In June 2011, ALLEA via its Permanent Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights (IPR) issued a Statement on “The Future Patent System of the European Union” which supported the creation of a European patent with unitary effect and the renewal of the European Commission’s efforts to harmonise employee’s invention laws as well as provide for a grace period in order to facilitate implementation of the anticipated unitary EU patenting rules.
ALLEA’s newest statement prepared by the PWG IPR revisits these issues in light of recent developments regarding EU patent regulation on the basis of the Agreement on a Unified Patent Court (UPC Agreement) signed by 25 Member States in February 2013 as well as the 2012 Unitary Patent Regulation and the 2012 Regulation on translation arrangements.
The statement welcomes the introduction of these pieces of legislation “despite the fact that the three legal instruments constitute a complex and complicated compromise, which does not meet all the expectations and whose implementation into practice will have to overcome several hurdles”. It then proceeds to assess the difficulties and deficiencies that will arise in the course of their imminent implementation. For example, the Unitary Patent Regulation and the UPC Agreement reveal a problematic situation in which the validity of “unitary effect”-holding patents is dependent on the date of their respective Member State’s accession to the UPC Agreement.
Thus, the statement offers several recommendations for resolving these issues and emphasises that the coordination of Member States’ accession to the UPC Agreement is essential for avoiding inconsistencies and confusion related to the unitary effect of patents. Moreover, ALLEA via the PWG IPR reaffirms its commitment to supporting the introduction of the aforementioned grace period, which still remains unaddressed in the existing legislation.
This statement will be addressed to the relevant European authorities and national governments in an effort to concretely contribute to the continuing development of the European patent system.
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On 4 November 2015, ALLEA President Günter Stock delivered the annual MacCormick European Lecture at the Royal Society of Edinburghon the kind invitation of RSE President Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell. In his lecture, Professor Stock reflected upon the role of academies in the age of the Enlightenment, drawing a parallel to today’s contemporary academies and arguing that providing scientific advice can be viewed as a form of “modern enlightenment”. Ultimately, the mandate of academies remains to enlighten – by upholding and continuing this tradition of enabling the discovery and communication of scientific knowledge. The following text encapsulates the main themes of enlightenment and the academies as conveyed by Professor Stock in his lecture.
Academies were a result and at the same time an enormous driving force of and for the Enlightenment. And hence, academies like the RSE rightly consider themselves as enlightenment societies. The German writer Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach once said, “Who doesn’t know anything, has to believe everything,” a modern version of the phrase used by Immanuel Kant during the Enlightenment: sapere aude.
The Royal Society of Edinburgh
Through learning how to understand, interpret, and analyse our world we have created as Jürgen Mittelstraß calls it a Leonardo world. It is therefore obvious that our responsibility for the future of this – our – world is enormous. Whatever the outcomes of what we have achieved might be, they can only truly be mastered with more and better information, knowledge, and science in general, with more wisdom. In recent years, we have learned that the great challenges ahead of us such as climate, energy, health, and inequalities, to name only a few, can only be tackled or, to say more modestly, can only be approached if we are able to combine all of the current knowledge we have and make this knowledge available in a qualitative and timely fashion.
To allow for taking the appropriate measures and developing the means to respond to these challenges, quality assurance and interdisciplinarity of the highest possible standards are the first mandates which have to be brought forward by academia and hence by academies. In a world with ever increasing knowledge, universal geniuses – if they really existed once upon a time – to whom one could conceivably delegate issues and problems are no longer available. It is civil society that needs to understand, in principle, what is needed in order to properly decide upon and implement measures.
It is exactly this responsibility which has to be accepted – not exclusively, but to a great extent – by modern academies. First, they need to help society to develop the necessary mental attitude and then show society what options and alternatives are currently available based on scientific knowledge and judgment. We call this scientific advice or, more histrionically, modern enlightenment.
This enlightenment or science-based advice is of course a global endeavour, a national endeavour, and, even more so, a European task. Currently, a European academy consortium (Academia Europaea, ALLEA, EASAC, Euro-CASE, and FEAM) is preparing, together with the European Commission, a new mechanism for scientific advice (SAM), which will be an important contribution to the improvement of European political efficiency.
