BOARD MEMBERS OF HORIZON EUROPE RESEARCH MISSIONS ANNOUNCED

The European Commission has named the 70 people who will design Horizon Europe’s research missions alongside the five board chairs announced on 4 July. The 70 experts will be responsible for designing the large-scale, objective-driven research projects,

which are seen as central to reframing Europe’s approach to tackling its ‘grand challenges’. The research missions have five themes: climate change; cancer; oceans and other natural waters; climate-neutral and smart cities; and soil and food. Each mission has a board of 15 people with one chair. The boards will act in an advisory role: the final decision on which missions go ahead is due to be made by the commission in consultation with a committee of EU member state delegates.

By way of example of the high-level profiles of the 70 board members, the smart cities mission board includes Swiss psychiatrist and balloonist Bertrand Piccard, who with his British teammate Brian Jones was the first to complete a non-stop balloon flight around the Earth. Piccard also leads the solar-powered aircraft project Solar Impulse with Swiss pilot André Borschberg; during March 2015-July 2016 the duo flew the first circumnavigation of the globe in a solar-powered fixed-wing aircraft.

The full list of 75 board members, including the five chairs announced on 4th July, can be found at https://ec.europa.eu/info/sites/info/files/research_and_innovation/strategy_on_research_and_innovation/documents/ec_rtd_members-mission-boards_072019.pdf