This April, a delegation from AAAS traveled to Belgium to meet with partners in the country and discuss common scientific priorities in the United States and the European Union. The delegation was led by Dr. Sudeep Parikh, CEO of AAAS and Executive Publisher of the Science family of journals and included Andrew Black, AAAS Chief of Staff and Chief Public Affairs Officer, and Dr. Kim Montgomery, AAAS Director of International Relations and Science Diplomacy.
During the trip to Brussels, the capital of Belgium and home to the headquarters of the European Commission, the group had the pleasure of meeting partners from the European Commission and the European Research Council, as well as staff from the US Mission to the EU.
1. Meeting with the European Commission
At the European Commission, the delegation had the pleasure of meeting Maria Cristina Russo, Director of Global Approach and International Cooperation in Research and Innovation (R&I), DG Research and Innovation; Jan Marco Müller, Science and Technology Adviser at the European External Action Service; Diego Samaritano, Deputy Head of Unit, International Cooperation in Research and Innovation, DG Research and Innovation; and Martin Penny, Head of Unit, International Cooperation Policy.
At the meeting, participants discussed ways to increase cooperation between the EU and the US, including their participation in Horizon Europe and the current European research and innovation framework. The group also discussed the EU framework for science diplomacy, which is currently being developed through five active working groups, and an upcoming event on the future of science diplomacy, which will be jointly organized by AAAS, the European Commission, the Geneva Science and Diplomacy Researcher and the Royal community. The event will take place at INGSA2024, which will be held in May in Kigali, Rwanda.
2. Meeting with the European Research Council
Also during the trip, the delegation had the pleasure of meeting again with Maria Leptin, President of the European Research Council, as well as some of her colleagues at the ERC. The group met with Leptin and ERC colleagues during their last trip to Brussels in February 2023. In addition, Leptin and Parikh participated together in a session on trust in science at the STS 2023 forum in Kyoto, Japan.
Discussions during this visit revolved around the US and European science ecosystems, with a particular focus on R&D funding and the need to ensure continued investment. They also talked about the next EU Framework Program for Research and Innovation (FP10), which will run from 2028-2034, as well as open access issues.
3. Meeting with the US mission in the EU
While in Brussels, the delegation had the opportunity to meet with the US mission to the EU. On past trips abroad, AAAS has benefited greatly from meetings with US mission staff focused on science and technology issues, and the experience on this trip was much the same.
The meeting included an informative discussion with senior embassy officials about the EU’s research priorities, their next Framework Program and opportunities for enhanced US-EU scientific cooperation. It was an excellent chance to highlight the similarities between the two scientific ecosystems and the many avenues for science diplomacy.
Acknowledgments
Although this part highlights key meetings that took place during this visit to Belgium, it is by no means an exhaustive list. The AAAS delegation is grateful to everyone who took time out of their busy schedules to meet with them.
