"MOONSHOTS" CHARACTERIZE THE NEW FP9 FOR RESEARCH AND INNOVATION

The new jargon being used in Brussels to etch out the first features of the new Framework Programme 9, to start in 2021, is the word "moonshots". It originates from the speech by US President John F. Kennedy in 1961...

The new jargon being used in Brussels to etch out the first features of the new Framework Programme 9, to start in 2021, is the word "moonshots".  It originates  from the speech by US President John F. Kennedy in 1961, who called for a space programme which could land the first man on the moon — a goal that was achieved eight years later. The plan is to include up to 10 new research moonshots in FP9 which will help the public at large to connect with the EU's research and innovation programme and understand more fully the benefits that it brings to Europe's citizens.

Some of the themes which were already mooted in the recent report on FP9 by  former EU trade Commissioner and former head of the World Trade Organization, Pascal Lamy, include achieving a plastic litter-free Europe by 2030; understanding the brain by 2030; producing steel with zero carbon in Europe by 2030; and ensuring the survival of three out of four cancer patients by 2034. Other possible topics include flighting obesity and finding a cure for dementia. The European Commission will launch shortly a public consultation to identify other ambitious research goals which could feature high in the EU research agenda from 2021.