Save your special room rate by February 20, 2012 /Join the Photonics21 Annual Meeting 2012

Confirmed speakers include

• Malcolm Harbour – Member of European Parliament (ECR, UK)
• Maria da Graca Carvalho – Member of the European Parliament (EPP, Portugal)
• Giorgio Anania – Vice President and Executive Board Member Photonics21 and Member of KET-HLG
• Martin Goetzeler - President of the Executive Board, Photonics 21
• Zoran Stančič, Deputy Director-General DG INFSO
• Thierry Van der Pyl - Director for Components and Systems, European Commission, DG Information Society and Media
  

The registration fee for the 6th Photonics 21 Annual Meeting of Euro 180 is covering entrance to all sessions, lunch, coffee breaks and the evening reception.

Hotel accommodation:

In the hotel HUSA President Park 100 rooms have been provisionally blocked for 160 € per night, breakfast included. The corresponding booking code is: PHOTONICS21.
If you would like to reserve a hotel room, we kindly ask you to make your reservation directly with the hotel HUSA President Park by filling in the reservation form which can find here.

You can then make your reservation by sending back the reservation form either via

fax to: (+32) 2 203 24 40 or via e-mail to: info.president@husa.es

Please note that this option is only valid until the 20 February 2012.

Other hotel accommodations nearby the meeting venue:

You can find some further information about other hotels which are in walking distance of the hotel HUSA President Park here: http://www.photonics21.org/News/index.php

Key Enabling Technologies: European Innovation Policy in the Focus of the next Photonics21 Annual Meeting in Brussels The way forward towards the future EU Framework Programme “Horizon 2020” and the founding of a Photonics Public Private Partnership (PPP) will be in the focus of the 6th Annual Meeting of the European Technology Platform Photonics21, which will take place on March 27 & 28, 2012 in the Hotel Husa President Park in Brussels, Belgium.

The agenda will put special emphasis on future research and innovation concepts and the European photonics strategy as a Key Enabling Technology (KET) to enhance the competitiveness of European industry and contribute to solve the societal challenges in Europe such as aging society, sustainability and energy efficiency or security.

Representing more than 2000 members from industry, research and politics, the Photonics21 Annual Meeting has become the major event for the European photonics community, thus providing a unique forum for discussing and networking.

European Commission Vice President Neelie Kroes considered the upcoming Annual Meeting as “a milestone event” with regard to the future role photonics will play in “Horizon 2020” and will provide the keynote speech at the General Assembly on the 28 March 2012.

High Level Panel Discussion
A high level panel discussion with representatives from the European Parliament, the EU Commission as well as from photonics Industry and Science will promise further interesting discussions and insights of how to speed up the innovation process in Europe and how to better pool resources.
At the General Assembly attendees, amongst other topics, will be further informed about the platform’s activities in 2011, the final recommendations of the “Key Enabling Technologies Initiative” as well as the activities of the Photonics21 political “Mirror Group”. More in-depth information on current and upcoming programs and funding schemes are subject of the speech from Thierry van der Pyl, Director European Commission.


Work Group Sessions: Roadmapping
In the afternoon, the seven Photonics21 work groups around Information & Communication; Industrial Production & Quality; Life Science and Health; Lighting, Displays and Large Area Electronics; Security, Metrology and Sensors; Design and Manufacturing of Components and Systems as well as Photonics Education & Training and Research Infrastructure will concentrate on Road Mapping research and innovation towards 2020.

Photonics 21 Student Innovation Award
The public event will start with an evening welcome reception on the 27 March 2012 at the Hotel Husa President Park. A highlight of this first evening will be the Photonics21 Student Innovation Award 2012, which recognizes innovative work from young researchers

Our Sponsors

 
The Photonics21 Annual Meeting is kindly sponsored by: AIXTRON, ADVA, BASF, BERLINER GLAS, EOS, JENOPTIK, MERCK, Novaled, OSRAM, PHILIPS, SPIE Europe, TRUMPF, ZEISS and the European Commission.
The Photonics21 Student Innovation Award is kindly sponsored by SPIE Europe, Fraunhofer Heinrich Hertz Institute and the European Commission.

