The science behind genome editing, its regulation and its impact on society– those were only few of the topics discussed on 7 and 8 November at the Academy Palace in Brussels. The symposium ‘Genome Editing for Crop Improvement’, organised by ALLEA and the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts (KVAB) brought together eminent speakers and stakeholders to discuss how to harness the benefits of genome editing while ensuring a wide-spread acceptance of the new technology in society.
The symposium provided a holistic overview with a variety of different backgrounds, a comprehensive overview of scientific evidence on safety of the genome edited crops and their potential for solving current and future problems in agriculture. It further addressed issues relating to intellectual property and the desirability of amending current European legislation on genome-edited plants.
A document synthesising the discussions from the symposium will be published in due course.
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
Credits: Karel Spruyt
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/DSC_3314.jpg28484288ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-11-13 14:00:502020-11-04 15:28:33The potential and challenges of genome editing for crop improvement lively discussed in Brussels
ALLEA published the statement ‘The Need for Intellectual Property Rights Strategies at Academic Institutions’ today. The publication formulates recommendations both to scientific organisations and European and national legislators and highlights the importance of managing intangible assets with due consideration of intellectual property rights (IPR).
The increasing relevance of intangible assets, such as computer software or patented technology, in today’s economy requires fundamental rethinking and a cultural change in the management of IP portfolios in scientific organisations just as it does in companies. With its statement, ALLEA addresses this shift of economic relevance from tangible to intangible assets and urges academic institutions to adopt adequate IPR strategies which ensure that knowledge transfer benefits society, for example in public-private partnerships. It also presents options to European and national legislators on ways to incentivise the translation of publicly funded research results into IP-protected innovative products and processes.
The statement has been produced by ALLEA’s Permanent Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights, which comprises experts from various disciplines and from academies across Europe.
“Europe risks lagging behind other regions in incentivising knowledge transfer for innovation. Academic institutions and policymakers must prepare better for the pivotal economic shift towards intangible assets and adapt their legal frameworks and academic plans to efficiently respond to these trends”, said Professor Joseph Straus, Chair of the ALLEA Permanent Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights.
The statement recommends to academic institutions:
To adopt a holistic approach as regards to their IP strategies, in order to remain attractive as partners in public-private partnerships (PPP) or for third party funding.
To raise awareness of the importance of IPR for innovation on both the micro- and macroeconomic scale and developing models which adequately remunerate employees in case of a successful commercialisation of research findings.
To make available financial and human resources in order to secure in-house structures or external mechanisms to deal with invention disclosures, filing and prosecution of IPRs, as well as the monitoring of granted IPRs.
To establish clear rules around the ownership in and handling of IPRs in cases of commercial spin-outs.
The statement furthermore advises European and national legislators:
To devise legal frameworks similar to those adopted in the US, China, Japan, and the Republic of Korea.
To introduce a grace period into patent law, and to consider preferential tax treatment for income generated through commercialisation of publicly funded research.
To better support cooperation between academic institutions in the commercialisation of their research results and to optimise cooperation of existing Technology Transfer Offices (TTOs).
Europe risks lagging behind other regions in incentivising knowledge transfer for innovation. Academic institutions and policymakers must prepare better for the pivotal economic shift towards intangible assets and adapt their legal frameworks and academic plans to efficiently respond to these trends
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/IPRStrategies-1.jpg360600ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-11-11 12:30:142019-11-11 12:13:58Academic institutions need to adapt IPR strategies to fulfil their role in Europe’s innovation ecosystem
We are happy to announce that the UK Member Academies of ALLEA will host the next General Assembly in London on 3-4 June 2020. Save the date and do not miss the updates of the programme and the event by following us on our social media, our newsletter and our conference website.
As in past editions, the annual meeting of European Academies will include a scientific symposium which will bring together international scholars and scientists, high-rank European policymakers as well as the interested public to discuss the most pressing issues for the scientific community in Europe. Next year’s theme will be ‘Research Collaboration in Changing Times’.
Further information on the programme and speakers will be released soon. Registration for the event will start in the beginning of 2020.
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/shutterstock_551334580.png5531300ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-10-22 13:47:302019-10-22 13:52:36Save the Date: 2020 ALLEA General Assembly
ALLEA and the Polish Academy of Sciences convened the conference ‘Europe on Test: The Onus of the Past – and the Necessities of the Future’ at the Staszic Palace in Warsaw on 11 October 2019. Local as well as international scholars and experts addressed how different collective memories in European societies impact today’s politics in Europe. Discussants explored which role concepts such as ‘European Identity’ and ‘European Solidarity’ can play in overcoming historical tensions as well as current and future challenges.
Different conceptions of Europe and democracy have evolved in Western and Central Europe. This division evolved in line with collective memories in societies of ‘old’ and ‘new’ EU member states. In most cases, historical framings persist in current political narratives and thus also in conceptions of democracy. In the case of Central European countries such as Poland the concept of national sovereignty is closely linked to the arrival of democracy and the integration into the EU, whereas Western countries predominantly focus on the rule of law and the protection of individual rights, based on collective memories of the end of the Second World War.
