perspectives on how to promote the international collaboration on RI.
The speakers represented high level stakeholders from different countries across the globe, as well as highly profiled representatives from key political institutions, including the United Nations (UN), EC Commission, the World Bank and the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
By offering high level inspiring presentations on conference day one vital experiences and ideas that could help generate a solid conference output was brought into play. Day one ended with a standing buffet dinner in the exhibition area together with a dedicated poster session. Having the buffet dinner in the poster area ensured maximum impact of the poster session.
On conference day two ICRI2012 had four expert-facilitated parallel sessions within the four different subthemes of the overall conference topic 'Health, climate change, energy and e-infrastructures', during which the participants exchanged knowledge and experiences and developed ideas for future actions and recommendations. The parallel sessions was based on a participatory approach and carried out by means of expert moderators and rapporteurs, which documented the proceedings of the individual sessions.
The parallel sessions was followed by a plenary session, in which former European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructure (ESFRI) chair John Wood summed up the conclusions from the parallel sessions. Thus, the conference format was based on interaction and dialogue and thereby served as inspiration to the conference participants. The goal was to stimulate discussions on global RI collaboration.
Lastly, during the last day of the conference, the results of the workshop discussions was presented in a high level panel discussion and afterwards qualified by the conference participants (conference day three). In order to facilitate this discussion a conference conclusion paper was presented and used in the discussions. ICRI 2012 ended with a closing address by commissioner Hedegaard.
Project results:
Description of main science and technology (ST) results and foregrounds
This section describes the content and main results of the work packages (WPs) included in the overall project, namely WP1 (Manage), WP2 (Prepare), WP3 (Communicate) and WP4 (Execute).
This section also contains pictures from the conference, overview maps and publication examples.
WP1: Manage
Overall the consortium management consisted of several intermingled tasks. Most importantly was the monitoring of the progress of the project, including ensuring that timetables was kept and deliveries met, within the constraints of the budget. To this end the consortium management has been very successful, given that there have been no major delays and all deliverables have been met, without any major budgetary discrepancies. Communication was also an extremely important management issue, for the success of the event. The project coordinator spent considerable resources communicating with the commission who was a very large stakeholder in the event and part of the project team. The relationship between the DASTI organisers and the commission organisers was excellent, based on mutual respect and a common understanding of the tasks and requirements entailed in such an event. In the day to day running of the project communicating with subcontractors was an important task, in order to ensure that the requirements and suggestions of the project, was being taken care of by the subcontractors. Continuous quality control of the work performed was also part of the consortium management.
Management structure %
The coordinator Troels RASMUSSEN had the overall responsibility for overseeing the progress of the project. This includes ensuring that deliverables were being delivered in due time and that milestones was being met. The coordinator also had the responsibility for communicating with the EC programme officer, including reporting progress and delivering financial statements and activity reports at the end of the project. The coordinator had formal authority to ensure that decisions and spending are kept within the framework of the grant agreement and other legal constraints.
The ICRI 2012 pilot committee had the sole task of monitoring the progress of the preparation of the conference and to intervene if necessary. The pilot committee had no active role in the decisions made in relation to the conference, except if no agreement could be reached otherwise. The role of the pilot committee was primarily to resolve disputes and disagreements that could not be resolved in the programme or organising committees (OCs). No such incidence occurred during the project. The pilot committee was made up by DASTI deputy director Hans Müller and directorate general (DG) research, directorate B, director Octavia Quintana Trias.
The ICRI 2012 programme committee (PC) was responsible for the detailed operations concerning the programme preparation and overall planning of the conference. The committee was made up of key persons involved in RI policy, including ESFRI, DG Research, e-infrastructure reflection group (e-IRG) and as host DASTI. The input from the PC was vital for the formulation of themes for the conference and for identifying the best speakers for conference both with regard to their knowledge and presentation abilities.
The PC was chaired by head of unit, DG Research and technological development (RTD) RIs. Due to the change of position of Hervé Pero, the PC was chaired by Peter Sloth in the intervening period until the new head of unit Ana Arana-Antelo was in place.
