In today’s Morning Brief:

Fight begins over 2023 research budget

As the European Parliament begins internal talks on next year’s budget, some MEPs warn they might lose again in the battle with member states on using unspent research money.

Every year the European Commission, Council and Parliament engage in an endless negotiation over the budget, which inevitably ends with a compromise.

In this Science|Business article, German MEP Christian Ehler warns the game is different this year, because the Commission keeps adding more programmes and initiatives it wants to be funded by a research budget that is already thinly spread.

Click here to read the article.

Innovative Health Initiative (IHI) launches call for Science and Innovation Panel

The Innovative Health Initiative Joint Undertaking is launching a call for expressions of interest to select representatives of the scientific community, and of stakeholders involved in health care as permanent panellists of the Science and Innovation Panel.

Interested candidates are requested to submit a completed version of the application form until 21 February.

To read more about this call and find out how to submit your application, make sure to click here.

LEAK: Data Act’s proposed rules for data sharing, cloud switching, interoperability

The Data Act proposal defines the rules for sharing data, conditions for access by public bodies, international data transfers, cloud switching and interoperability, according to a draft seen by EURACTIV. Read the full article here.

European Research Council to launch first 2023 budget calls this July

The European Research Council (ERC) will launch the first 2023 calls for fundamental research this July. The work programme detailing the full terms of the calls and their budgets is yet to be published but a preliminary calendar out now will help researchers prepare.

Next year, the ERC returns to a ‘normal’ schedule after two years of irregular calls following the late launch of the seven year Horizon Europe research programme.

Don’t miss this Science|Business article detailing the preliminary dates and grant sizes.

The EUA Open Science Agenda 2025

The EUA Open Science Agenda 2025 defines the Association’s priorities in this field and describes the current context, challenges and developments envisaged for the coming years. In addition, it outlines the actions EUA will take to drive this agenda forward.

The Open Science Agenda 2025 is drawn from members’ experience of the transition to Open Science (EUA Open Science Surveys) and national and European developments. Striving to be as inclusive as possible, and given its wide range of members, EUA has selected three major priority areas for its work on Open Science in future: Open Access to scholarly outputs in a just scholarly publishing ecosystem, FAIR research data, and research assessment.

Through the Agenda, EUA aims to support its members in the transition to Open Science, contribute to the development of national, European and institutional policies that foster Open Science, and encourage universities to play a more proactive role in the regulatory and financial frameworks shaping this process.

Download it here!

Optimising the contribution of forests to mitigate climate change

A new report by the European Forest Institute, provides new recommendations for how to optimise the contribution of forestry and the forest sector to mitigate climate change.

Forests and forestry play a key part in the global carbon cycle and are central to limit global temperature increases by reducing greenhouse gas emissions.

This report presents an overview of the carbon dynamics in managed forests where harvest takes place, the climate contribution of harvested wood products, and how forests and the forest-based sector can contribute to climate change mitigation through Climate-Smart forestry.

Check it out here.

“Erro de Pandora” – Podcast with Arlindo Oliveira, President of INESC Holding

In this episode of the podcast “Erro de Pandora”, released by the Technical Institute of Lisbon features Arlindo Oliveira, the President of INESC Holding discussing Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning.

The uncertain future of AI is approached as well as the history and development of this phenomenon.

Listen here!

EU agri-food trade continues to grow in the first ten months of 2021

According to the European Commission, the total value of EU agri-food trade for January-October 2021 reached a value of €268.1 billion, a 6% increase compared to the same period last year. Exports rose by 7% whilst imports grew by 4%, fiving a total agri-food trade surplus of €57.5 billion. This is an increase of 14% compared to the corresponding period in 2020.

If you want to find out more information and read the report analysing the developments that were achieved until October 2021 make sure to click here.

Digital industry sets out laundry list for EU-US Trade and Technology Council

The Digital Europe industry association has published 24 targets for the EU and US to strive for in their joint dialogue on technology, including launching for major semiconductor R&D projects by 2030.

The association set out the targets ahead of meeting in May, calling for a strong tech alliance in cybersecurity, cloud computing, semiconductors and other areas as well as alignment around competition policies.

The targets include developing joint rulebooks for cloud computing, AI and cybersecurity, promoting digital inclusion, developing common principles for a safer internet, establishing a green technology alliance, and launching four major co-funded semiconductor R&D projects by the end of the decade.

Investors warn ‘green’ label for gas undermines EU taxonomy

In this EURACTIV piece, investor groups have criticised the European Commission’s plan to label fossil gas projects as “green” under the EU sustainable finance taxonomy, saying it undermines the investment guide’s purpose of promoting climate-friendly activities.

Fossil gas should not be considered green and labelling it as such will confuse investors, warn the Institutional Investors Group on Climate Change (IIGCC), and Eurosif, a European organisation that promotes sustainable investments.

The European Commission, however, defended the inclusion of nuclear energy and fossil gas. In a press conference following the announcement, the EU’s financial services commissioner, Mairead McGuinness, emphasised that there were new disclosure rules and “clear limits and phase out periods” for both technologies.