On Friday 20 November 2015, Secretary-General of the National Research Fund of Luxembourg, Marc Schiltz, was elected in Brussels to the governing council of Science Europe, the umbrella association of research and funding organisations in Europe.
The appointment followed Marc Schiltz's representation of the National Research Fund (FNR) in 2011 at a Science Europe foundation meeting in Berlin. The European association now includes 50 research and research funding organisations from 27 different countries, representing approximately €30 billion invested annually in the public research sector. Its main objective it to strengthen collaboration between national research organisations across the region.
"The amibition of Science Europe is to promote the quality and excellence of European science, in order to assert the importance of public support and its adhesion to the development of scientific research," explained the new President of Science Europe, Michael Matlosz. "Science Europe's primary objective is to give a collective vision of the funding bodies of European research and to specify/present the role of research centres of Member States."
"Science Europe is a powerful tool for promoting research at the European level; for a small country like Luxembourg it is a formidable lever to make our voices heard," added Marc Schiltz. "The election also reflects the growing visibility of the excellence of Luxembourg research in the international arena."
With Marc Schiltz as part of the governing council of Science Europe and former rector Rolf Tarrach, elected earlier this year to the head of the European University Association (EUA), Luxembourg now holds a strong presence in the two largest research and higher education umbrella organisations in Europe.
Photo by EARTO (Marc Schiltz)