The PC members are:
1. DASTI, Peter Sloth, head of division, RI
2. DASTI anders Kjaer, senior adviser, RI
3. EC, Hervé Pero, head of unit, fission, DG RTD, K4
4. EC, Ana Arana-Antelo, head of unit, DG RTD, RIs
4. EC, Pekka Karp, deputy head of unit, DG information society (INFSO), GEANT and e-infrastructures
5. EC, Mary Kavanagh, DG RTD, international cooperation
6. EC, Elena Righe Steele, DG RTD, RIs
7. ESFRI, Beatrix Vierkorn Rudolph, ESFRI chair
8. e-IRG, Gudmund Host, e-IRG chair
9. Australia (AU), Martin Gallagher, Australian Mission to the European Union
10. South Africa (SA), Daan du Toit, South African Mission to the European Union
11. Sweden (SE), Terry Callaghan, Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences
12. United Kingdom (UK), John Wood, Association of Commonwealth Universities
13. Denmark (DK) Liselotte Hojgaard, Copenhagen University Hospital.
The PC observers are:
1. coordinator Troels Rasmussen, DASTI, RIs
2. Agnès Robin, EC, RIs, OC
3. Sharon Kearney, EC, RIs, OC.
The PC worked very closely together with the OC, which was also present at PC meetings as observers. The OC was the central committee of the conference linking the programme and conference plans outlined by the PC with the actual preparation of the conference. The OC was the communication hub within the organisational set up, which ensured exchange of information and monitoring of the progress in the various work packages, including logistics, communication, reporting and invitations. The ICRI OC was chaired by Anders Kjaer, senior adviser at DASTI.
The ICRI 2012 OC:
1. DASTI, Troels Rasmussen, project coordinator, RIs
2. DASTI anders Kjær, RIs
3. EC, Agnès Robin, DG RTD RIs
4. EC, Sharon Kearney, DG RTD RIs.
The OC is supported by a communication team (CT), which had the main responsibility for the dissemination and communication activities. The CT was the focal point for dissemination of key messages from the conference to the press and media, encouraging interaction with prominent speakers in order to ensure visibility of international infrastructure and the discussion on global challenges. Another vital part of the committee's task was to facilitate a successful and interactive outcome of the poster sessions, in order to highlight a number of successful RIs and projects.
The members of the communication committee were:
1. DASTI, Steen Bruun Jensen, communication officer
2. DASTI, Anne Birgitte Klitgaard, RIs
3. DASTI, Faisel Khan, RIs
4. DASTI, Per Kolbech Nielsen, RIs
5. EC, Sonia Spasova, DG RTD, RIs
6. EC, Janine Delahaut, DG RTD, RIs
7. EC, Ruiz Carrillo de Albornoz Salvado, DG RTD, RIs.
WP2: Prepare
ICRI 2012 was the first international conference on RI and a major event during the Danish Presidency. The event has generally been acknowledged as a very successful one, based on the responses from stakeholders and delegates. The overall planning of conference content and format was done mostly locally at DASTI with important support of the project organisers from DG Research (DGR) and with strong input from the PC. Particularly the planning of the PC meetings was done in close cooperation between DGR and DASTI.
Overall programme
One of the most important tasks during the preparatory phase was to get speakers for the conference. Due to the format of the conference, particularly having four parallel sessions, the conference required a very large number of speakers, chairs and rapporteurs. For all sessions a total of 96 speakers, chairs and rapporteurs were required. Due mainly to the fact that some chairs covered more than one session, a total of 77 people, acting as speakers, chairs or rapporteurs, were needed for the entire event.
The project was generally very successful in recruiting relevant speakers. The good result was no doubt helped by the huge amount of contacts that the PC members had. The outstanding list of speakers could not have been achieved without PC members using these contacts to get speakers committed.
Noticeable speakers
1. Danish Minister of Education Morten Østergaard
2. Commissioner Máire Geoghegan-Quinn
3. Commissioner Neelie Kroes
4. Commissioner Connie Hedegaard
5. Cypriot Minister for Health Stavros Malas
6. Russian Deputy Minister of Science Sergey Mazurenko
7. Nobel Prize Laureate Dan Schechtman
8. Professor Hans Rosling of Mindgap
The sessions were organised and planned in the OC and PC. In the last months before the conference, the chairs of the individual sessions were also used as advisors concerning the programme. Both speakers and chairs received instructions from the organisers on the context and format of the sessions, in order to facilitate a common understanding of the expected outcome. All speakers were contacted both by DASTI with regards to practical information and by the chairs with regards to the format of the sessions. This ensured good communication between the organisers and speakers, which was also helpful with regards to the running of the conference as the speakers could easily communicate with the organisers in cases where there were any issues with their presentations or the format etc.
