NCBR celebrated in Brussels 15 years of its existence
21.10.2022
The National Centre for Research and Development organized an event in Brussels to mark its 15th anniversary. Apart from Director Paweł Kuch, opening remarks were delivered by Arkadiusz Pluciński, Deputy Permanent Representative of Poland to the EU, Katarzyna Lachowicz Director of the Business & Science Poland branch in Brussels, and the European Commission was represented by Bernd Biervert from the Directorate General for Research and Innovation.
The meeting gathered representatives of the Polish research and innovation community, EU institutions and representatives of research institutes from other EU Member States and associated countries.
“The purpose of our presence in Brussels is two-fold. On the one hand, we present our EU partners Poland’s achievements and potential, and on the other, we mobilize the capacity of Polish researches and innovators to be more active and daring on the European stage," said Director Kuch in his inaugural speech.
“In order for Europe to deliver on its promises and very ambitious goals, Poland has to be part of the equation. We absolutely need to bring everyone onboard, and on behalf of Poland’s R&I community I am here to underline our readiness to contribute our share,” he added.
The NCBR office in Brussels invited representatives of Polish companies, NCBR beneficiaries, to the event to present their activities and potential in front of international guests. The exhibitors included Swapp, mTap Smart City, Sygnis S.A., Institute of Energy Barczewo, DMD Modular, Euros Energy and APA Group.
"We organize our annual events in Brussels to exchange ideas for potential cooperation, as the Horizon Europe funding for research and innovation is intended mainly for the best projects prepared by international consortia. Without close cooperation with partners from other EU Member States and/or associated countries, these funds will not have a chance to directly benefit Polish entities" - emphasized Ewa Kocińska-Lange, the Director of the NCBR office in Brussels, in the introduction to the discussion panel, which she moderated.
The role of funding agencies in the European innovation ecosystem was discussed by Rune Vistad from the Research Council of Norway, Marina Martine from the Spanish Office for Science and Technology in Brussels, Artur Pollak from APA Group, Kamil Kwiatkowski from Euros Energy, while NCBR was represented by the Director of the International Cooperation Office, Agnieszka Ratajczak.
The event is another undertaking of the NCBR Office in Brussels promoting Polish potential in the area of innovation, and at the same time an opportunity to establish new contacts with representatives of the Directorate-General for Research and Innovation of the European Commission and EU executive agencies, such as the Executive Agency for the European Innovation Council and SMEs (EISMEA) and the European Research Executive Agency (REA).
„Bringing together key stakeholders from Poland and other European research and innovation organizations, the industry and funding agencies, is of great importance, and I am happy that the NCBR is doing this both in Brussels and in Warsaw on regular basis” – concluded Arkadiusz Pluciński, Deputy Permanent Representative of Poland to the EU.
