New European Institute of Innovation and Technology is ready for take-off

The European Commission has appointed the first supervisory board of the new European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT). A total of 18 European experts from the fields of economics, research and university education will hold their first meeting on 15 September in Budapest. This European research network, which has ambitious plans, but has been heavily trimmed over the last three years following disputes over money and competence, will then officially start work.

The supervisory board will be responsible for deciding on the EIT's overall strategy and the selection, coordination and evaluation of its operational centres, to be known as "Knowledge and Innovation Communities" (KICs). These time-limited KICs, each with a different major focus (climate change, energy, IT) and each with members from companies as well as from colleges, universities and research institutions, are "to generate and promote innovation in key areas of economic and societal interest". The first KICs are to begin work by the end of 2009.

The EIT will be supported with €308m – approximately £243m – from the EU until 2013, 15 million euros of this being set aside for administration. Apart from Hungary, Austria – Vienna and Poland – Breslau, had also competed to become the location of the research network. One of the deciding factors in the choice of Hungary in June was that that country, which has been a Member State of the European Union since 2004, still is not the home of any EU agency. Germany will be represented on the 18-strong EIT supervisory board by Wolfgang Herrmann, chancellor of Munich Technical University, and Peter Tropschuh, head of the AutoUni private university, which is part of the Volkswagen group.

(trk)