Last but not least, European academies have both a mandate and the obligation to preserve, interpret, and make available in the broadest possible sense the European cultural heritage and its relationship with the global cultural heritage. This indispensable task means that we must strive to underline and support what our predecessors have called the “soul” of Europe. Thus, the term enlightenment is neither outdated nor old-fashioned: it is the essence of modern academies.
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland’s national academy. Founded in 1783, its Fellowship includes some of the best intellectual talent in academia, the professions and business. It facilitates public debate, research programmes, educational projects and strategy formulation. Its strength is its diversity and impartiality. The Society’s unique multi-disciplinary approach enables it to draw from and link with a broad spectrum of expertise to advance the understanding of globally-important issues. In fulfilling its Royal Charter for the ‘advancement of learning and useful knowledge’, the RSE is seeking to contribute to the social, cultural and economic wellbeing of Scotland.
Contact:
22-26 George Street
Edinburgh, EH2 2PQ, Scotland
United Kingdom
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In its 2013 Statement on Enhancement of Open Access to Scientific Publications in Europe, ALLEA invited the European authorities to take measures to facilitate the transition to an Open Access (OA) model for publications in scientific journals. In their supplementary statement, the authors now encourage the European authorities to “advocate, or adopt a legislation on a copyright contract law provision allowing the authors of short scientific works resulting from a publicly-funded research to make their work available to the public free of charge following a reasonable period of time after the work was first published.” Thereby, the statement specifies, the deployment of the so-called Green OA model can be facilitated.
Both the Netherlands and Germany recently have adopted such provisions that give the scientific authors the right to make their article freely available despite any provision to the contrary in their contract with the publisher of the journal.
In the statement, the Working Group suggests that such authors’ rights should apply to articles, and not to books: “[I]t should be limited to short publications resulting from publicly- and in particular EU-funded research programs (not from private research); the free making available should happen after a reasonable period of time allowing the publisher to recoup its investment.”
Those provisions “do not create a new copyright exception […] but only affect the assignability of the economic rights of the authors”. This supplementary statement encourages European institutions concerned with the dissemination of scientific research to consider similar measures which could be adopted at European or national level and to devote more attention to the awareness of author rights in open access models.
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The second African European Mediterranean Academies for Science Education (AEMASE) Conference (AEMASE) was held in Dakar, Senegal from the 12th to the 13th of October 2015 with the kind hospitality of the Académie des Sciences et Téchniques du Sénégal (ANSTS). ALLEA participated in the Conference via its Working Group on Science Education.
AEMASE is an intercontinental initiative of science academies in the geographical African-European-Mediterranean (AEM) area, a region that shares strong and ancient political and scientific links. At the origin of the idea of AEMASE lies the strong desire of several national Academies to help improve formal and informal science education (SE) as part of their mission. The partner institutions involved in this initiative are the French, Italian, Moroccan and Senegalese national Academies and the Egyptian Bibliotheca Alexandrina.
The same AEMASE partner institutions, which organised the 1st AEMASE Conference at the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei in Rome in May 2014, have decided to hold alternating conferences in Europe and Africa. The second AEMASE Conference in October 2015 was therefore the logical continuation of the Rome Conference.
The President of the Conference was Prof. Ahmadou Lamine Ndiaye, President of the ANSTS. The International Scientific Committee responsible for organising the conference is constituted by Co-Chairs Prof. Ahmadou Wague from the ANSTS and Prof. Giancarlo Vecchio, Chairperson of the and representing the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei. Further members include Prof. Odile Macchi (Académie des Sciences, France), Prof. Beno Csapo (Hungarian Academy of Sciences), Prof. Mostapha Bousmina (Hassan II Académie des Sciences et Technologie, Morocco), Profs. Doudou Ba and Abdoulaye Samb (ANSTS), and Eng. Hoda El Mikaty (Bibliotheca Alexandrina).
The Conference was made possible thanks to the generous support of IAP, the ANSTS, the Accademia Nazionale dei Lincei, the Académie des Sciences, the Hassan II Academie des Sciences et Technologie of Morocco, and ALLEA.
The Conference gathered expert scientists on science education from many different countries including Senegal, Benin, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Morocco, Nigeria, Tanzania, South Africa, Tunisia, Italy, France, the UK, Germany, Hungary, Belgium, Argentina and Sri Lanka. The Network of African Science Academies (NASAC) was represented by its Chair, Prof. Mostapha Bousmina, who also represented IAP. ALLEA was represented by the Chair of its Working Group on Science Education, Prof. Giancarlo Vecchio. The delegates discussed various topics related to Inquiry-Based Science Education (IBSE), Science Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) and Science–Based Citizenship (SBC).
The Conference was organised into six Sessions. On the first day following the Opening Ceremony, Session n° 2 was dedicated to “The Role of Science Education in Development and Global View on Science Education Programmes”, Session n° 3 was dedicated to “National and International Projects and Programmes in Science Education”, and Session n° 4 to “Methods, Materials and Resources for Teacher Training and School SE Experiments”. On the second day, Session n° 5 was dedicated to “Research in SE and Assessment Methods” and Session n° 6 to “E-learning and SE/WEB Connection between Schools”. Keynote speeches were given on the first day by Prof. Ahmadou Lamine Ndiaye, who spoke about science education in Africa, Prof. Odile Macchi, who discussed science education in Europe, and Prof. Norma Nudelman, whose speech focussed on science education in Latin America. On the second day, Prof. Faouzia Charfi gave a keynote lecture on “The Scientific Way of Thinking”.
The Conference was concluded in the afternoon of October 13th, when a full report on the Conference was prepared by the chairs, the moderators and the session reporters via a conclusive session in which the future of the AEMASE concept was discussed.
The Conference ended with the participants’ unanimous approval of the Dakar Declaration, which called on all countries in the AEM region to urgently implement and consolidate IBSE/STEM/SBC Education programmes and on Academies and Ministries of Education to re-elaborate science education programmes to include new ways of teaching and learning.
This report was kindly provided by ALLEA Working Group Science Education Chair Professor Giancarlo Vecchio.
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On Tuesday, 15 September 2015, ALLEA participated in a debate on the cross-cutting topic of inequalities in Europe jointly organised with the European Science Foundation (ESF) and the European Parliamentary Research Service (EPRS). The event took place in the EPRS Library Reading Room on the premises of the European Parliament.
The event began with an introductory address by the ALLEA President, after which a panel of experts from both academia and the European Parliament discussed various aspects of the topic of inequalities and highlighted key examples. After the panel discussion, a debate ensued with members of the European Parliament which allowed for further examination of how science can help the development of policies for tackling inequalities. This multifaceted topic encompasses such issues as income and wealth inequalities; employment, inequality and social policy; as well as health, regional, educational, democratic, environmental, and gender inequalities and other cross-cutting themes such as migration, identity or sustainability.
Inequalities are a profound research and policy challenge for the European Union. For example, the European Union’s 2020 Strategy includes a target to have at least 20 million fewer people in or at risk of poverty and social exclusion by 2020. The understanding of inequalities is also vital for many areas of research within Horizon 2020. To “reverse inequalities” is furthermore a named priority for the EU in the European Council’s “Strategic Agenda for the Union in Times of Change”.
In the wider context, the roundtable debate sought to explore how scientific perspectives, especially from the humanities and social sciences, can concretely contribute to developing effective approaches and solutions for major societal challenges such as inequalities. The debate on inequalities followed the successful first roundtable debate that focussed on demographic change, which was organised by ALLEA, the ESF and the EPRS in March 2015.
More information will soon be available on the EPRS blog.