The conference explored how such collective memories of nations evolve and how they affect processes such as European integration and recent political developments such as a move towards so called ‘illiberal democracy’, thereby showing that both narratives of European union and disunion can easily be exploited by political leaders in order to mobilize their electorates.
“The era of ideologies has been replaced by an era of identities. This is accompanied by a transformation of our modes of communication that tends to favour emotional and easily transmittable messages on complex issues over a rational and deliberative debate” – Antonio Loprieno, ALLEA President
An Era of Emotions and Identities?
In his opening address, ALLEA President Antonio Loprieno expressed his gratitude to the Polish Academy of Sciences for organising such a high-class event and shared his observation that “the era of ideologies has been replaced by an era of identities. This is accompanied by a transformation of our modes of communication that tends to favour emotional and easily transmittable messages on complex issues over a rational and deliberative debate.
The opening session included a lecture by Professor Anton Pelinka from Austria and a panel discussion on the role of history and collective memories of the past in the making of European polity, whilst the second panel, starting with a lecture by Professor Krzysztof Pomian from Poland, discussed European identity as a potential key to overcoming historical tensions.
Professor Claus Offe from Germany opened the third session, which focused on European interests as a shared responsibility. The event concluded with a talk by Virginie Guiraudon from France and a subsequent panel discussion on how to achieve European solidarity by meeting the challenges of today and shaping the future of Europe.
Europe on Test Series
The event was part of ALLEA’s ‘Europe on Test: Narratives of Union and Disunion’ series, which seeks to address historical trajectories as well as recent cultural, social, economic and political developments relevant for the future of the European community.
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/06/iStock-824700062-slide.png6021500ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-10-21 12:25:202020-11-05 10:29:48Europe: From Old Narratives to Today’s Politics
The 2019 Open Science Fair in Porto held on 16 to 18 September, featured a panel discussion on Plan S, the open access plan initiated by coalition of European funders to make all publicly funded-research open access from 2021.
On behalf of European academies and the academic community, ALLEA Board Member Luke Drury provided some insights on the current status of the project and underlined some of the key points introduced by theALLEA statement on this matter.
The lively debate, chaired and facilitated by Inge van Nieuwerburgh (Ghent University), brought together various perspectives from national funding agencies, the so-called “Coalition S” and young researchers represented by Koen Vermeir, Chair of the Global Young Academy. The discussion focused on the need to include repositories and new publications models in order to avoid a continuation of the existing journal system.
The current status of Plan S was presented by Neil Jacobs, the interim programme manager for Plan S, who emphasised that there are, and always have been, multiple routes to compliance for Plan S and not only Gold Open Access. This model requires authors to publish their articles in an online open access journal in contrast to Green Open Access which allows for publishing in an a repository at the same time than releasing the research in non-open access journal.
The presentations from the event are available here.
Picture Credit: OSF
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/10/OSFPorto.jpg7391108ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-10-17 17:06:452021-09-21 14:22:22ALLEA discusses Plan S at the Open Science Fair 2019
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Picture-Migration-and-Health-Conference.jpg7201280ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-11-22 09:00:172019-11-26 09:31:53Conference on Migration, Health and Medicine
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Italy-Accademia-delle-Scienze-di-Torino.jpg348732ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-11-07 09:00:312019-11-12 14:49:20The Role of Academies in Sustaining European Knowledge Societies in Times of Crisis
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/11/Belgium_Academies.jpg594854ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-11-07 00:00:132020-05-19 16:50:33Permanent Working Group Intellectual Property Rights Meeting
https://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Plan-S.jpg445484ALLEA Secretariathttps://allea.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/04/allealogo-1-300x83.pngALLEA Secretariat2019-11-05 00:50:492022-02-02 11:00:24The Future of Research: Assessing the Impact of Plan S
The potential and challenges of genome editing for crop improvement lively discussed in Brussels
The science behind genome editing, its regulation and its impact on society– those were only few of the topics discussed on 7 and 8 November at the Academy Palace in Brussels. The symposium ‘Genome Editing for Crop Improvement’, organised by ALLEA and the Royal Flemish Academy of Belgium for Science and the Arts (KVAB) brought together eminent speakers and stakeholders to discuss how to harness the benefits of genome editing while ensuring a wide-spread acceptance of the new technology in society.
The symposium provided a holistic overview with a variety of different backgrounds, a comprehensive overview of scientific evidence on safety of the genome edited crops and their potential for solving current and future problems in agriculture. It further addressed issues relating to intellectual property and the desirability of amending current European legislation on genome-edited plants.
A document synthesising the discussions from the symposium will be published in due course.
