Trinity College Dublin
A two-day European science summit will be taking place at Trinity College Dublin (TCD) next week to explore the role that media plays in communicating science, as well as looking at the importance of science and innovation in developing Europe’s knowledge economy.
Atomium Culture, a non-profit organisation that promotes public engagement with science across Europe, is organising the European Intersectoral Summit on Research and Innovation (EISRI) event which will run from 25-26 February.
Sean Sherlock, TD, the Minister of State for Research and Innovation, will open the two-day event along with Patrick Prendergast, the provost at TCD on Monday.
Speakers on the first day will include Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel and José Manuel Barroso, the president of the European Commission, who will both be be talking via video conference.
Barbara Kux, the chief sustainability officer at Siemens, and Simon Hampton, director of European public policy of Google, will also speak during the opening session.
Topics that will be covered will include the importance of research and innovation for developing a strong European economy.
The overall theme of the summit will be to look at the role of the media in responsible research and innovation. Delegates will also be discussing how the media can support gender equality in research and innovation, plus the importance of role models.
The summit will assess these issues against the backdrop of the six areas outlined by the Horizon 2020 concept of ‘Responsible Research and Innovation’. These areas are: engagement, gender equality, science education, open access, ethics and governance.
On International Women’s Day, 8 March, Silicon Republic launches Women Invent Tomorrow, a year-long campaign to champion the role of women in science, technology, engineering and maths. Watch this space!