Towards a Photonics Public Private Partnership (PPP) in Horizon 2020 – Photonics21 Board of Stakeholder held a consultation meeting in Brussels In June 2011 Photonics21 submitted a draft proposal to the EU Commission for a Public Private Partnership (PPP) in Photonics. In her letter back to the Photoncis21 president, Martin Goetzeler, Commissioner Neelie Kroes confirmed her strong support for setting up a Photonics PPP as part of the next framework programme, Horizon 2020, and also expressed her appreciation for the four-fold leveraging of the initial public funding that had been proposed in our position paper. The establishment of a PPP matches the general strategy of the European Commission for Horizon 2020, namely, to make a shift to Research and Innovation to cover the whole innovation chain.

Looking ahead, Vice President Kroes has asked Photonics21 to work closely with the EU Commission on the next steps. These relate to the definition of the strategic objectives of the PPP, a governance structure with roles and responsibilities, the level of industrial commitment and performance indicators for the PPP.

The Photonics21 Executive Board has set up three work groups to work on preparing the requested details. These covered Strategic Objectives, Governance Structure and Key Performance Indicators.

Drafts of the detailed proposals were subject of a Consultation Meeting between the work group chairs and the EU Commission in mid-December, as well as of a discussion with the Executive Board in January and a meeting with representatives of the Board of Stakeholders on February 3, 2012.

On behalf of the EU Commission, Ronan Burgess gave an introduction on the current status of the Horizon 2020 discussion within the EU decision making bodies. You can find his presentation at the attached link.

The overall schedule foresees that the Photoncis PPP proposal will be considered by the Photonics21 legal bodies at the next Photonics21 Annual Meeting in Brussels on March 27th & 28th 2012. This will be followed, if agreed, by negotiations with the European Commission



A final proposal by the European Commission for “Horizon 2020” is expected to get ready by end of 2012. This draft will be subject of approval with the European legal bodies such as Parliament and Council before it can be implemented in 2014.

The current proposal for a Photonics PPP within Horizon 2020 is based on the long term and trusted relationship between the European Commission and Photonics21. It foresees that the ‘private sector partner’ of the PPP will be represented by a modified ETP Photonics21 organization, whose membership of about 2000 partners faithfully represent the European Photonics community, both industrial and academic. The PPP proposal also aims to utilize the well-established and effective Photonics21 structures and procedures.

Photonics21 provided input to the Public Consultation on the SSL Green Paper Photonics21 has provided its input to the Public Consultation on the Green Paper on Solid State Lighting which was launched by the European Commission. The Public Consultation addresses the views of all interested individuals and organisations on the relevant issues involved by collecting replies on specific questions which have been set out in the Green Paper, e.g. how to overcome the challenges for the wider market penetration of Solid State Lighting Technologies in Europe.

The Public Consultation is open until the 29 February 2012. You will find any further information about the Public Consultation if you follow this link:
http://ec.europa.eu/information_society/digital-agenda/actions/ssl-consultation/index_en.htm  

To read the Photonics21 response to the Public Consultation, you can download the corresponding document here: http://www.photonics21.org/download/Photonics21_news/20120206_Ph21_EU_SSL_Green_Paper_questionnaire_final.pdf

EU research funding reaches 15 percent target for SMEs Publication of the progress report on SME participation in FP7 - The European Commission DG Research & Innovation recently published a progress report on SME participation in FP7. The report reveals that the budget target to provide 15% for funding to Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) within the Seventh Research Framework Programme (FP7) has been reached.
This 15% goal had been set by the European Parliament and Council when establishing FP7. DG Research & Innovation regularly monitors the implementation across the Themes of the FP7 Cooperation Programme (2007-2013) by publishing a "SME Progress Reports in FP7". The eighth report, which has just been released, shows that during the first five years of FP7, the budget which was granted so far to SMEs in the thematic priorities represents 15.3% of the Cooperation Programme budget. This equals € 2.4 billion allocated to almost 8.900 SME participations by 1 January 2012.