Professional conference organiser (PCO)
The PCO for ICRI 2012 was the private company Crone & Co (refer to http://www.croneandco.com(opens in new window)). The PCO was hired by the Danish Presidency to handle registrations and hotel reservations and to handle other event specific tasks for the Presidency events taking place in the Copenhagen area including ICRI 2012.
The registration tool allowed attendees to register, using a password sent to them in the invitation letter. Apart from registering their personal data, the registration module also allowed participants to register their date of arrival and which sessions they would attend. This was particularly important in relation to the parallel sessions. Attendees were also requested to register which of the dinners they would be attending, thus ensuring that the catering orders matched the actual number of people attending the dinners.
The registration tool also contained an abstract and presentation tool used by the speakers for the conference to upload their presentations. Some speakers uploaded their presentations in advance and some speakers only uploaded when they registered at the registration desk. Regardless, the abstract and speaker tool was very valuable, as it made it possible to download the right presentations for the specific sessions by the Bella centre staff handling the sound and vision for the individual sessions.
The PCO also handled hotel reservations in connection to registration. The PCO provided DASTI with an administrator login, which allowed DASTI to monitor the total and daily number of registrations. This was a very valuable tool. In particularly the tool was valuable in deciding when to send out reminders, based on the registration activity. It was also helpful in providing insight into the distribution of delegates per country and on sessions. The PCO provided a hotline to which the delegates could call in relation to any issues regarding hotel reservation. The PCO also monitored the number and distribution of hotel reservations made by the delegates and ensured that the lump bookings made with the hotels was adjusted accordingly. Approximately half the non-Danish delegates chose not make their hotel reservation through the conference website and accordingly the PCO cancelled a number of reservations before the event. In general the working relationship with the PCO worked extremely well. The PCO was very flexible and very responsive to our wishes. Also the PCO handled the integration of the conference website and the registration system.
Venue Bella Centre
The area of the Bella Centre allocated to ICRI 2012 consisted of a large registration area, four meeting rooms and an exhibition area, split into a poster and a booth area. In addition to this the delegates had the possibility of using a work station area equipped with 40 computers. Also, several smaller meeting rooms and offices were available at the first floor and for the official dinner a separate area was used adjacent to the exhibition area.
The exhibition area for ICRI 2012 took place in the main hall adjacent to the conference rooms. It was split into the booth area and the poster area. The poster area also doubled as the main catering area. In total 80 RI projects was on display in the exhibition area. The exhibitors were required to submit an application that besides contact details included an abstract and the main research area of the RI.
The main hall, with its large open space and glass roof, was an excellent meeting place, ensuring maximum exposure of the exhibitions on display and good interaction amongst delegates.
DASTI sent out a poster manual to the exhibitors with instructions on the requirements for being displayed at ICRI 2012.
Poster instructions:
Please respect the following instructions indicated below:
1. Each Poster Stand must be staffed during the poster session on Wednesday 21 March 2012 from 18.00 to 19.30. Furthermore, we recommend that all poster stands are staffed during the conference as needed, for example during coffee breaks.
2. Hanging of posters must be done before the start of the conference on Wednesday 21 March 2012 between 09.00 and 13.00 at the venue Bella Centre. Due to venue constraints, it is not possible for posters to be hung outside the time slot allocated. Please note that hanging of posters is expected to be carried out by the exhibitors themselves.
3. Information on poster location will at the latest be given when registering at the conference venue.
4. Please adhere to the poster stand size allotted to each exhibitor, namely 243 x 200 cm (height and width). It is recommended not to fill out the allotted space completely but to leave an empty margin around your poster giving the full poster session a more harmonious impression.
5. There are no printing services offered at the venue Bella Centre.
6. For any storage needs, please contact ICRI 2012 secretariat on-site.
7. Spot lights will be pre installed at each poster stand. If a power outlet is needed please contact the ICRI 2012 secretariat.
8. Any use of audiovisual (AV) equipment is at the exhibitor's own risk and responsibility. Unfortunately, no technical assistance from the conference organisers can be expected.
9. Posters can be attached to the stands with double sided tape or poster putty and blu-tack. This can be acquired from the ICRI 2012 secretariat.
Before the event the organisers distributed the poster projects in the exhibition hall, clustering the projects within the main scientific fields, i.e. social sciences, bio-med, environment, physical sciences, energy, e-science and materials and analytical facilities. This allowed the organisers prepare a map, which went into the poster booklet.
