Previous Fora / 2011
BURTSCHER, Wolfgang
Deputy Director General
DG Research and Innovation, European Commission
Wolfgang Burtscher was appointed Deputy Director-General for Research and Innovation on 22 July 2009 and is responsible for the policy and management of the Research Framework Programme.In this capacity he is also closely involved in the elaboration of the future EU funding programmes for research and innovation.
An Austrian national, Mr Burtscher is 51 years old and acted before joining DG Research and Innovation as a Director in DG Agriculture of the European Commission since 2000. Before joining the Commission in 2000 Mr Burtscher was representative of the Länder at the Austrian Permanent Representation to the EU. From 1992 to 1996 he was Director of European Affairs in the Vorarlberg administration. Previously, from 1990 to 1992, he was a legal advisor at the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) in Geneva, at the time of negotiations on the European Economic Area (EEA). From 1993-1990 Wolfgang Burtscher was a researcher in the area of public international law and European integration at the University of Innsbruck. Wolfgang Burtscher holds a doctorate in law (Univeristy of Innsbruck) and also has a qualification from the Institut Européen des Hautes Etudes Internationales in Nice.
Publikationen/Publications
EG-Beitritt und Föderalismus, 1990
Das Abkommen über den Europäischen Wirtschaftsraum, 1992
Die Entwicklung der Gemeinsamen Agrarpolitik - Eine Perspektive, 2006
ABSTRACT
09:00-11:00 18 NOVEMBER
PLENARY SESSION IV. “THE CHANGING LANDSCAPE OF SCIENCE: POLICY IMPLICATIONS AND DRIVERS” (Roundtable)
The global R&D landscape is changing rapidly. Emerging economies account for fast growing shares of global R&D investment, scientific publications, patents and innovations. At the same time, science, technology and innovation are increasingly expected by citizens and governments to contribute to the resolution of long-standing and emerging global economic, social and environmental societal challenges. Global scientific and technological collaboration on the resolution of such societal challenges is therefore both increasingly feasible and increasingly desirable. The viability of such collaboration hinges however on all global players optimising their scientific, technological and innovation performance and developing useful global collaboration mechanisms. Horizon 2020, the EU's next-generation (2014-2020) research and innovation programme, is set up to meet this challenge. It does so by (1) shifting the programme focus from generic to targeted support, from input excellence to output, impact and value-for-money maximisation, and from a laisser-faire to a pro-active approach towards innovation; (2) building its support around 3 pillars, i.e. scientific excellence, industrial leadership and the resolution of societal challenges; and (3) developing a vigorous international cooperation policy.