Inaugural Meeting of the European Platform of Universities Engaged in Energy Research, Education and Training (EPUE)
Hosted by Delft University of Technology, the Netherlands
23-24 February 2012
EUA has announced the inaugural meeting of the European Platform of Universities Engaged in Energy Research, Education and Training. The European Platform (EPUE) comprises 164 universities from across Europe who have demonstrated research and training capacity in the energy field, ranging from science, engineering and technology to bio-sciences, medical/life sciences and economics, social sciences and the humanities.
EPUE has been formally recognised by the European Commission as a partner within the framework of the EU Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-PLAN) and the inaugural meeting will involve high level contributions from both the EC Directorate-General for Research and Innovation, and the Directorate-General for Energy. The EUA European Platform of Universities Engaged in Energy Research has been developed by a EUA Steering Group under the leadership of Professor Torbjørn Digernes (Rector, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, and member of the EUA Research Policy Working Group). Professor Digernes also represents EPUE within the European Energy Research Alliance of the EU SET-PLAN.
EPUE has been developed following a survey questionnaire sent to all EUA member universities. The questionnaire has yielded an important initial mapping of European universities’ research and training capacities in the energy field in terms of faculty expertise, research projects, collaboration with external industry partners and Masters and Doctoral programmes. All the universities that completed the survey questionnaire have expressed their interest in the European Platform, and its membership remains open to universities who complete the questionnaire, providing the necessary information on their research and training capacity.
Targeted participants are academic leaders who have expertise in energy research and an overview of the university’s capacities and interests in the energy field as a whole. If you are interested in the EPUE energy platform and wish to register to attend the Delft inaugural event, please contact Ilona Mazan at: EPUE.platform@eua.be
The inaugural meeting is a unique initiative to bring together European universities’ research and education capacities to address a high priority “grand societal challenge” field at the EU level. Its purpose is to discuss the potential role and development of the European Platform - “from concept to implementation” - and to consider a range of activities addressing the following missions to:
- establish a strong voice for university energy research and education at the European level;
- ensure that characteristic university attributes such as fundamental research and training, and collaborative activities with industry partners, are properly included in forthcoming EU energy activities in the next Research Framework Programme, entitled Horizon 2020;
- facilitate competitive European university groupings to participate in the realisation of the Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-Plan) in cooperation with the European Energy Research Alliance;
- bind more strongly the various disciplines ranging from natural sciences, engineering to social sciences and arts/humanities to best fulfil the needs of society in energy research;
- speak for long‐term thinking in European research agendas and initiatives, with due consideration given to a balance between top‐down and bottom‐up research strategies.
For further details about the event and the programme, please visit the event website.
Background to the EPUE initiative
At the Belgian EU Presidency Strategic Energy Technology Plan (SET-PLAN) Conference on 15 November 2010, the European University Association announced its intention to develop a European Platform of Universities Engaged in Energy Research, Education and Training (EPUE), Professor Torbjørn Digernes (Rector, Norwegian University of Science and Technology) announced that EPUE’s main task would be “ to provide a strong ‘single’ voice for Europe’s universities in EU energy research by establishing a platform to facilitate the full participation of competitive European universities and their networks in achieving the goal of the SET-PLAN for a low carbon emission energy future”. He emphasised that “for the successful realisation of EU energy policy goals, European universities’ strengths in fundamental research and training capacity for new skills development required by the energy sector must be tapped through EU research strategies”.
EPUE is being developed by EUA while involved as an observer within the European Energy Research Alliance (EERA) of the EU SET-PLAN. In October 2008, ten major National Research Institutes founded the European Energy Research Alliance (EERA).The key objective of EERA was to accelerate research on the development of new energy technologies in support of the EU Strategic Energy Technology (SET) plan by conceiving and implementing “joint research programmes” which seek to pool resources and overcome fragmentation of research efforts and integrate activities at national and European levels. EUA was invited to join the EERA Executive committee as an observer member by the European Commission Directorate-General for Research and Innovation.
EUA’s decision to participate in the EERA initiative was based essentially upon the recognition that it represented a pilot of a new type of European policy instrument under development – that of “joint programming” – and that Europe’s universities could not afford to be outside the learning process. In the case of EERA, where national research institutes for energy research were taking the lead, there was a real risk that universities would be regarded as secondary partners. The major task for EUA was to demonstrate that university-based research and, importantly, postgraduate training programmes (at Master and Doctoral levels), and the uniqueness of university interdisciplinary research environments, were key elements in tackling the “grand challenge” of achieving sustainable energy supply and usage.
On 30 March 2009 EUA convened a meeting to discuss how to maximise its role within EERA for the benefit of Europe’s universities. The meeting was chaired by Professor Helena Nazaré (member of the EUA Board and Research Policy Working Group) who served as the EUA member of the EERA Executive Committee. This meeting was attended by senior scientists nominated as representatives by national rectors’ conferences in 18 countries. The main outcome of the discussions was the recommendation that, to further focus and shape its role in this European initiative, EUA should establish a small Steering Group chaired by Professor Nazaré to develop a profile for EUA in EERA and to provide Professor Nazaré with expert advice and support in her role as EUA representative on the EERA Executive Committee.
The EPUE Steering Group has met on eight occasions in the period from June 2009 to October 2011. The main task of the Steering Group has been to design a survey questionnaire which has been sent to the EUA university membership that seeks to achieve an initial mapping of university research and training capacity in the energy field. The EPUE questionnaire was distributed in late November 2009 and 159 completed questionnaires have been received. All those universities who have completed the survey questionnaire have indicated their strong interest to participate in a new initiative to create a European Platform of Universities Engaged in Energy Research, Education and Training.
EUA Council has reviewed regularly the progress of EUA’s involvement in EERA and provided input and advice on its efforts to build a European Platform of Universities engaged in Energy Research, Education and Training. At its March 2010 meeting, Council appointed EUA Research Policy Working Group member, Professor Torbjørn Digernes (Rector, Norwegian University of Science and Technology), to serve as the EUA observer on the EERA Executive Committee and as Chairman of the EPUE Steering Group to succeed Professor Helena Nazaré.
The EPUE Steering Group has maintained a regular dialogue with European Commission Directorate-General for Research and Innovation through their invited attendance at its meetings. The Steering Group has also advised on EUA’s response to the relevant EC public consultations in relation to future EU energy research priorities. In July 2010, EUA responded to the European Commission public consultation on its communication “Towards a new Energy Strategy for Europe, 2011-2020” (EUA Contribution to Public Consultation). EUA's submission made it clear that Europe’s universities should have a recognised and distinct role to play in the forthcoming new EU Energy Strategy. University research and training environments foster innovation with their potential for interdisciplinary approaches, particularly through collaborative research projects with external industry partners. Europe’s universities have the capacity both to develop new skills by providing specialised education that encourages entrepreneurial skills and approaches to the development of new energy technologies and markets, and to conduct “frontier” basic research addressing long-term 2050 energy perspectives.
In relation to the latter issue, the EPUE Steering Group also advised on the EUA response in March 2011 to the public consultation on the “Energy Roadmap 2050” launched by EC Directorate-General for Energy.