PRIME Network of Excellence Policies For research and Innovation in the move towards the European Re

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PRIMENetwork of ExcellencePolicies For research
and Innovation in the move towards the European
Research Area
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(No Transcript)
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Where do we stand

• NoE selected in July 2003, 5 year contract signed
  in December 2003 (5.5 million euros)
• 42 institutions, 55 research groups, 230
  researchers, 150 PhD students.
• Effective start January 2004 (Madrid meeting)
• Manchester conference marks our first year of
  activity.

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Why PRIME? 4 changes and the need to re-question
our accumulated knowledge on research and
innovation policies

• 3 major externally driven transformations- New
  institutional developments (EU and regions) from
  national policy to multi-level public
  interventions- Firms RDI capabilities and
  glocalisation - The multiplication of
  controversies (Cf. GMO) the role of public
  debate in policy-making
• 1 internally driven change in science dynamics
  from big science and Nobel models to new
  search regimes (NBIC)

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Our Approach

• Focus research efforts on 3 themes
• Address the lasting structural the speciality
  faces
• Develop a progress model that deals with the
  present state of fragmentation of the field
• And, as our field is science and innovation
  policy studies experiment NoEs as a new policy
  instrument for small interdisciplinary
  specialities

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Our priorities

• 3 research foci for long term research- Changing
  rationales for public intervention- Multi-actor
  spaces and the governance of research and
  innovation in Europe- The dynamics of public
  sector research
• 3 1 structural activities- Towards a European
  platform for data and indicators- Developing a
  European training platform on research and
  innovation- Interaction with stakeholders at the
  EU level- Fostering involvement of non-triad
  research groups

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A Progress Model

• NoEs are supposed to foster both excellence and
  integration.
• In our field there is a strong tension between
  critical mass and proximity
• --gt PRIME translation- nurture competition via
  projects- that favour the emergence of virtual
  'centres' - by aggregation of existing smaller
  groups- while, via this integration, helping
  these smaller groups to be internationally
  visible and locally relevant

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One year of activity

• Operational dimensions are critical - Executive
  committee for strategic management- Scientific
  Committee for quality and directions- Management
  team for turning things real- Characterisation
  group to answer EC requirements of monitoring
  the dynamics
• 4 competitive calls in one year 30 projects/
  actions selected, Over 200 researchers involved,
  1.8 million euros allocated
• This conference to discuss progress, limitations
  and new directions

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Some preliminary lessons

• NoEs are made for supporting long term research
  on small, interdisciplinary specialities
• NoEs should establish and maintain- the research
  agenda (scientific roadmap) - the field
  infrastructures. For us two EU platforms for
  training and for Indicators
• NoEs should focus support on two types of
  research activities Exploratory research,
  Comparative and Aggregative projects
• Not a short term endeavour the EU should
  reconsider its view on the duration of NoEs (when
  successful)!