Foresight within ERA NETS: Experiences from the preparation of an international research program Ville Brummer a, 1, Totti Könnölä b, 2, Ahti Salo a a Systems analysis Laboratory, Helsinki University of Technology, P o box
accepted 1 february 2008 Abstract In this paper, we address challenges of organizing future-oriented consultation processes within European coordination tools for‘Open Method of Coordination'such as ERA NETS
Specifically, we report experiences froma recent consultation process that was organized withinwoodwisdom-Net (ERA NET) with the aim of creating an international research agenda, based on the recognition of long-term challenges of the European forest sector and the attendant identification of gaps and new
and participatory workshops in promoting foresight activities within ERA NETS and European coordination tools. 2008 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.
we examine issues in the organization of foresight activities within European coordination tools such as Integrated Projects, Networks of Excellence, ERA NETS, European Technology platforms and Technology initiatives
and implementation of an embedded foresight process that was organized in the ERA NET program on wood material sciences 8. Building on the experiences from this process,
and the management of multiple interfaces present in European-wide innovation policy coordination. 2. Foresight within ERA NETS The ERA NET scheme3 seeks to strengthen the coordination
To date, a large number of ERA NETS have been launched, each with a focus on a specific field of science and/or technology,
ERA NET activities pose several cooperation challenges. Because the participating funding organizations have evolved through path-dependent processes that reflect the characteristics of their respective national innovation systems,
this means that ERA NETS must operate in the presence of a multitude of governance cultures. These and yet other complexities are amplified by the many administrative options that can be pursued in the implementation of shared research agendas, ranging from the relatively weak coordination of national 3 http://cordis. europa. eu/coordination/era net
. htm. 484 V. Brummer et al.//Technological forecasting & Social Change 75 (2008) 483 495 programs to the institutionalization of a new legal entity for allocating a common pot of resources through competitive calls for proposals.
In this setting, foresight processes within ERA NETS hold promise as such processes can, at best, help the stakeholders overcome possible barriers by supporting shared vision-building,
Within the ERA NETS, the general objectives of an embedded foresight process can be defined as i) vision-building for clarifying shared interests and joint benefits of international collaboration,
ERA NETS and other European coordination tools are indicative of the transformation of the EU innovation policy from financially oriented measures to the facilitation and monitoring of stakeholder processes
It is against this background that we describe experiences from the implementation of an embedded foresight process in Woodwisdom-Net, one of the ERA NETS.
networking and priority setting in the development of a shared research agenda for an international research program. 3. Shaping of research agendas in Woodwisdom-Net Woodwisdom-Net4 was started in 2004 as one of the ERA NETS supported by European union.
we have discussed the use of decision support methodologies in the development of a shared research agenda inwoodwisdom-Net, an ERA NET on wood material research that is an example of the coordination tools for EU innovation policies.
the experiences from this process have implications for other ERA NETS and consultation processes, too. In effect, the bottom up consultation process in Woodwisdom-Net where the participating researchers and industrialists interacted with a large shared pool of research issues can be contrasted with less transparent processes of international RTD priority setting where the preliminary priorities
and Weber (2006) and in particular the work on self-evaluation tools for foresight in the context of the Forsociety ERA NET (Forsociety 2007).
Foresight within ERA NETS: experiences from the preparation of an international research program. Technological forecasting and Social Change 75, no. 4: 483 95.
/8 Forsociety was one of the Era nets in the FP6. A. Schoen et al.//Futures 43 (2011) 232 242 233 All these results point to the fact that diverse innovation areas need diverse governance tools
and programming calls at the European level encompass also the work carried out by the new European research Council (ERC) and by intermediary coordinating institutions like ERA NETS, European Technology platforms (ETPS) and Joint Technology initiatives (JTIS)
FP programmes priorities elaboration process, FP management ERA NETS, JITIS, ETP, ERC...Sectoral‘alliances'(for example SET-Plan members) Performing:
the ERA NET Plant Genomics aims at strengthening the European research area in Plant Genomics. It is composed as a network of research funding organisations responsible for the development of national or regional plant genomics research programmes.
With a budget of over 35ms it is one of largest coordinated transnational research programmes in the ERA NET scheme.
The ERA NET‘‘Nanosci-ERA''is coordinating national programmes: is a Consortium of 17 national research agencies from 12 countries in the European research area
the Socioeconomic Dimension, Foresight Center of NISTEP, Tokyo, Japan, 2001.5 A. Havas, Terminology and Methodology for Benchmarking Foresight programmes, For Society Transnational Foresight ERA NET, 2006.6 N. Borup, N
it is interesting to note that one of the most successful has evolved now into an ERA NET‘‘Wood Wisdom''dealing with the integration of forestry and wood material science and engineering.