The booths were mainly reserved for larger organisations and institutions. Since the space available only allowed for eight booths, the actual decision on which institutions to have a booth rested solely with the organisers. DASTI and the commission each had a double booth. The other booths went to the European x-ray laser project (XFEL), European Spalation Source (ESS) Scandinavia, ESFRI, European Industrial Relationships Observatory (EIRO), European Environment Agency (EEA), European Joint Research Centre (JRC), GEOSS and GEANT.
Each booth was three by three meters and had as standard equipment a counter table and a stool. The booths were equipped with power sockets, three spotlights and a Sign Fascia board. In addition the booth exhibitors were able to order additional equipment for their booth. This included chairs and tables, book and brochure racks, computer monitors, digital versatile disc (DVD) players and television sets.
Social programme
The social programme for ICRI 2012 delegates consisted of a standing buffet dinner at the end of day one and a seated networking dinner at the end of day two. Before the dinner the delegates were invited to enjoy some refreshments while being entertained by the Aavat Choir, a Copenhagen based choir consisting of Greenlanders, performing the songs and dances of their native Greenland. Later in the evening the choir also gave a farewell song on the balcony overlooking the dining area.
The Danish Minister of Education invited the high level speakers of day one and other very important persons (VIPs) to attend a special luncheon prior to the opening of ICRI 2012. The luncheon was held on the top floor of the Bella Sky hotel for around 40 people.
Visual identifier and signage
The visual identifier for ICRI 2012 was prepared by web designer Sam Mansoor for DASTI. The identifier was used extensively throughout the project, i.e. on invitation letters, emails, website, printed materials and the signage for the conference, alongside the overall visual identity for the Danish Presidency.
Conference delegates and other attendees
The list of participants was collected by the OC and included the following groups:
1. EC representatives, DG Research and DG INFSO
2. Members of the European Parliament and the Danish Parliament
3. Government representatives from the 27 research ministries of Europe and internationally, including Brazil, Russia, India, China (BRIC), South Africa, Japan, United States of America (USA), Australia and others
4. Representatives from the national contact points and PC for RIs in Europe
5. ESFRI delegates
6. e-IRG delegates
7. Managers of research institutes operating major RIs
8. Representatives from the European funding research agencies and national science foundation (NSF)
9. Representatives from major European research institutes (EIROForum) and international institutions (ITER)
10. High level invited scientists representatives from overseas countries (depending on their talk to be confirmed by the PC)
11. Representatives from the European regions leader in supporting the RIs
12. Operators of public and private RIs
13. Principal investigators of ESFRI-agreed projects
14. Coordinators of Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) RIs funded projects
15. European wide financing bodies and banking organisations
16. Young researchers' representatives of the future of RIs.
The full list of participants was published as a conference pamphlet and is available for download from the ICRI 2012 website.
WP3: Communicate
Press handling
The CT was responsible for formulating newsletters and marketing the event to the press, the commission communication team handling the foreign press and DASTI handling the domestic press. A press tour was arranged for the members of the press who so wished. Since there was no budget for covering the press travel costs, the event did not have the number of journalists present as for the ECRI 2010 event in Barcelona. For this reason the press tour was kept very flexible, trying to accommodate the wishes of those journalists present for the event. Instead of having a large press conference, the choice was made to have a more informal doorstep event in which the Danish Minister of Science and the European Commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn met with the press. This worked very well.
Conference materials included the overall programme, a presentation of speakers' pamphlet and a presentation of the ICRI 2012 exhibitors. This material was given to the entire participant upon arrival. In all 800 copies of each pamphlet was printed. The materials were also available for download on the ICRI 2012 website in pdf and html formats.
Website
The conference website was developed with the help of the PCO. The website contained all relevant information, including programme, venue location, description of the context of ICRI 2012 and relevant information about Copenhagen area and Denmark. The website also contained a metro map and descriptions to getting around Copenhagen. OF great importance was the registration module handled by the PCO, in which the participants registered for the event and the specific sub events and accommodation. The website also contained contact information, i.e. a ICRI 2012 hotline.
