Horizon Europe should support excellent innovation that will help this continent and its youth to move forward: debate with Commissioner Gabriel
Greens SEDEC coordinator Ufuk Kâhya argued for the correct use of EU funds in the areas of excellent innovation, synergies and regional innovation during the debate with Mariya Gabriel, Commissioner for Innovation, Research, Culture, Education and Youth during the 5th SEDEC Commission Meeting today.
With the participation of Apostolos Tzitzikostas, President of the European Committee of the Regions, the debate focused on the role of the regional and local authorities (LRAs) in the future of innovation across the European Union. As stated by Commissioner Gabriel, the COVID-19 crisis has shown the importance of LRAs, and that involving territories in a bottom-up approach in research is crucial to make the green and digital transition a reality.
During his intervention, Kâhya raised the need for the EU’s outreaching policy objectives to be a combination of scientific knowledge and local experience. In particular, he reminded how the European Committee of the Regions has called for strong support for regional innovative ecosystems, workable synergies with European structural funds and investment funds, which should reach all regions in Europe. Furthermore, he also mentioned how the local and regional authorities and Horizon partnerships emphasise trends, regional research infrastructure and steps to address brain drain. Finally, he concluded: ‘Above all, Horizon Europe should support excellent innovation that will help this continent and its youth to move forward. This should be done in a way that skills-up all Europe.’
Additionally, discussions on research, innovation, education and employment took place in the SEDEC Commission meeting, Greens alternate Tine Radinja intervened in the Youth Support Guarantee discussion demanding the Youth Guarantee to lead to stable and sustainable jobs. Radinja emphasised that its aim should be to ‘prevent the precarious positions that many young people across Europe face’, and it should also address the quality of the jobs, not only the quantity.