Bright ideas

The European institute of innovation and technology is unique in combining the three elements of the knowledge triangle: innovation, research and education, argues Jorgo Chatzimarkakis

The EIT is about to explore new cooperation models in the triangle of science, education and industry that do not exist up to now in Europe. It is not reinventing the wheel, it is improving it, building on what exists and the experience gathered to go further. Doesn’t that sound like a good idea?

As the legislative process to adopt the regulation establishing the European institute of innovation and technology (EIT) draws to a close, some still ask this question. It will divert money away from other initiatives say some, other argue that it will just be another administrative monster to add red-tape and complexity to the European research landscape. Not necessarily! Europe has top research centres and universities, dynamic companies and innovative SMEs and yet in comparison with other world-regions, and especially the United States, we do not turn our research results into marketable products as much as others do.

Although universities and companies do work together across Europe, cooperation is not always easy as it brings together not only two different work cultures but also when pursued cross-border, different traditions and customs. One of the major tasks of the EIT is to devise new cooperation and governance models for broad networks to turn them into closer partnerships. Network partners always face hurdles, and universities and businesses would agree that overcoming them will increase outputs.

You might argue that there are already plenty of European initiatives bringing together different stakeholders to do just that and go on quoting technology platforms, joint technology initiatives or the European networks of excellence. Correct. These are valuable and the strong participation of academia and businesses shows they are also valued. But the EIT goes further. None of these initiatives combines the three elements of the knowledge triangle, namely innovation, research and education. The existing initiatives focus on one or two of those, never on the three.

Another argument has been that the commission should be building on the centres of excellence, the top universities, which already exist but are invariably under-funded. There are indeed top-notch universities and research centres across Europe. Yet one cannot blame the EU or the commission for the fact that they are, if not invariably, often under-funded. That’s a matter for the member states to tackle. What the EU can do – and is doing – is to strengthen cooperation between the “Best” at European levels to achieve added-value for us all.

Talking of the ‘best’, let me move on to my next argument. The seventh framework programme launched a European research council to promote cutting-edge, frontier research. The criteria to select the projects: excellence. Top scientists review projects and pick up the most promising ones based on their excellence. This is a major novelty that must be welcomed. EU funds for research are neither regional development nor social equality instruments. They are there to fund research projects to keep Europe level with its competitors. And the competition is severe.

The same apply when it comes to innovation and the criteria used by the EIT will be the same: excellence. A governing board of leading professors and businessmen will pick up the most promising themes, projects and teams – la crème de la crème – to innovate and answer today’s and tomorrow’s challenges.

Summing up, the parliament, council and commission have done their best to set up an institute, innovative in both form and content that can help bridge the gap between research and innovation in Europe and to prevent it turning into a bureaucratic white elephant, dominated by politics rather than by R&D. By now it is time for us politicians to leave the stage and let academia, business and real innovators take over. They are the ones who can make the EIT successful. No current initiatives can help put Europe back on the world’s research and innovation map, the EIT can. It can become a flagship for excellence and the EU needs such a flagship.