In today’s Morning Brief:

The 2021 Global Research Council (GRC) European Regional Meeting is only two days away

On the 21st and 22nd of October, this hybrid event will bring heads of organisations in the European region will meet to discuss and prepare European contributions to the Annual meeting in Europe and four other GRC regions.

This meeting will focus on two main topics: research ethics, integrity and culture in the context of rapid research results; and science and technology workforce.

To find out more about the programme of the event click here.

Facebook announces plans to hire 10,000 people in the EU to build the ‘metaverse’.

This Monday, Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced plans to build the metaverse, something that would blur the lines between the digital and physical worlds.

The announcement gave few details of the company’s plans for the new metaverse team, except that the new hires will include highly specialised engineers.

Many, such as the Washington Post, claim that Facebook’s interest in the metaverse are part of a push towards rehabilitation of the company’s reputation.

If you want to learn more about this new technology click here.

Greater inclusivity in post-pandemic connectivity push is needed

Further work towards inclusivity in expanding connectivity in a post COVID-19 world is needed, according to EU experts working in this area.

Regarding the importance of connectivity during and after the crisis, MEP Josianne Cutajar noted the importance of ensuring that connectivity infrastructure works for all and the skills necessary for its deployment don’t leave anyone behind.

The COVID-19 pandemic has demonstrated how indispensable connectivity is, thus, there is a need from Europe to push towards investment in sustainable and quality digital infrastructure.

If you want to read more about this topic click here.

European Commission estimates two years before Horizon Europe missions can start to deliver

In an interview with Science|Business, the EC’s Director General for Research and Innovation Jean-Eric Paquet said Brussels is starting a campaign to convince member states and regions to help make the five research missions in Horizon Europe a reality.

Each of these five missions will get at least €320 million for the next two years as they get underway. If all goes well, more funding willl be allocated after 2023. The hope is stakeholders will jump on board and commit their own funding. But the key to the success of the missions will be implementation, something the Commission will push for take up of research results on the ground and in policy.

Researchers are still awaiting more clarity on how to take part in the missions. The first details should come out in December of this year, when the Commission is expected to update the 2021 work programme with Horizon Europe calls for the five missions. The 2022 Horizon Europe work programme should be out in Spring. To read more about this click here.

The EIT supports the New European Bauhaus initiative with €5 million

The European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT) launched the ‘EIT Community Booster – Scaling New European Bauhaus Ventures’ in order to support the New European Bauhaus initiative.

This first call will support twenty innovative companies with a budget of up to €50,000 each to accelerate solutions integrating sustainability, aesthetics, and inclusion.

This call is part of a wider €5 million budget for New European Bauhaus activities supported by the new EIT Community in 2021 to 2022. This call will be open until 17 December 2021 and start-ups and scale-ups are encouraged to apply and scale their venture.

For more information about this

this initiative make sure to click here.