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On 15 September 2015 in Brussels, leading European scientists exchanged perspectives with members of the European Parliament with the aim of promoting evidence-informed policymaking. The event offered panel sessions on numerous aspects of this topic as well as networking opportunities and bilateral meetings between scientists and Parliamentarians. ALLEA was actively engaged at the event with the ALLEA President participating in a high-level panel session and several experts nominated by ALLEA taking part in the bilateral meetings.
The opening session invited high-level panelists (including Commissioners Tibor Navracsics and Carlos Moedas as well as European Parliament Vice-President Mairead McGuiness and MEP Jerzy Buzek, who chairs the Committee on Industry, Research and Energy) to discuss what EU policymakers expect and need from scientists and how existing communication channels between the two communities can be improved. The panel was followed by a session on the collaboration between Parliamentarians and scientists on the national level.
ALLEA President Günter Stock took part in the next scheduled high-level panel focussing on the perspectives of scientific organisations in response to the expectations of EU and national policymakers. Other panelists included representatives from the fellow European academy organisations EASAC and Euro-CASE. The session was moderated by Vladimir Šucha, Director-General of the Joint Research Centre (JRC) and was followed by a wrap-up session as well as a presentation of the Science and Technology Options Assessment (STOA) MEP-Scientist Pairing Scheme 2015.
In the afternoon, two parallel sessions took place, the first being a panel on best practices of scientific advice at national level. The other session consisted of bilateral meetings between scientists and parliamentarians to further discuss how to strengthen the connection between scientific advice and informed policymaking. Several scientists nominated by ALLEA on behalf of its Member Academies were invited to take part in this session and discussed issues such as “Plant protection and biocides regulation” and “Circular economy and resource efficiency” in face-to-face meetings with MEPs.
“Science Meets Parliaments” was co-organised by the JRC and the Science and Technology Options Assessment (STOA) in an effort to promote evidence-informed policymaking. “It is important that EU policy-makers have a regular exchange with scientists allowing them to better understand scientists’ views on policy issues and vice versa,” stated STOA on its website.
On 11 September, the ALLEA Board met in Bern on the invitation of the Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences for its third meeting of the year. At the meeting, Board discussed, inter alia, recent, current, and future ALLEA developments with a focus on various activities related to ALLEA’s involvement in the new Scientific Advice Mechanism of the European Commission (SAM).
Before commencing the meeting, the attendees were welcomed by Professor Thierry Courvoisier, President of the Swiss Academies and President-elect of the European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC). The meeting opened with a session in which recent and ongoing ALLEA activities were discussed, including numerous upcoming science policy events on the European level in which ALLEA is actively involved. Status updates respective to the ALLEA Working Groups were also reported and discussed as well as various internal matters.
The ALLEA President with Professor Thierry Courvoisier, President of the Swiss Academies and President-elect of the European Academies Science Advisory Council (EASAC)
The participants then turned to continuing preliminary preparations for the next ALLEA General Assembly, which will be held in Vienna on 18/19 April 2016, as well as the next Madame de Staël Prize for Cultural Values.
The day concluded with looking ahead to the next ALLEA Board Meeting, which will take place in December in Dublin, Ireland and will include a joint meeting with the ALLEA Working Group Chairs.
The Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences are an umbrella organisation, associating the Swiss Academy of Sciences, the Swiss Academy of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Swiss Academy of Medical Sciences and the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences as well as the Centre for Technology Assessment and Science et Cité. As institutions for the promotion of research, the Swiss Academies are publicly funded under the terms of the Swiss Federal Law on Research.
The ALLEA Board (absent: Prof. Øivind Andersen)
The four academies stand in the tradition of learned societies, with the aim of contributing scientific knowledge to help resolve societal challenges and to contribute to human and environmental well-being. They do so by accessing the scientific expertise available to them, namely their members who are individual scholars or scholars belonging to scientific unions in the different disciplines. This core business of the four academies is complemented by activities of the two centres of competence: the Centre for Technology Assessment provides assessment studies to assist political decision-making on new technologies, and Science et Cité is involved in projects to foster the dialogue between science and society.
