On November 30th the European Commission published the proposal package for the for next EU Framework: Horizon 2020.
Horizon 2020 is the financial instrument for supporting European research and innovation. This funding programme seeks to implement theInnovation Union, a Europe 2020 flagship initiative aimed at securing Europe's global competitiveness. Running from 2014 to 2020 with an €80 billion budget, the EU’s new programme for research and innovation is part of the drive to create new growth and jobs in Europe.
The full package of proposals is composed by:
The European Commission considers Horizon 2020 as a supportive tool for implementing the Innovation Union flagship, which includes the European Innovation Partnership on Active and Healthy Ageing. Therefore, the three main aims of the Programme focus on the following aspects:
1. Supporting and developing the level of excellence in Europe science and enhancing world-class research to secure Europe long-term competitiveness
2. Fostering investments in research and innovation so as to achieve the industrial leadership
3. Addressing societal challenges by bringing together resources and knowledge across different fields, technologies and disciplines. This aspect will aim at covering activities from research to market with a new focus on innovation-related activities.
The Commission’s package still needs to be approved by the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers (Council of the European Union), following the European legislative process. This process is expected to end by the end of 2013 and could provide interesting opportunities for our research domain.
