Universities of S&T as Engines of Excellence, Talent and Innovation - Roles in Research and Innovation Infrastructures

CESAER has published a white paper on ´Universities of Science and Technology (S&T) as engines of excellence, talent and innovation´. The paper promotes the understanding of the roles of universities of S&T in Research and Innovation Infrastructures (RII) and the importance of RII to those universities. This white paper:

1. Provides a concrete overview of the role of universities as engines of excellence, talent and innovation, based on case studies of universities across Europe, describing their roles as owners, hosts, contract partners, operators, funders and users of RII;
2. Addresses the challenges faced in order for RII to remain at the forefront of S&T, including issues related to strategic governance, funding, attracting and retaining talent and political and legal constraints;
3. Presents conclusions and recommendations to improve policy-making and funding of RII;
4. Addresses the core elements of the long-term sustainability of RII and the conditions needed to ensure scientific excellence and innovation disruption, including those related with the data challenge, to deliver scientific, social, economic and societal impact and benefit.

Although the recommendations are primarily targeted at European policy makers, many are also relevant for national and regional policy makers and funding authorities.

The white paper includes ten case studies, covering different types of RII (distributed, single-sited, digital) and acknowledges the involvement of stakeholders from a continuum of institutional, regional, national, European and international levels.

Read the full white paper.

For more information and enquiries, please contact the writers of the white paper:

• Riccardo Bertacco (Politecnico di Milano)
• Isabel Bolliger (University of Lausanne)
• Lars Börjesson (Chalmers University of Technology)
• Marte Bugel (Delft University of Technology)
• Ondrej Hradil (Brno University of Technology)
• Ricardo Migueis (CESAER)
• Margareta Wallquist (Chalmers University of Technology)

Photo: © Marieke de Lorijn