An initial webpage was prepared in cooperation with the PCO, as part of the registration modules, in order for it to be ready for the preannouncements. We were extremely fortunate to have on our staff an employee who had past experience with web design and web programming who were able to instruct the PCO on any changes to the webpage had to be done by them on instructions given by DASTI. DASTI managed to have a working website ready for the invitations for the delegates to be sent out, which was deemed absolutely critical and we were able to improve the website continuously throughout the project. Furthermore, we have made hosting arrangements, which will ensure that the website remains open for at least five years after the event, thereby ensuring that the information on the website is accessible.
Registration
The conference was 'by invitation only'. The first batch of invitations was sent out by email from the ICRI secretariat at DASTI just before Christmas 2011. The formal invitation signed by DASTI Director Hans Müller Pedersen and DG RTD directorate B director Octavia Quintana Trias. Along with the invitation a link to the registration was provided along with a logon password.
During the month of January 2012 an invitation was sent out to potential exhibitors, mainly ESFRI project and large scale RI communication officers. The registration module allowed people invited as delegates to attend as exhibitors and vice versa and several people invited as delegates registered as exhibitors.
Printed materials
Conference materials included the overall programme and a presentation of speakers pamphlet, a presentation of poster projects and a list of attendees. This material was given to all participants upon arrival. In all 800 copies of each pamphlet was printed. The material was also available for download on the ICRI 2012 website in PDF and HTLM formats. All printed handouts for the conference was designed and drafted by the DASTI ICRI 2012 team. The development of the conference website (at http://www.icri2012.dk(opens in new window)) as well as conference materials, including the visual identity and logo was done at DASTI, with comments coming from the commission communication team.
WP4: Execute
Running of the event
DASTI enrolled a large contingent of DASTI personnel in the conference and provided service throughout the whole conference. A total of approximately 50 people from DASTI had tasks related to the running of the event, during the three-day period, thereby saving a substantial project cost related to hiring profession on site staff. The team from DASTI had an overall responsibility for the running of the various sessions, contact with speakers and moderator and taking conference minutes that were used in the conference report and as input to the main output of the conference.
DASTI staff performed the following tasks and roles:
1. Manning the information and registration desk
2. Picking up VIPs from airport
3. VIP handling at Bella Centre
4. Area guides helping delegates finding their way around the Bella Centre
5. Liaison officer with the exhibitors
6. Liaison officer with Bella Centre organisers, sound crew and catering
7. Communication officer
8. Meeting room logistics
9. Transportation logistics.
The organisers received several comments from both speakers and participants which expressed appreciation of the professional way the conference was conducted. On the practical side, it was worth noting that DASTI made sure that the number of people available for assistance was sufficient, something that contributed greatly to a good experience on behalf of the participants. The DASTI staff was service minded and welcoming and ready to take on any task given to them. On the technical side, Bella Centre staff assisted continuously so that all the various versions of presentations and visualisations ran smoothly throughout the conference.
With regards to the running of the parallel sessions, DASTI had senior employees who acted as support for the chair and rapporteur for each of the parallel sessions, both before, during and after the session, in order to ensure maximum feedback from each session in sync with the objectives of the conference.
Press doorstep
Instead of having a large press conference, the choice was made to have a more informal doorstep event in which the Danish Minister of Science and the European Commissioner Maire Geoghegan-Quinn met with the press. This worked very well.
Coordination with other events
ICRI 2012 was an event which had a number of other events revolving around the conference. None of the costs or man-hours of DASTI associated with these events has been funded by this project. DASTI helped by coordinating the activities, which included the following:
1. ESFRI meeting: An ESFRI meeting was held on 20 March 2012. The meeting agenda was planned in its entirety by the ESFRI secretariat. DASTI provided the logistical and venue planning for the meeting. The meeting took place at Statens Serum Institut, with a dinner taking place in a nearby restaurant. The venue was provided free of charge by Statens Serum Institut. DASTI paid the costs associated to dinner, catering and sound.
2. ESFRI board meeting: The board of ESFRI had a meeting on 19 March 2012. This meeting was arranged at the DASTI premises in central Copenhagen.
3. Meeting of the Association of European Research Facilities (ERF): a meeting for the ERF was arranged. This was done with the ERF executive secretary Jean Pierre Caminade. The meeting took place on the morning of 20 March 2012 at DASTI.
4. Biobank Denmark Inauguration: The inauguration of the Danish National Biobank facility at Statens Serum Institute was held on 21 March at 10.45 thus allowing both the Danish Minister of Science and Commissioner Geoghegan-Quinn along with several other ICRI 2012 VIPs to attend the inauguration and a tour of the facility, before the VIP Luncheon and the official opening of ICRI 2012. The inauguration was funded entirely by Statens Serum Institut.
