12:00 Registration and buffet lunch
12:45 Welcome, Context & Objectives
Member-only discussions to develop ideas / sharpen recommendations around:
Workshop 1: The programme problem
With new R&I funds and programmes proliferating outside the Framework Programme, and Horizon’s budget constantly under threat of being raided, is the idea of a comprehensive, one-size-fits all Framework Progamme still valid? Or is it time to invent a totally different structure for R&I funding?
Workshop 2: The synergies problem
Should Framework Programmes promote science and tech excellence, or European cohesion? Horizon Europe tries to have it both ways – but few are happy with the results, and synergies between R&I and cohesion funds seem as elusive as ever. Is it possible to have it both ways, and if so how?
Workshop 3: The selection problem
With AI already transforming the funding landscape, and the wasted resources of failed applications a longstanding but growing concern, should we rethink the entire grant assessment and allocation process? After 40 years of frustration, can anybody come up with a fairer, simpler way of doing things?
14:15 COFFEE BREAK
14:45 PARALLEL WORKSHOPS II
Member-only discussions to develop ideas / sharpen recommendations around:
Workshop 4: The defence problem
As the world gets scarier, security is rising in national priorities everywhere, but questions persist about the EU’s role in developing new military and dual-use technologies. Against this backdrop, what would be the best way to structure defence R&I – inside or outside the FP, or left alone to member-states and alliances?
Workshop 5: The partnerships problem
Despite years of prodding, big European companies still spend less on R&D than US or Chinese counterparts. Meanwhile, Europe’s large-scale industry-led initiatives have become leviathans, with SMEs and others struggling to access them. So is there a better way to organise public-private cooperation than partnerships, and what else could revitalise corporate R&I?
Workshop 6: The international problem
With geopolitical tensions rising, strategic autonomy has become a policy meme in Brussels – yet the EU is also seeking new Framework agreements with countries far from Europe. Should FPs be Europe-first or a tool for international diplomacy? Can these seemingly contradictory goals be reconciled?
16:00 Transition break
16:15 Plenary session – Preparing for FP10: How can research and industry support the COM in planning for the future?
2024 will be a pivotal year for Europe, thanks to Parliamentary elections and the appointment of a new Commission – but with political mandates and the implications for R&I as yet unknown, which foundations need to be laid now to prepare for 2025 and beyond? In this closing plenary, current EU representatives and Science|Business Network leaders will discuss the way forward and how R&I organisations can most effectively contribute.
17:15 Close of session
