Posts Tagged ‘chemistry’

EFP Brief No. 158: MONA: A European Roadmap for Photonics and Nanotechnologies

Tuesday, May 24th, 2011

Photonics and nanotechnologies are highly multi-disciplinary fields and two of the principal enabling technologies for the 21st century. They are key technology drivers for industry sectors such as information technologies, communication, biotechnologies, transport, and manufacturing. Photonics/nanophotonics and nanomaterials/nanotechnologies can benefit from each other in terms of new functions, materials, fabrication processes and applications. The MONA Roadmap identifies potential synergies between photonics/nanophotonics and nanomaterials/nanotechnologies. The challenge of mastering nanoelectronics and nanophotonics science and technologies at an industrial scale is of utmost strategic importance for the competitiveness of the European industry in a global context.

EFMN Brief No. 158_MONA

EFP Brief No. 143: Teagasc 2030: Reinventing the Irish Agri-Food Knowledge System

Sunday, May 22nd, 2011

Teagasc means ‘teaching’ or ‘instruction’ in Gaelic. It is the name of the food and agricultural research, education and advisory body in Ireland. By 2006, fundamental changes happening to the Common Agricultural Policy in Europe were already being felt throughout the Irish agri-food sector. New and emerging issues were gaining importance and looked likely to have an impact on the sector. It was necessary to ask how Teagasc could maintain its relevance to clients and stakeholders as it moved ahead. The study builds upon previous foresight exercises and long-term strategic studies undertaken in Ireland and the EU.

EFMN Brief No. 143_Teagasc 2030

EFP Brief No. 134: Future Challenge for Europe: Providing Security and Safety to Citizens

Saturday, May 21st, 2011

As stated in the recent EC Communication on ‘Reforming the budget, changing Europe’ (SEC (2007) 1188), the European Union has a key role to play in ‘providing security and safety to citizens’. Especially in the aftermath of 11th Sept. 2001 security related issues are becoming an increasingly important facet of global society and have an increasing impact on economy and science. The issues are manifold and include protecting citizens and state from organized crime, preventing terrorist acts, and responding to natural and manmade disasters. Civil security issues are becoming more and more important to governments and national economies across the globe, and the EU is no exception. The EC sees security research as an important policy objective, which started in 2001 with a Preparatory Action on Security Research (PASR) and is now the tenth theme of the FP7 Cooperation programme. Security and safety technologies are seen to have applications in many sectors including transport, civil protection, energy, environment, health and financial systems.

EFMN Brief No. 134_Safety_and_Security

EFP Brief No. 115: SMART Perspectives of European Materials Research

Friday, May 20th, 2011

Modern materials sciences take as their objective to develop and tailor materials with a desired set of properties suitable for a given application. Next to conventional approaches, predictive modelling and simulation is more and more used. This results into a rapidly increasing knowledge base, allowing for more precise experimental set-ups, more precise simulations and tailoring of goal-oriented materials. They play a key role in the value chain and in product innovation. Although limited profits are made from materials, materials are technology enablers for new high added value products and therefore a key in innovation acceleration. More success and increased opportunities for applications is the outcome. The SMART project aimed at providing support for future strategic decisions in this sector to foster the strengthening of the European Research Area.

EFMN Brief No. 115 – SMART materials

EFP Brief No. 107: Key Technologies for France 2010

Friday, May 20th, 2011

“Key technologies 2010” is the third edition of a process, launched in 1995 by the Ministry of Industry. However, it differs from the previous  exercises with regard to its objectives, target and methodology (design, dissemination and monitoring). “Key Technologies 2010” results in a characterisation and prioritisation of a list of key technologies according to the long-term appreciation of their im-pact on the development of activities identified as being structuring for France. The methodology developed within this exercise in-cludes information collection and analysis, interviews with stakeholders from ministries and research organisations, the implementa-tion of working groups and a strong collaboration with regional actors.

EFMN Brief No. 107 – French Key Technologies

EFP Brief No. 91: Government and Corporate Social Responsibility 2020

Friday, May 20th, 2011

While corporate social responsibility is increasingly requested in order to respond to current environmental challenges and threats to public health, the ISIS group of the Commissariat Général du Plan of the French Government (“The Plan”) analyses trends in corporate behaviour as well as regulatory principles underlying sustainable development and corporate social responsibility. Beyond this, the ISIS group explores future issues in different sectors in order to illustrate existing junctions and differences. Based on this prospective analysis, ISIS built four strategic scenarios for state intervention to make an inventory of tools to urge enterprises encompassing social and environmental issues in their schemes for economic development.

EFMN Brief No. 91 – Government and Corporate Social Responsibility 2020

EFP Brief No. 84: Preventative Healthcare Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania

Friday, May 20th, 2011

The German federal state of Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania plans to increase its competitive capabilities. Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania aligned its research activities in a case study using a regional foresight approach. Considering possible futures is the first step toward influencing today’s decision. This is effective through the means of a regional foresight process where the actors are encouraged to build networks and alliances. Accordingly, this foresight served as a means for building competency in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania related to healthcare.

EFMN Brief No. 84 – Preventative Healthcare

EFP Brief No. 66: The Euro-Latin Foresight Network: SELF-RULE

Friday, May 20th, 2011

SELF-RULE (Strategic European and Latin American Foresight for Research and University Learning Exchange) is an academic network for mutually-beneficial exchange of foresight knowledge, tools and experiences between the European Union and Latin America. SELF-RULE aims to build a sustainable foresight capacity in the member institutions by promoting and disseminating foresight initiatives and practices.

EFMN Brief No. 66 – The Euro-Latin Foresight Network SELF-RULE

EFP Brief No. 42: Emerging S+T Priorities in the Triadic Regions

Friday, May 6th, 2011

The objective of this Platform Foresight project is the analysis of emerging science and technology priorities in public research policies of the European countries, the US and Japan. The aim is to provide the European Commission and the member states with policy recommendations as to become leaders in these emerging technologies.

EFMN Brief No. 42 – Emerging S+T Priorities in the Triadic Regions

EFP Brief No. 35: Japanese S+T Foresight 2035

Friday, May 6th, 2011

Every five years Japan conducts a large national foresight exercise to gain new information and update insights gained from previous foresight activities. One of the most important elements of these foresight exercises is a comprehensive Delphi survey involving more than 2,200 independent experts from different disciplines. The results of this whole process serve as inputs for policy-making and provide valuable information for all interested parties including stakeholders from companies and students. In the eighth Japanese national foresight exercise a wider approach was adopted. This exercise included a study on rapidly developing technologies, scenario development and a demand-oriented study.