Academic institutions need to adapt IPR strategies to fulfil their role in Europe’s innovation ecosystem
The increasing relevance of intangible assets, such as computer software or patented technology, in today’s economy requires fundamental rethinking and a cultural change in the management of IP portfolios in scientific organisations just as it does in companies. With its statement, ALLEA addresses this shift of economic relevance from tangible to intangible assets and urges academic institutions to adopt adequate IPR strategies which ensure that knowledge transfer benefits society, for example in public-private partnerships. It also presents options to European and national legislators on ways to incentivise the translation of publicly funded research results into IP-protected innovative products and processes.
The statement has been produced by ALLEA’s Permanent Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights, which comprises experts from various disciplines and from academies across Europe.
“Europe risks lagging behind other regions in incentivising knowledge transfer for innovation. Academic institutions and policymakers must prepare better for the pivotal economic shift towards intangible assets and adapt their legal frameworks and academic plans to efficiently respond to these trends”, said Professor Joseph Straus, Chair of the ALLEA Permanent Working Group on Intellectual Property Rights.
The statement recommends to academic institutions:
The statement furthermore advises European and national legislators:
Download the full statement here
Save the Date: 2020 ALLEA General Assembly
As in past editions, the annual meeting of European Academies will include a scientific symposium which will bring together international scholars and scientists, high-rank European policymakers as well as the interested public to discuss the most pressing issues for the scientific community in Europe. Next year’s theme will be ‘Research Collaboration in Changing Times’.
Further information on the programme and speakers will be released soon. Registration for the event will start in the beginning of 2020.
Europe: From Old Narratives to Today’s Politics
Different conceptions of Europe and democracy have evolved in Western and Central Europe. This division evolved in line with collective memories in societies of ‘old’ and ‘new’ EU member states. In most cases, historical framings persist in current political narratives and thus also in conceptions of democracy. In the case of Central European countries such as Poland the concept of national sovereignty is closely linked to the arrival of democracy and the integration into the EU, whereas Western countries predominantly focus on the rule of law and the protection of individual rights, based on collective memories of the end of the Second World War.
The conference explored how such collective memories of nations evolve and how they affect processes such as European integration and recent political developments such as a move towards so called ‘illiberal democracy’, thereby showing that both narratives of European union and disunion can easily be exploited by political leaders in order to mobilize their electorates.
“The era of ideologies has been replaced by an era of identities. This is accompanied by a transformation of our modes of communication that tends to favour emotional and easily transmittable messages on complex issues over a rational and deliberative debate” – Antonio Loprieno, ALLEA President
An Era of Emotions and Identities?
In his opening address, ALLEA President Antonio Loprieno expressed his gratitude to the Polish Academy of Sciences for organising such a high-class event and shared his observation that “the era of ideologies has been replaced by an era of identities. This is accompanied by a transformation of our modes of communication that tends to favour emotional and easily transmittable messages on complex issues over a rational and deliberative debate.
The opening session included a lecture by Professor Anton Pelinka from Austria and a panel discussion on the role of history and collective memories of the past in the making of European polity, whilst the second panel, starting with a lecture by Professor Krzysztof Pomian from Poland, discussed European identity as a potential key to overcoming historical tensions.
Professor Claus Offe from Germany opened the third session, which focused on European interests as a shared responsibility. The event concluded with a talk by Virginie Guiraudon from France and a subsequent panel discussion on how to achieve European solidarity by meeting the challenges of today and shaping the future of Europe.
Europe on Test Series
The event was part of ALLEA’s ‘Europe on Test: Narratives of Union and Disunion’ series, which seeks to address historical trajectories as well as recent cultural, social, economic and political developments relevant for the future of the European community.
The next conference will be held at the Accademia delle Scienze di Torino on 7-8 November, where renowned Italian and international scholars will join to discuss ‘The Role of Academies in Sustaining European Knowledge Societies in Times of Crisis’.
Visit the conference website for more information on the programme and speakers.
ALLEA discusses Plan S at the Open Science Fair 2019
On behalf of European academies and the academic community, ALLEA Board Member Luke Drury provided some insights on the current status of the project and underlined some of the key points introduced by the ALLEA statement on this matter.
The lively debate, chaired and facilitated by Inge van Nieuwerburgh (Ghent University), brought together various perspectives from national funding agencies, the so-called “Coalition S” and young researchers represented by Koen Vermeir, Chair of the Global Young Academy. The discussion focused on the need to include repositories and new publications models in order to avoid a continuation of the existing journal system.
The current status of Plan S was presented by Neil Jacobs, the interim programme manager for Plan S, who emphasised that there are, and always have been, multiple routes to compliance for Plan S and not only Gold Open Access. This model requires authors to publish their articles in an online open access journal in contrast to Green Open Access which allows for publishing in an a repository at the same time than releasing the research in non-open access journal.
The presentations from the event are available here.
Picture Credit: OSF
Conference on Migration, Health and Medicine
The Role of Academies in Sustaining European Knowledge Societies in Times of Crisis
Symposium: Genome Editing for Crop Improvement
Permanent Working Group Intellectual Property Rights Meeting
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The Future of Research: Assessing the Impact of Plan S