You can download the full report or read about an executive summary if you follow this link:
http://ec.europa.eu/research/sme-techweb/index_en.cfm?pg=publications

Intensive Training on Entrepreneurship in Photonics To stimulate and support innovative entrepreneurship in the domain of photonics, you have the opportunity to participate in the third edition of the course “Intensive Training on Entrepreneurship in Photonics”. The training targets researchers of universities and research institutes, young professionals, employees of photonics-related companies, lawyers, business angels, consultants and therefore everybody who is involved or interested in entrepreneurship in photonics.

The training will be held in Brussels from Monday 5 March 2012 till Wednesday 14 March 2012. It follows a modular concept and builds on the expertise and the educational program that has been developed over the years.

You can find the preliminary programme and any further information about the course by following this link: http://www.b-phot.org/www/Events/Intensive-Training-on-Entrepreneurship-in-Photonics-3rd-edition

Join us: Photonics21 runs a booth at the SPIE Photonics Europe 2012 in Brussels Photonics21 will be represented with a booth on the upcoming SPIE Photonics Europe which takes place from 16 - 19 April 2012 at the “Square Brussels Meeting Centre” Brussels, Belgium. On booth  S 180 we will inform about our visions for photonic technologies as Key Enabling Technologies, the economic impact of photonics, our recommendations and proposals towards the next European Framework Programme for research and innovation “Horizon 2020”.

More information on the SPIE Photonics Europe you can find on the respective website.
Please go to http://spie.org/x12290.xml

Join the Fotonica 2012 conference Fotonica 2012 is the 14th Italian National Conference of Photonic Technologies. The conference is the meeting place of the Italian Photonic Community where the most advanced achievements of research in photonics are presented and discussed. The event covers all aspects of photonics, with a particular emphasis on applications.

Fotonica 2012 will be structured in technical sessions that will include review-papers and original contributions relevant to the general conference themes. Furthermore, there will be panels and symposia that will present the current state of the art and consider the future expectations of photonics, including national and international initiatives under development.

Fotonica 2012 targets all professionals active in photonics, including researchers, manufacturers and users of the technology, as well as analysts and investors interested in this sector.  

You can find any further information about the event by following this link: http://www.fotonica2012.it/ENG/

Join the Photonex London event Photonex London is a Technology Roadshow which facilitates face-to-face discussions with scientists and researchers who work with the latest tools and techniques in the world of photonics. The event is split up in a Conference and Photonics Tutorials.

Conference:"Advances in photonics tools and techniques for the life sciences”
The scientific program is being chaired by Dr Chris Dunsby, a joint lecturer between Photonics, Department of Physics and the Division of Experimental Medicine in the Department of Medicine at Imperial College. Dr Simon Schultz, senior lecturer in the Department of Biomedical Engineering also at Imperial and Dr Pete Tomlins, of the Centre for Diagnostic and Oral Sciences at Queen Mary, University of London. The theme of the conference is focusing on the advances in photonics tools and techniques for the life sciences.

Photonics Tutorials:"Latest photonics techniques and instrumentation"
In parallel to the scientific conference, there will be a series of tutorials. These will follow the format so well established at the main Photonex event which will again take place in October this year at Coventry’s Ricoh Arena.
You can find any further information about the event here:
http://www.photonex.com

Join the Photonix 2012 Expo & Conference The Photonix 2012 Expo & Conference is Asia’s leading photonics exhibition and conference. The event consists of 4 exhibitions which focus on fiber optics, laser processing, optics & sensing technology and medical/bio photonics.

You can find any further information about the event if you follow this link:
http://www.photonix-expo.jp/en/Home/