within ERA NETS: experiences from the preparation of an international research program, Technological forecasting and Social Change 75 (4)( 2008) 483 495.36 M. Cariola, S. Rolfo, Evolution in the rationales of foresight in Europe
Terminology and Methodology for Benchmarking Foresight programmes, For Society Transnational Foresight ERA NET, 2006. T. Ko nno la et al./
and currently leading OPTIMISM (TPT-FP7) and IFA International foresight Academy (FP7) and contributing to various FP7 projects (EFP, SESTI and ERA NET RUS) recently at JRC-IPTS,
She is involved currently in several FTA ACTIVITIES including the European foresight Platform and the ERA NET Rus project. 396 K. Haegeman et al./
Poster presented at the Fourth International Seville Conference on Future-oriented technology analysis, 2011.29 V. Brummer, T. Ko nno la, A. Salo, Foresight within era nets:
as developed in the ERA NET Forsociety Project. The paper highlights the range of purposes this tool can serve,
The netherlands and Denmark in a joint horizon pilot project initiated under the ERA NET Forsociety, this paper makes a series of recommendations regarding horizon scanning processes at the national level and the construction of common future-oriented policies.
N 2004, THE ERA NET FORSOCIETY1 began its mission to develop sustainable cooperation between national foresight programming bodies in 15 European countries.
Repoor task 3. 5 of Coordination Action of the ERA NET Forsocieety Den haag, Netherlands: Commissie voor Overleg Sectorraden
To date, joint programming has been implemennte through schemes like the ERA NET ERA NET PLUS and Article 185.4 JPIS go beyond existing relevant schemes by implementing joint research programmes towards real public-to-public partnerships between Member States and the EU (ERAC-GPC 2010.
The concept of European Innovation Partnerships (EIPS) introduced by the Innovation Union Flagship Initiative is the overarching framework embracing relevant joint programming activities ranging from Art. 185 initiatives to ERA NETS, or JPIS.
EIPS give particcula emphasis to the engagement of the business sector. EIPS focus on innovations that address major societal challenges
e g. in setting the strategic research agendas in ERA NETS and the European Technology platforms, and lately also in the KICS.
The ERA NET scheme is one of the tools of the Seventh Framework programme (FP7) to support the coordination of non-Community research programmes.
On the other hand, ERA NET+is a new option added to the ERA NET scheme in FP7 allowing, in a limited number of cases,
Brummer, V.,Ko nno la, T. and Salo, A. 2008)‘ Foresight within Era nets: Experiences from the preparation of an international research programme',Technological forecasting and Social Change, 75: 483 95.
management and sharing of intellectual property rights (CEC 2010) In the ERA NET scheme a four-step approach is applied4 (Matrix-Rambøll 2009).
A survey among ERA NET participants under the Sixth Framework programme indicaate that the main activities other than joint calls/programmes that ERA NET participants engaged in, included:.
An example is the co-operation between ERA NETS and European technology platforms (Niehoff and Andersdotter 2007.
and Welfare (SCAR CWG) take it forward after the EMIDA ERA NET project has ended. 28 Table 4. Description of selected cases
and to overcome differences in programming FPU aims to do continuous foresigght update SRA and extend lifetime of network beyond lifetime of ERA NET A small and decisive team aims to apply a flexible and adaptive approach,
In the EMIDA ERA NET flexibility is built into the design through:.the establishment of a small foresight team prepared to be adaptive and flexible depending on the changing conditions. search for a balance between planned foresight activities and expected additional non-defined activities of the FPU In the Urban Europe case,
EMIDA ERA NET faced difficulties engaging stakeholders from other disciplinnes because of strong reliance on conventional databaase used in the sector from consortium partners.
4. The four steps used by ERA NET (European research area-NET) are:.systematic exchange of information and good practices on existing programmes and activities. identification and analysis of common strategic issues. planning and development of joint activities between national and regional programmes. implementation
the ERA NET Scheme (ERA NET Actions and ERA NET Plus Actions), Article 185 Initiatives (old Art. 169), European Technology platforms, Joint Technology initiatives, Eureka, JP, the Open
EMIDA ERA NET stands for‘Coordination of European research on emerging and major infectious diseases of livestock'.'The case description is based on EMIDA Description of Work (2009.
In the EMIDA ERA NET some difficulties were encounntere in engaging stakeholders from other disciplinnes mainly
Brummer, V.,Ko nno la, T. and Salo, A. 2008)‘ Foresight within Era nets: Experiences from the preparation of an international research programme',Technological forecasting and Social Change, 75: 483 95.
2009)‘ Evaluation and impact assessment of the ERA NET scheme and the related ERA NET actions under the 6th Framework programme Volume 1:
Evaluation for the European commission',<ftp://ftp. cordis. europa. eu/pub/fp7/docs/fp6-era net-evaluation-final-report-volume-1-q1-q5-d1
Niehoff, J. and Andersdotter, C. 2007)‘ Report on the Workshop for ERA NETS on industrial technologies',<http://netwatch. jrc. ec. europa. eu/static/download/Report%20workshop
'<http://www. emida-era net/upload/pdf/WP4%20deliverable%204%201%20framework%20fpu%20incl%20tor%20 final%2016042009. pdf>accessed 15 march 2012.
Brummer, V.,Ko nno la, T. and Salo, A. 2008)‘ Foresight within Era nets: Experiences from the preparation of an international research programme',Technological forecasting and Social Change, 75: 483 95.
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