5. Data Workshop: A large data workshop hosted by Copenhagen University was held as a 12-12 meeting on 20 and 21 March. This workshop was planned by Prof. Peter Wittenburg with the support of DASTI and Copenhagen University at which the workshop was held. A total of 39 people attended the workshop prior to ICRI 2012. Approximately one third of the attendees to this workshop were internationals, recruited by Prof. Peter Wittenburg. This helped increase the number of internationals attending ICRI.
6. Presidency Coordination Denmark / Cyprus: Before the final session of ICRI 2012 a meeting was held in order to coordinate actions to be taken by the Danish and the Cyprus presidencies respectively, following ICRI 2012. The meeting was attended by the Cyprus minister for Health Stavros Malas and DASTI director Hans Müller Pedersen.
Conference conclusion paper
The OC was dedicated to formulating the ICRI 2012 conclusion paper, during the conference. Several meetings were held with the Danish and the Cypriot presidency representatives as well as key members of the PC in order to extract the messages from the conference and formulate them in a presentable form for the delegates.
ICRI 2012 conclusions
Recognises:
1. need to invest better in research and innovation to stimulate growth, boost competitiveness and create jobs
2. importance of RIs to tackle global societal challenges
3. new approaches needed to deal with data.
Encourages global exchange of views in:
1. decision-making and prioritisation
2. governance, management, cost containment
3. an access policy based on excellence
4. supporting global cooperation and trust building through open access to publications and data
5. a dissemination policy to raise citizen awareness
6. maximise economic and social impact
7. strengthen links with industry
8. governance structures to meet cross-border and international needs
9. capacity building with focus on training and mobility.
ICRI 2012 From Denmark to Cyprus: Taking recommendations forward
% 1. maintain international momentum and the cooperative spirit generated in ICRI 2012
2. joint initiatives such as international conferences should continue
3. a framework for training and mobility across borders
4. further development of e-infrastructures to ensure availability of scientific data, across disciplines
5. stimulation and facilitation of the setting up of new global RIs and the operation of existing ones (including e-Infrastructures), such as a global network of policy makers, building upon achievements of group of senior officials (GSO) and adopting the coordinated approach of existing intergovernmental fora (ESFRI, GEO).
The conference conclusion paper was presented and discussed during the final plenary session of the conference. The conclusion paper was published on the ICRI 2012 website and brought forward to the Competiveness Council's May meeting by the Danish Presidency.
Questionnaire
Due to the limitations on the website, we chose not to make an online survey in conjunction with the ICRI2012 webpage. Instead we opted for a simpler solution of making an electronic questionnaire in PDF format and send them to the delegates by email. Less than a 100 returned the questionnaire, which was unfortunate and can probably be attributed to the requirement of actively sending the questionnaire back. On the positive side, the total result of the delegate evaluation was extremely favourable. Around 94 % of the attendees found the organisation of event to be excellent (64 %) or very good (30 %) - based on the questionnaire replies. About 6 % found the event to be satisfactory and no one found the event to be either acceptable or poor.
Conclusion
ICRI 2012 has been a very successful event by making an important contribution to the development and further integration of global collaboration on RI, highlighting the importance of international collaboration on facing the global challenges concerning health, climate change, energy and e-infrastructure. Building on the GSO on RI, the foundation for establishing an international collaborative structure and thereby continuing the progress made by the GSO was established at ICRI 2012.
The event has also made a substantial contribution to the ongoing discussions on Horizon 2020 The ICRI 2012 conclusions pinpoints specific target areas for funding within the funding programme. The ICRI 2012 conclusions was presented on the competitiveness council's May meeting, thereby ensuring that the conclusions was brought forward to the political level, thus ensuring maximum impact.
The event was attended by 650 people from 48 countries. Although this was slightly less than expected, the attendees was indeed very high level policy and funding level representatives from across the globe, including national representatives of BRIC countries, Canada, the USA, Australia, South Africa and Europe. The interest in the event was also reflected in the very strong programme for the event, with many key stakeholders speaking at ICRI 2012.
