ERC at the European Business Summit for first time
The European Research Council (ERC) will for the first time take part in the European Business Summit. Beginning today in Brussels, it focuses on how to rebuild a competitive Europe.
ERC President Professor Jean-Pierre Bourguignon is a speaker in tomorrow’s plenary session ‘How Does Europe Win the Global Race’, which will address Europe’s competitiveness in a world of emerging economies.
Ahead of the event, Bourguignon said: “Europe needs to invest more in excellent ‘blue sky’ research as a way towards more growth, jobs and solutions to societal challenges. This type of research often leads to unpredictable breakthroughs, sometimes only in the longer term, but that can trigger major innovations. The European Research Council plays a central role in supporting high-risk/high-gain science, which the private sector is less inclined to invest in as it cannot appropriate all the benefits. The ERC is keen to accompany its grant winners in their contacts with entrepreneurs.”
Other speakers in the plenary session include European Commissioner for Internal Market and Services Michel Barnier and Flanders Minister-President Kris Peeters.
European research will also be represented at the summit by the European Commission’s Director General for Research and Innovation, Robert-Jan Smits, who will speak in a session on ‘How Can We Finance Innovation’.
