The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities

On 27-28 September 2016, the Guild’s Chair, Prof. Ole Petter Ottersen, was invited to participate in the Coimbra High-Level Research Policy Seminar in Venice, to discuss key questions around Horizon 2020, FP9, and the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures (ESFRI). Ottersen emphasized the critical importance of universities as part of the knowledge and innovation triangle. University students are tomorrow’s entrepreneurs and inventors, whilst basic academic research is an integral part to the co-creation of applied knowledge. Ottersen expressed his concerns about a complexity of initiatives that risked being confusing to researchers, the community whose contribution was so vital to the European knowledge economy. Thus, Open Innovation could not afford to leave behind the support of universities in bringing about radical innovation processes. Similarly, in discussions around ESFRI he welcomed  advances made under the ESFRI roadmap, urging also that European infrastructure projects continuously refer back to the needs of the scientists to retain their application. In Prof Ottersen’s words, ‘ESFRI is an example of the interconnectedness between the European Research Area (ERA) and Open Science, and it would be important also for the Commission to demonstrate how it sustains other parts of the ERA goals, including towards the free mobility of researchers, enhanced international collaboration, and gender equality.’