Being the local organisers for the event on behalf of the Danish Presidency, the Danish Agency for Science, Technology and Innovation is very proud and honoured by the fact that 94 % of the attendees found the organisation of event to be excellent (64 %) or very good (30 %) based on the questionnaire replies. Almost 6 % found the event to be satisfactory and no one found the event to be either acceptable or poor.
Potential Impact:
The Danish Presidency has worked specifically to promote the results of ICRI 2012 towards political decision makers. The Danish Presidency has also worked closely with the Commission and the Cyprus presidency in order to ensure that the results of ICRI 2012 will be carried forward. ICRI 2012, as the previous ECRI's has been carried out in close cooperation between the Presidency and the Commission. As local organiser and host the Danish Presidency has had the main responsibility for ensuring impact of the conference during its tenure. In the longer term the responsibility for ensuring exploitation of results and impact lies with the Commission.
ICRI 2012 was specifically focussed on discussing the possibilities for working together at a global scale on RI in order to face global challenges in relation to some of the biggest challenges facing modern society, i.e. health, energy and the environment. ICRI 2012 also had targeted sessions on e-science, in relation to the global challenges.
The conclusions from ICRI 2012 were an important input into creating a common vision for the next decade both at European level and globally. The conference has helped to identify gaps in the existing RI landscape and the challenges of sharing data from different RIs across the globe, thus identifying the needs and actions required to face global challenges.
ICRI 2012 was an important forum for discussing the challenges facing Europe on establishing new RI in the face of the economic recession. RI and the critical mass of researchers are important drivers of economic growth, creating new economic activity as well as new job opportunities. But there are challenges in establishing new RI and to ensure usage of the facilities already in place. How to face these challenges and how to stimulate the funding mechanisms for speeding up the implementation of the ESFRI roadmaps was important input from the conference both to national funders and to the ongoing discussions on Horizon 2020.
The conference also stimulated international dialogue between RIs policymakers, which is vital for moving research forward on the global challenges. It was important for the event that the discussion on how to strengthen the interaction between RIs took place at an international level. The challenges faced by most countries around the world on health and energy and climate change are the same. Therefore it was important to establish a common understanding of RI needs and to discuss how different resources could be pooled into collaborative platforms to be established at an international level. Thus, the conference was very successful in influencing the development towards more integrated RI policies at European and international level.
The ICRI 2012 was instrumental in contributing to the Innovation Union commitment number 32 'to step up EU cooperation on the roll-out of the global RIs'. The conference was an important tool in formulating the EU's input to the GSO on Global RI, as well as a platform for presenting and discussing ideas from the GSO. Building on the GSO on RI, the foundation for establishing an international collaborative structure and thereby continuing the progress made by the GSO was established at ICRI 2012.
The conference is a disseminating activity. And for that reason the conference had as one of its main objectives to communicate the contents of the conference to the scientific community, to political stakeholders and in particular to the specialised press in Europe.
The discussions of the parallel sessions and plenary sessions were documented and a final conclusion paper from the conference including ideas and recommendations for action was formulated and published. The conference conclusions, was published on the conference website and distributed to important target groups The ICRI 2012 conclusions was presented on the competitiveness council's May meeting, thereby ensuring that the conclusions was brought forward to the political level, thus ensuring maximum impact. The event has therefore also made a substantial contribution to the ongoing discussions on Horizon 2020.
Main results achieved:
1. a total of 1 469 invitations was sent out
2. a total of 652 people attended ICRI 2012, of which 527 were delegates and/or exhibitors, 77 was invited chairs/speakers and 48 were DASTI personnel. Conference attended by 650 people from 48 countries, including, BRIC, USA, Canada, South Africa and Australia.
3. three days event with both plenary and parallel sessions
4. exhibition area with 80 posters and 8 booths
4. conference networking dinner for approximately 500 people.
5. speakers including Danish Minster of Education, Cyprus Minister of Health, Russian Deputy Minister of Science, EU Commissioners Márie Geoghegan-Quinn, Neely Kroes and Connie Hedegaard. The Australian Chief Scientist, Hans Rosling of Mindgap and Nobel Laureate in Chemistry 2011 Dan Schechtman
5. VIP luncheon for 40 people, including Commissioner Geoghegan- Quinn and Danish Minister of Science Morten Østergaard
6. conference paper on recommendations for further international collaboration on RI
7. three printed booklets for ICRI 2012, including the conference programme, presentation of speakers and presentation of exhibitors as well as a conference website including registration module.
List of websites:
'http://www.ICRI2012.dk'.
