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A– Lifecycle of a Community research project: production, dissemination and exploitation of knowledge
Production of scientific/technical knowledge as a pillar of the Lisbon Agenda (2000)
Research (i.e. production of knowledge) is a specific Community policy since the Lisbon European Council of 23-24 March 2000 (also short-named “clean, clever and competitive” policy). At that summit, a strategic goal was proposed for the European Union: “to become the most competitive knowledge-based economy with more and better employment and social cohesion by 2010”. The current knowledge-based economy moves the development of the traditional industrial sector - abundant in labour, raw material and capital – to areas whose products, processes and services are rich in technology and knowledge.
Dissemination of knowledge in the proposed “Constitution for Europe” and, in particular, in the Euratom Treaty
The dissemination of knowledge (a.o. through education and training) is one of the general aims of the research and innovation policy of the European Union, as they are written in the “Treaty establishing a Constitution for Europe”, approved at the intergovernmental conference on 18 June 2004 (CIG 87/04, 6 August 2004) / Article III 248 (http://europa.eu.int/constitution/):
“1. The Union shall aim to strengthen its scientific and technological bases by achieving a European research area in which researchers, scientific knowledge and technology circulate freely, and encourage it to become more competitive, including in its industry, while promoting all the research activities deemed necessary by virtue of other Chapters of the Constitution.………….”
Focussing on nuclear matters, under Title I “The tasks of the Community”, the Euratom Treaty (Rome, 25 March 1957) states that in order to perform its task, the Community shall, amongst other things, promote research and ensure the dissemination of technical information, and establish uniform safety standards to protect the health of workers and the general public and ensure that they are applied (http://europa.eu.int/abc/obj/treaties/en/entoc.htm).
Exploitation of knowledge in Community research
Exploitation of knowledge can take several forms: either for deepening a research domain (usually long term national programmes) or for prompt commercial purposes (usually short term industrial applications). In many scientific domains, the potential end-users are concerned about the unfair balance between supply (e.g. by universities) and demand (e.g. from industry) of knowledge, and about the relatively poor impact of research on technological and societal changes. Therefore, innovation which is one the most visible ways of exploiting research is at the heart of many EC policies (a.o. competitiveness).
B– Dissemination of nuclear knowledge through education and training: towards a European nuclear E&T strategy (quality, mutual recognition and mobility across EU)
Under FP-6 (2003-2006), a European strategy is proposed for nuclear E&T, based on common criteria for quality, mutual recognition and mobility of scientists across EU-25. Historically three criteria are needed to ensure the success of any new European strategy. They are: (1) identification of common needs; (2) consensus on a common vision or project; and (3) efficient implementation tools, as it is described, for example, in http://europa.eu.int/comm/archives/commission_1999_2004/lamy/speeches_articles/spla163_en.htm).
Naturally all should be involved in the discussion of this strategy. Who are the main stakeholders in the particular area of nuclear fission and radiation protection ?
- The electrical utilities, waste management agencies and medical organisations (usually mostly interested in operational research)
- The manufacturing industry and associated engineering companies (exploratory or promotional research)
- The regulatory bodies and technical safety organisations (confirmatory research)
- The research organisations (public/private) and training services (applied research)
- The academia (universities) and associated education services (fundamental research).
C- Conclusion
It is worth recalling that, at European level, strictly speaking, education in general and higher education in particular are not subjects of a « common European policy » : competence for the content and the organisation of studies remains at national level. The Community, however, has a complementary role to play: to add a European dimension to education, to help to develop quality education and to encourage life-long learning (see Article 149 under “Education, vocational training and youth”, Nice Treaty, OJ C 325 of 24/12/2002).
The production, dissemination and exploitation of knowledge are pillars of the Community strategy for research and innovation since Lisbon 2000. In the particular area of nuclear fission and radiation protection, higher education and training play a central role (see also Euratom Treaty). A European E&T strategy to ensure “quality, mutual recognition and mobility of scientists” is proposed and a number of pilot exercises have been launched under FP-6 (see appendix). As the three “historical” success criteria for any European strategy (i.e. common needs, vision and implementation instruments) seem to be satisfied, the strategy proposed for nuclear E&T looks quite promising.
The main implementation instruments for putting this strategy into practice do result from a synergy between public and private initiatives. Public initiatives, usually for education, are proposed by governments. Private initiatives, usually for training, are proposed by industry and medical organisations together with research institutions.
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