This week we’re taking a close look at how the Polish government is withholding funding to a sociology research institute, and how research institutions in eastern Europe see the future of the “Widening excellence” programme in Horizon Europe.
We also have an interview with the rector of the University of Tartu on technology transfer and a deep-dive into Ventures Thrive, an EIC-backed accelerator that offers mentoring to start-ups in eastern Europe
The latest news
ACADEMIC FREEDOM: Academics in Poland have hit out against a government decision to withhold funding for the Institute of Philosophy and Sociology of the Polish Academy of Sciences, after the renowned Holocaust scholar and Director of the Polish Centre for Holocaust Research, Barbara Engelking said Polish Jews received little support from their fellow citizens in the Second World War.
The government says it will not fund a research institute that employs “people who slander Poles”, but academics in Poland and beyond are raising the alarm over what they see a direct threat to academic freedom. Anna Rzhevkina has the story.
WHAT’S NEXT FOR THE WIDENING PROGRAMME: A trio of recent reports have looked into Widening initiatives in Horizon Europe that aim to close the east/west divide in research, development and innovation, to assess their success and suggest how they could be improved in the future. Thomas Brent has looked at the various assessments. Here’s his analysis on the current state of play.
TURNING SCIENCE INTO CAPITAL: Estonia has been long seen as eastern Europe’s poster child for performance in research and innovation, but the small Baltic country now needs to renew its efforts to turn science into economic gain and to find a more equitable balance between basic and applied research. Toomas Asser, recently appointed for a second term at the helm of the University of Tartu, has big plans for changing how knowledge is translated from lab to market. Read the interview here.
THE ECOSYSTEM: A new accelerator programme backed by the European Innovation Council is providing mentoring to help 32 start-ups from Widening countries to shape their business plans and access private capital. The core aim is to open more doors to public and private funding, and to help participants find potential corporate clients across the whole European market.
The first companies to compete to enter the Ventures Thrive accelerator were 12 deep tech start-ups with products across climate tech, from agriculture and waste, to mobility and energy. Three were Polish companies, two from Greece and one each from the Czech Republic, Romania, Slovenia, Latvia, Portugal, Cyprus and Turkey. From these, six were selected to take part. Ian Mundell has the story.
In other news
THAT’S A FIRST… Lithuania is the first country to transfer money from its allocation under the EU regional development fund to Horizon Europe. The government is transferring €18.5 million to the direct management of the European Commission to increase the participation of Lithuanian scientists and businesses in international research and innovation projects under Horizon Europe.
“We are the first in Europe to contribute to this by transferring additional funds to the research and innovation program Horizon Europe, which will be aimed specifically at scientists and businesses in our country," said finance minister Gintarė Skaistė.
MARIA LEPTIN ON TOUR: The president of the European Council will visit Slovenia and Croatia this week. Leptin will meet with research ministers and ERC grantees in both capitals to discuss how the two countries can improve their participation in EU funded research competitions. The first stop will be in Ljubljana on 8 June, where Leptin will meet science minister Igor Papič and will then visit the University of Ljubljana and the National Institute of Chemistry. The next day, Leptin will be in Zagreb to meet with Croatian science minister Radovan Fuchs and visit the Ruđer Bošković Institute.
RESEARCH ASSESSMENT REFORM IN CENTRAL EUROPE: The CE7 group seven leading universities in central Europe, together with the League of European Research Universities (LERU) have published the outcome of a seminar on research assessment held this spring in Prague. Universities say governments should be involved in the debate on the reform process that was kicked off last year and they call on member states to engage in national consultations with research organisations to confirm their commitment to a European agreement on reforming how researchers should be evaluated.
BACK TO SCHOOL: The Czech government is training a new cohort of science diplomats who would be sent around the world to represent Czech economic interests around the world, but also attract research talent to top research institutions in the country. CEITEC Masaryk University hosted the diplomats last month to help them understand the needs of Czech research institutions. Being is one of the main research-intensive universities in central Europe, CEITEC aims to attract research talent from abroad.
NEW BIOPHARMA HUB: Also at Masaryk University, the campus in Brno-Bohunice will expand to include a new educational and research infrastructure, the MUNI BioPharma Hub worth approximately €105 million. The construction of the should start in August and should be officially launched in 2026. Rector Martin Bareš expects the new infrastructure would have a significant impact on Czech science. “High-end pharmacy is one of the most demanding sectors in terms of excellence and finance, but it has a major impact on our entire population,” he said.
JOB OPENING: The Czech University of Life Sciences in Prague is looking for a candidate for an ERA Chair position in food technology research. More details here.
Mark your calendars
BRNO, 12 JUNE: Czech and Slovak academics, research managers and policy makers will participate in a high-level meeting on research and innovation policy in the two neighbouring countries. Conference proceedings will be held in Czech and Slovak languages, but a white paper with policy recommendations for enhancing research and innovation in central and eastern Europe will be made available after the event. Details here.
ONLINE, 15 JUNE: The European Research Council and the Slovenian ministry for higher education, science and innovation are organising a webinar to present EU and national funding opportunities available to Slovenian researchers. The agenda and registration details are available here.
BRUSSELS AND ONLINE, 26 JUNE: The Brussels office of Poland’s national centre for research and development is organising a one hour seminar with Marc Lemaître, the new director-general of the Commission’s research and innovation department. Lemaître will discuss current challenges in R&I policy, the next strategic plan for Horizon Europe and funding synergies for research and innovation. Register here.
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