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The Expert Group’s report is now available
Europe should focus research on grand challenges, says Expert Group
Europe needs to reshape its research policy if it is to flourish in a world of increasing globalisation, research clustering and open innovation, according to a group of senior stakeholders.
The Expert Group was formed at the request of the research directorate (DG Research) of the European Commission to consider the role of community research policy in the knowledge-based economy. It included members from national research councils, government departments, academia, think-tanks, public research organisations, the European Research Area Board, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology, the European Research Council and EIRMA.
The group decided to look at how both national and Community policies should change in the light of global trends and major challenges to society such as climate change, sustainable development and Europe’s ageing population.
The Group’s key recommendation is for Europe to commit once more to the knowledge economy by setting a target for governments to invest 3% of GDP in knowledge by 2020, with 1% of GDP being invested in research and development (R&D) and 2% in higher education. It says that the risk of private investment in European R&D should be cut by improving coordination between policymakers responsible for nurturing research, stimulating innovation and regulating market development. Given increasing globalisation, the Group also says that the European Research Area should be opened up so that researchers and innovative entrepreneurs from anywhere in the world can be a part of it.
A second key set of recommendations focuses on using R&D to tackle challenges to European society, such as climate change, sustainable development, access to energy, and social care. Given the scope of these issues, the Group recommends that European and national research funds should be funnelled towards solving them, a shift in policy from backing R&D for its own sake in the belief that practical benefits would follow later. The Group argues that this will help develop the critical mass needed to tackle these problems, nurture the development of the European Research Area and create an engine for economic development. Because the challenges are so great, the Group also recommends developing international cooperation, particularly to tackle global issues. These efforts should be underpinned by stronger policy coordination to align innovation with the needs of society.
A third set of recommendations focuses on improving European public research by introducing competition for funding based on merit, to enable institutions to differentiate themselves through the work they do. This will mean that institutions will need greater autonomy and accountability to support their increased diversity. The Expert Group also calls for the establishment of ‘truly European’ institutions, through a wider role for the European Research Council and the Knowledge and Innovation Communities of the EIT, and more work to make key research infrastructure truly European.
Practical measures should include an EU scheme to strengthen links between high performers in research
The Group recognised the importance of open innovation and suggests focusing on young SMEs as a way of improving the flow of knowledge, the linkages and the level of risk in Europe’s innovation ecosystems. It suggests practical measures including an EU-wide scheme to strengthen links between high performers in research, innovation and entrepreneurship, and to promote the evolution of European specialisations and the growth of young innovative firms. The selection criteria for collaborative research projects should emphasise research excellence, the potential for radical innovation and the capacity of the research team to work globally.
Other suggested actions to support the growth of open innovation in Europe include the implementation of a Community-wide patent; measures to ensure that researchers can easily move between countries, industry and academia, and sectors; and efforts to cut the transaction costs of knowledge and technology exchanges.
The idea that R&D will stay in one place because of its characteristics is increasingly attractive in a globalised world
The idea that R&D will stay in one place because of that location’s unique characteristics is increasingly attractive in a globalised world. The Expert Group sees the geographic clustering of research, innovation and entrepreneurship as important for the future of Europe’s knowledge economy, and suggests that ‘smart specialisation’ policies are developed that enable clusters to nurture and exploit the regional conditions that support entrepreneurship. The Group further recommends that a greater proportion of structural funding is spent on developing research and innovation capacity, conditional upon the use of these smart specialisation strategies.
The Expert Group also makes recommendations about the way in which the Commission delivers research policy, for example by adjusting governance structures, processes and policy delivery. It suggests that financial regulation needs to be adjusted to take into account the risky nature of research and innovation with uncertain outcomes. If the Commission can’t do this, the Group argues, then individual member states may go it alone, undermining efforts to build a cohesive European Research Area.
The report summarises the Group’s top recommendations as follows:
- Focus on our greatest societal challenges
- Encourage new networks, institutions and policies for open innovation
- Spend more on research, education and innovation, in part through bolder co-investment schemes
- Coordinate and plan research, development and innovation programmes better – within Brussels and among the member-states
- Open competition should be standard in EU programmes