In the autumn of 2022, the European Commission’s Scientific Advice Mechanism (SAM) will publish a major piece of advice on strategic crisis management for the EU. Based on a broad and multidisciplinary understanding, the work will inform policymakers on how the EU can improve its strategic crisis management. This builds on previous work during the COVID-19 crisis on how to improve pandemic preparedness and management in the EU, conducted in partnership with the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies.

In the build-up to this publication, an international conference organised by the SAM in the spring examined the issue of how scientists can best advise policymakers in high-pressure situations involving uncertainty, high stakes, and public scrutiny.

This ESOF session will bring together these two threads in a high-level discussion of Europe’s state of crisis preparedness and the role of scientific advice and European values in it. If a major crisis hit tomorrow — be it natural disaster, geopolitical meltdown, public health emergency or economic shock — how prepared would our society be? What role should scientists from all disciplines play in advising policymakers on crisis preparedness, and in informing a rapid response? What different advisory mechanisms are needed to meet the different needs of rapid response and long-term horizon-scanning for future threats? How can we ensure that EU fundamental values and freedoms are upheld?