Contact details:
Swiss Academies of Arts and Sciences – Akademien der Wissenschaften Schweiz
House of Academies
Laupenstrasse 7
P.O. Box
3008 Bern
Switzerland
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Participants in expert discussion on 2 September 2015
On 2 September 2015, circa 25 experts from the fields of research funding, humanities research, and science policy met in the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, which hosts the ALLEA secretariat, for a discussion on the topic “The European Academies and Digitisation in the Humanities”.
The event began with an introduction of the “Survey and Analysis of Basic Social Science and Humanities Research at the Science Academies and Related Research Organisations of Europe” (SASSH) study recently published by ALLEA and the Union of the German Academies of Sciences and Humanities and led by Dr Camilla Leathem. The results of the study offer the first-ever overview of humanities and social sciences research at the science Academies in Europe.
After the presentation of the SASSH study, three invited experts delivered lectures on the discussion topic. Dr Julia Stamm from the European Commission showcased the opportunities and challenges for researchers in the social sciences and humanities regarding the procurement of funding and support within the current EU research funding programme Horizon 2020. Professor Claudine Moulin followed with a presentation of numerous different digital and physical research infrastructures in the social sciences and humanities. Finally, Professor Gerhard Lauer, member of the ALLEA Working Group on E-Humanities, presented examples of changes and shifts in humanities research that have been brought by different forms of digitisation.
The meeting closed with an animated discussion addressing, among others, the questions of how joint or cooperative projects by the European Academies can be supported and which role consistent data standards can play in digital projects in the social sciences and humanities.
The Union of the German Academies of Sciences and Humanities is the umbrella organisation of eight German academies of sciences and humanities. The member academies comprise a total of over 1,900 scholars of diverse subjects, all of whom are outstanding representatives of their research fields, both nationally and internationally. Together they are committed to promoting scientific exchange, excellence in research, and supporting young early-stage researchers in the sciences and humanities. The Union coordinates the Academies’ Programme, currently the most comprehensive humanities and cultural sciences research programme in Germany. In addition, the Union promotes the exchange of information and experience between academies, and conducts press and public engagement activities. Furthermore, the Union represents the German academies of sciences and humanities abroad and sends delegates to national and international science organisations.
Press and Contact:
Union of the German Academies of Sciences and Humanities
Dominik Adrian
Tel.: +49 (0)30 / 203 70-627
Fax: +49 (0)30 / 325 98 73 73
adrian@akademienunion-berlin.de www.akademienunion.de
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The ALLEA Board met in Edinburgh on the premises of the Royal Society of Edinburgh (RSE) from 29-30 June. At its second meeting of 2015, the Board discussed, inter alia, recent, current, and future ALLEA activities with a focus on the challenges and opportunities related to ALLEA’s involvement in the new Scientific Advice Mechanism of the European Commission (SAM). The meeting was facilitated by Professor Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell, President of the RSE.
Before commencing the meeting, the attendees were welcomed by RSE President Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell. The meeting then opened with a session which focussed on reports regarding recent and ongoing ALLEA activities, highlighting in particular the recent release of numerous new ALLEA publications in addition to several in-progress initiatives at European level, including those related to the European Commission’s recently announced Scientific Advice Mechanism (SAM). Status updates respective to the ALLEA Working Groups were also reported and discussed.
The meeting continued with a reflective session on the results of the ALLEA General Assembly which took place in Lisbon in April, especially questions and ideas which may represent new opportunities for ALLEA both internally and externally. The agenda then proceeded to look ahead to plans regarding the next ALLEA General Assembly, which will be held in Vienna on 18/19 April 2016, as well as the next Madame de Staël Prize for Cultural Values.
The ALLEA Board
A highlight of the meeting took place on the evening of 29 June at a reception hosted by the RSE. A presentation on the many significant international engagements of the RSE was given by Professor Tariq Durrani OBE FRSE, Vice President for International Activities. ALLEA President Günter Stock also gave a short presentation on the activities and mission of ALLEA, with a particular focus on the academies’ and ALLEA’s role in the science policy advice arena in Europe. Guests included members of the Consular Corps in Edinburgh and Leith, the RSE Council, the RSE International Committee, as well as ALLEA Board Members and partners. Renowned members of the RSE as well as of fellow ALLEA members the British Academy and the Royal Society (London) were also represented. The reception was followed by a festive dinner attended by the ALLEA Board Members and partners as well as RSE Senior Office Bearers.
