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“Happy Victims of Chinese Investments”
Every year in spring the secretariats of the European Science and Innovation Councils meet to discuss a specific subject in their field of action. The focus of this year was on "knowledge security".
By Lukas Zollinger, Head of the SSC secretariat
Anna Valente: “Robots for people will be the next generation ethical manufacturing paradigm.”
Anna Valente is a member of the Swiss Science Council SSC since 2020, and chairs the Automation, Robots and Machines Laboratory at the Institute of Systems and Technologies for Sustainable Production of SUPSI (Department of Innovative Technologies). In 2019, she received the Grand Prix for Innovation by the European Commission and, in 2021, Guy Parmelin, then Swiss president, awarded her the Swiss Dinno Prize, which honours companies, projects, or individuals for innovative digitalization. Read more
Autumn Meeting of the European STI Councils in Lausanne
The Swiss Science Council SSC hosted the 2022 Autumn Meeting of the Presidents and Secretariats of the European Science, Technology and Innovation (STI) Councils. 13 countries were represented at this event, which took place on 20 and 21 October at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL). Read more
“More weight for women’s voices”: Gender parity in the Swiss Science Council
In 1971, the federal referendum on women’s suffrage was accepted, granting Swiss women the same political rights as men. As Switzerland celebrates and commemorates the 50th anniversary of this historic event, the Swiss Science Council takes the opportunity to look back at its own history.Read more
Hopefuls and Stars: Technological Developments Shaping Switzerland’s Future
The eleventh instalment of “Science after Noon” (12 November 2021) was co-convened by the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences (SATW) and the Swiss Science Council (SSC). The event focused on the latest technological “hopeful” and “star” developments likely to shape the Swiss economy and society in the next ten years. Three technology brokers and three research and innovation scientists, among them SSC member Anna Valente, took part in the panel discussion. Marcel Tanner, president of the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences, chaired the event.
“Missions” in Horizon Europe: Genesis and State of Play
One of the novelties of the European Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, Horizon Europe (2021–2027), is the introduction of “missions”. According to the European Commission, this funding line should help to solve some of the great challenges the world is facing today. This blog post discusses the role of the economist Mariana Mazzucato in designing the Horizon Europe mission approach. It also provides an overview of the current state of play.
Challenges and Opportunities in a Digital Society
Sara Irina Fabrikant is a member of the Swiss Science Council and a professor of geography at the University of Zurich, where she heads the Geographic Information Visualization and Analysis (GIVA) group. In this interview, she talks about the opportunities and challenges in a digital society. Read more
Online seminar on science-based policy advice in agriculture, food, climate and environment
The SSC is part of the European Science Advisors Forum ESAF an independent platform of European science-based strategic advisors that promotes and facilitates the use of scientific evidence in policy. On 16 and 17 Mars, together with Aarhus University in Denmark, 300 people discussed on science-based policy advice in agriculture, food, climate and environment. Find here a summary of the main results.Read more
Lessons from the corona virus pandemic for the life sciences
The SARS-2 Coronavirus pandemic has brought infection biology and the importance of molecular mechanisms of virology and our immune response into focus. It is an opportunity for life scientists to respond to a call for information and explanation, that comes from beyond our community – a request from the general public and from government officials.
Back in grace of mission-oriented innovation?
Not a day goes by without a newspaper announcing a new sustainable technology somewhere in the world or a government initiative to address a global challenge. This is certainly due to an awareness of our enormous challenges, but also to a new understanding of the role of governments in research and innovation (R&D). Indeed, governments seem to have rediscovered the virtues of mission-oriented R&D programs like Apollo (moon landing) or Manhattan (atomic bomb) missions carried out by direct interventions in R&D activities.Read more
