JRC at ESOF 2012

ESOF 2012, Dublin 11-15 July

The JRC has been fully involved at the 5th edition of the EuroScience Open Forum (ESOF), celebrated in Dublin between 11 and 15 July. The event brought together more than 4000 delegates and 500 speakers, including 5 Nobel laureates.

JRC speakers took part in 13 sessions out of the overall 150. They covered a broad range of issues such as modelling, sustainability, open innovation, smart grids, financial crisis, space weather, alternatives to animal testing or technology transfer.

JRC sessions had a scientific, policy or science to business angle, contributing to raise awareness of the JRC role as provider of independent, evidence-based scientific and technical support throughout the whole policy cycle.

Background information on ESOF

ESOF – Euroscience Open Forum – a platform created by Euroscience, is the biennial pan-European meeting dedicated to scientific research and innovation. At ESOF meetings leading scientists, researchers, young researchers, business people, entrepreneurs and innovators, policy makers, science and technology communicators and the general public from all over Europe discuss new discoveries and debate the direction that research is taking in the sciences, humanities and social sciences. ESOF is both international and multidisciplinary. It takes place every two years, in a major European city (Stockholm, Munich, Barcelona, Torino, Dublin...) and presents breakthroughs in disciplines as varied as mathematics, music, geography, genetics etc. through a range of different formats including lectures, workshops, lunches etc… It presents and discusses the frontiers of scientific and technological research in Europe, contributes to the development of a European Scientific Identity together with bridging the gap between science and society and stimulates policies to support scientific research.

JRC sessions

The following scientific sessions have been organised by the JRC. Presentations are now available. The full programme of JRC speakers at ESOF can be found here. A "science to business" session about the impact of open innovation in public research organisations and universities was also organised by the JRC as a panel discussion.

Modelling the impacts of innovation and knowledge

• Paul Zagamé, Laboratoire ERASME de l'École Centrale Paris, France
• Raffaele Paci, CRENoS, University of Cagliari, Italy
• Werner Roeger, DG Economic and Financial Affairs, European Commission
• Xabier Goenaga, Joint Research Centre, European Commission
• Andries Brandsma, Joint Research Centre, European Commission

Debating the financial crisis: guessing or modelling?

• Alex Kuczynski, Financial Services Compensation Scheme, Lloyds Chambers, UK
• Francesca Campolongo, Joint Research Centre, European Commission
• Wim Schoutens, Catholic University of Leuven, Belgium
• Stephan Lechner, Joint Research Centre, European Commission

From smart homes to intelligent electrical grids

• Pedro Godinho Matos, EDP Distribuição - Energia, S.A., Inovgrid, Portugal
• Heinz Wilkening, Joint Research Centre, European Commission
• Joseph Durkan, The Sustainable Energy Authority of Ireland, Ireland
• Thomas Wolski, Power Plus Communications AG, Germany

Can we survive a day without satellite navigation?

• David Perez-Suarez, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
• Stephan Lechner, Joint Research Centre, European Commission
• Juha-Pekka Luntama, European Space Agency
• Peter Gallagher, Trinity College Dublin, Ireland
• William Murtagh, NOAA Space Weather Prediction Centre, USA

Are there realistic alternatives to animal testing?

• Andrea Haase, German Federal Institute for Risk Assessment, Germany
• David Basketter, DABMEB Consultancy Ltd, UK
• Mark Cronin, Liverpool John Moores University, UK
• Maurice Whelan, Joint Research Centre, European Commission
• Roel Schins, University of Düsseldorf, Germany

JRC presentations in other sessions

Africa: a scramble for natural resources or knowledge economy partnerships? (organised by the South African Department of Science and Technology)

• Alan Belward, Joint Research Centre, European Commission

Building an economy on good ideas (organised by Enterprise Ireland)

• David Wilkinson, Joint Research Centre, European Commission

Sustainable green infrastructure: in seas and forests, from fields to cities (jointly organised by PEER and ALTER-Net)

• Maria Luisa Paracchini, Joint Research Centre, European Commission

Pictures