The second day of the meeting was mainly devoted to discussing ALLEA’s numerous activities in the area of science policy. Significant portions were dedicated to the developments regarding SAM as well as upcoming events and initiatives in cooperation with the European Parliament. The meeting concluded with looking ahead to the next ALLEA Board Meeting, which will take place in September in Bern, Switzerland. The ALLEA Board members and guests completed their visit to Edinburgh with a conducted tour of Historic Edinburgh by Dr Iain Gordon Brown, FRSE. Finally, ALLEA Vice Presidents Daniela Ježová and Ed Noort represented ALLEA at the annual RSE Fellows’ Summer Reception which took place that evening.
The Royal Society of Edinburgh is Scotland’s national academy. Founded in 1783, its Fellowship includes some of the best intellectual talent in academia, the professions and business. It facilitates public debate, research programmes, educational projects and strategy formulation. Its strength is its diversity and impartiality. The Society’s unique multi-disciplinary approach enables it to draw from and link with a broad spectrum of expertise to advance the understanding of globally-important issues. In fulfilling its Royal Charter for the ‘advancement of learning and useful knowledge’, the RSE is seeking to contribute to the social, cultural and economic wellbeing of Scotland.
Contact details
The Royal Society of Edinburgh
22-26 George Street
Edinburgh
EH2 2PQ
+44 (0) 131 240 5000 www.royalsoced.org.uk
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From left to right: Martin Grötschel, designated President of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities; Angela Merkel,German Chancellor; Günter Stock, ALLEA President Photo: BBAW, news aktuell, Oliver Mehlis
In her ceremonial address on 6 June 2015 in the context of the “Leibniztag” festivities organised by the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, German Chancellor Angela Merkel emphasised the importance of fostering strong national science programmes. As part of her address, she honoured ALLEA President Günter Stock, whose ten years as the President of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy have now concluded.
Addressing an audience of nearly 1,600 guests in the neoclassical Konzerthaus Berlin, Chancellor Merkel spoke about the relationship between the political world and that of science while reaffirming her government’s goal to reach the 3% GDP investment in research and development. She emphasised the need to continue to invest in all areas of science, especially in view of international competitiveness, promoting excellence in science, and providing quality opportunities for early career researchers.
Chancellor Merkel furthermore underlined the significance of quality education, science and innovation systems for society as a whole. They would determine how far society can come towards providing technology, services, and intellectual answers that are in demand today and directly influence prosperity levels, standards of living, and progress worldwide.
Moreover, Chancellor Merkel attributed the role of functioning as a bridge for the cooperation between nations and regions to science. She noted that in the science landscape, international cooperation has long been practically self-evident and that this cooperation serves as an example for policymakers that they can best tackle common challenges through a united effort.
Honouring ALLEA President Günter Stock for his now completed ten years in office as President of the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy, Chancellor Merkel specifically highlighted his role as the President of ALLEA, the network of Academies at the European level. On the functions of Academies, the Chancellor noted that Academies contribute towards leading innovative national and international projects, bring science to civil society, represent the voices of scientists towards their governments, and help develop new interdisciplinary approaches and projects, thereby reaffirming their indispensable role for science and society.
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The statement welcomes the introduction of these pieces of legislation “despite the fact that the three legal instruments constitute a complex and complicated compromise, which does not meet all the expectations and whose implementation into practice will have to overcome several hurdles”. It then proceeds to assess the difficulties and deficiencies that will arise in the course of their imminent implementation. For example, the Unitary Patent Regulation and the UPC Agreement reveal a problematic situation in which the validity of “unitary effect”-holding patents is dependent on the date of their respective Member State’s accession to the UPC Agreement.
