23 Sep 2024
The Guild urges next College of Commissioners to help R&I and higher education reach its true potential
The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities has sent open letters to Commissioners-designate Roxana Mînzatu, Ekaterina Zarahieva, Stéphane Séjourné, Henna Virkkunen, Wopke Hoekstra, Jozef Síkela, Olivér Várhelyi and Piotr Serafin, calling on them to respond positively to the critical importance of research, innovation and skills recognised in the reports by Enrico Letta and Mario Draghi.
The Guild stresses that a significant increase in the next Research Framework Programme and Erasmus+ is "a cornerstone to Europe’s future", and also stresses the importance of the continued integrity of these programmes. The association states that these programmes can reinforce the capacities of research, innovation and higher education to contribute not only to Europe’s competitiveness, but also to societal welfare, democratic resilience, and the EU’s close international partnerships.
Amongst other issues, the Guild urges the Commissioners to ensure that they maximise the capacities of bottom-up research and innovation, "so clearly captured by the Draghi report", in the next Framework Programme. The association also emphasises the importance of ensuring skills such as more skills in STEM, modern languages, intercultural competences and critical thinking, to be fostered through a much more ambitious Erasmus+ programme.
The Guild’s open letters further emphasise the need to ensure universities – as key stakeholders – are fully involved in the drawing up of the next Framework Programme and Erasmus+, in the Commission’s legislative agenda that relates to R&I, and in key strategic initiatives, for instance in relation to AI. It also calls for building on existing strengths in the next Framework Programme, and for ensuring the best possible alignment across its instruments.
For more information and links to the open letters: