EU Agenda: Week Ahead - 26-30 October 2020
This week,following the World Health Summit, the EU presidency holds a conference on sustainable chemical conversion in industry; the Commission holds a forum on clean energy for EU islands; MEPs in committee continue negotiations on future EU financing, and on the Rule of Law, and vote on protecting EU products in China; and it's European Gender Equality Week. The week's events in the European Union including EU Council, Commission and Parliament meetings and other EU-related conferences and events. Events for the week of 26-30 October 2020.
Sunday 25 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Consumer affairs and public health
World Health Summit 2020
Berlin
In recent years, Germany has strengthened its commitment to global health, leveraging its G7 and G20 presidencies and lending support to multilateral and bilateral health partnerships. It has also become one of the strongest supporters of the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international agencies.
This presents a significant opportunity to help identify measures all EU countries can implement in areas such as development, health, research, environment and trade in order to achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG3) – Good health and Well-being.
In light of this, under the German Presidency of the Council of the EU, the German Federal Ministry of Health, together with its trio partners from Portugal and Slovenia, will hold a moderated panel discussion of the health ministers. The aim is to assess the progress achieved so far on the initiative to strengthen the EU's role in global health that was officially launched under Finland's Presidency of the Council of the EU.
Monday 26 October
European Parliament | Political Meetings | Institutional affairs
European Parliament committee meetings
European Parliament, Brussels
MFF/Own Resources: negotiations on future EU financing continue with two meetings scheduled between Parliament and Council. MEPs defend real top-ups for 15 flagship EU programmes for the benefit of citizens, students, researchers, businesses, health workers and many others, as well as new sources of revenue for the EU budget in order to save EU countries money (Monday, Wednesday).
EU "right to repair": the Internal Market and Consumer Protection Committee will vote to ask the Commission to establish a consumers' "right to repair". This would aim to promote a culture of reuse, making repairs cost-efficient, as well as sustainable production, business models and consumption.
Initiatives on Artificial intelligence: MEPs from the new special committee on Artificial Intelligence in a Digital Age (AIDA) will hold a debate with Commissioners Breton and Vestager on the EU data strategy and Commission's white paper on AI. They will also discuss initiatives taken within the OECD with Andrew W. Wyckoff – its Director for Science, Technology and Innovation (Monday and Tuesday).
European Gender Equality Week: to mark the 25th anniversary of the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action, the European Parliament, at the initiative of its Women's Rights and Gender Equality Committee, decided to hold for the first time a European Gender Equality Week from Monday 26 to Thursday 29 October. Several EP Committees will hold debates and hearings on topics related to gender equality.
Monday 26 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Business, taxation and competition - Economy and the euro
The role of insurers in the capital market union and in broader society - Solvency II review and crisis recovery
Berlin
As part of Germany's Presidency of the Council of the EU, the German Federal Ministry of Finance is planning a high-level event on insurance topics. The main aim of the event is to discuss the currently ongoing Solvency II review in the context of the European capital markets union project. At the same time, the event is intended to provide a forum for exchanging views on the effects of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and to show ways in which insurers can contribute to managing the crisis and support preparedness for comparable events going forward.
In addition, there is growing pressure to engage intensively with the topic of sustainability. The insurance industry plays an important role in this process due to its dual role as risk manager and investor. This aspect will also be examined during the event.
Monday 26 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Economy and the euro - Energy, environment and climate - Research and innovation
Karliczek's Stimulus Talks: Science Year 2020 - Bioeconomy
Berlin
Science Year 2020 provides the general public with a view on the opportunities and challenges of the bioeconomy by showcasing a number of hands-on exhibits.
German Federal Minister for Education and Research, Anja Karliczek, host of the Karliczek's Stimulus Talks, invites stakeholders to discuss priority topics in current research at the Berlin offices of the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research.
Monday 26 - Tuesday 27 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Consumer affairs and public health - Research and innovation
Workshop: European initiatives for the digital networking of patient care and medical research
Berlin
The Medical Informatics initiative funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research creates the necessary environment for research and healthcare communities to establish closer links. All the university hospitals in Germany collaborate with research institutions, businesses, health insurance providers and patients' organisations to improve medical research and patient care. They do this by aggregating research and healthcare data across multiple locations.
This European workshop will enable an exchange between the Medical Informatics initiative and other similar initiatives in Europe. Topics of discussion include data availability, interoperability, international standards, data protection, data security and electronic patient records. Participants are scientists from the fields of medical informatics, bioinformatics, biomedical and clinical research, health care research and epidemiology and actors in patient care and the healthcare industry.
Monday 26 - Thursday 29 October
European Commission | Events/Conf/Fairs | Energy, environment and climate - EU regional and urban development
Clean energy for EU islands online forum
Online
The clean energy for EU islands forum will take place online this year, due to current health and travel restrictions.
The forum will focus on how to create stronger links between EU institutions and local actions on the islands. To this end, EU representatives will present their role in creating an enabling framework for the decarbonisation of EU islands, and the island communities will present and discuss their activities.
The forum will also include local transition days, where islanders and transition team members can meet in their communities and give feedback on their latest developments and experiences with their peers.
The last day will focus on exchanging ideas and impressions from the previous days in an interactive online format with links to the site-visit videos.
Monday 26 - Friday 30 October
European Commission - Other bodies and agencies | Events/Conf/Fairs | Energy, environment and climate - Research and innovation
European Polar Science Week 2020
Online
The 1st European Polar Science Week, organised by the European Commission together with the European Space Agency, will take place on 26-30 October 2020. It will feature the launch of the new EU PolarNet 2, a Horizon 2020 project aiming to improve coordination between EU polar research institutions by building on existing networks and providing a platform to co-create and co-design European polar research actions with all relevant stakeholders.
It will also feature the EU Polar Cluster consisting of European Polar Board and Svalbard Integrated Arctic Earth Observing System and 21 Horizon 2020 Polar projects. The Polar Cluster aims at optimising synergies across projects and maximise their impacts on society.
The first EC-ESA Polar Science workshop, part of a new EC-ESA cooperation agreement, shall foster closer collaboration and networking across the EU and ESA Polar activities.
The European Polar Science Week will contribute to the new joint communication on the Arctic and northern dimension policy and will help consolidate the EU contribution to the 3rd Arctic Science Ministerial.
Tuesday 27 - Wednesday 28 October
Other bodies and agencies | Events/Conf/Fairs | Energy, environment and climate - Security and defenc
Consultation forum for sustainable energy in the defence and security sector - phase III (CF SEDSS III): Boosting the defence energy transition
Online
The European Defence Agency (EDA) is inviting EU countries to register for the first conference of the Consultation forum for sustainable energy in the defence and security sector - phase III (CF SEDSS III), which will take place virtually. The CF SEDSS is a European Commission funded initiative managed by the EDA. It aims to create a defence energy-related community to share information, knowledge and best practices on improving energy management, increasing energy efficiency and buildings performance, utilising renewable energy sources in the defence sector and enhancing the resilience of defence-related critical energy infrastructure.
The conference will be held under the auspices of the German Presidency of the Council of the EU and hosted by the German Federal Ministry of Defence. Participants will be invited to discuss the work plan of the 3rd phase of the CF SEDSS and determine the allocation of responsibilities, work and priorities to implement the defined goals of the project effectively.
Tuesday 27 October
European Commission - Other bodies and agencies | Events/Conf/Fairs | Consumer affairs and public health
CHRODIS PLUS online conference on chronic diseases
Online
The aim of the European Commission's CHRODIS PLUS Joint Action (2017-2020) programme has been to support EU countries in overcoming the burden of chronic diseases by promoting policies and practices that have proved successful in the past.
This conference will illustrate the impact that CHRODIS PLUS has had on public health systems across EU countries over the past 3 years. It will focus on showing how the good practices, models and tools implemented by the project can be tailored to various national and local settings across Europe. This includes a comprehensive training and resources tool box on employment and chronic diseases.
Tuesday 27 October
European Parliament | Political Meetings | Institutional affairs
European Parliament committee meetings
European Parliament, Brussels
Rule of Law: Parliament, Council and Commission will continue their talks on the rule of law conditionality regulation, which may lead to member states having their EU funding suspended or cut if they do not respect fundamental rights. Parliament's key demand is an effective mechanism that can be applied in practice.
Protecting EU's products in China: the International Trade Committee will have its final vote on the EU and China agreement to mutually protect over 200 products with geographical indications. These include Cava, Champagne, Feta, Irish whiskey, Münchener Bier, Ouzo, Polska Wódka, Porto, Prosciutto di Parma and Queso Manchego. For the agreement to enter into force, Parliament consent is required.
COVID-19 and EU values: the Civil Liberties Committee will vote on a report assessing the emergency measures adopted by EU countries to fight against the pandemic and their impact on democracy, the rule of law, and fundamental rights.
Migration/Greek islands: the Civil Liberties Committee will take stock of the situation at the Greek islands following the fire that destroyed the Moria refugee camp and left around 12,000 asylum-seekers homeless, most of whom were moved to the urgently-established, temporary Kara Tepe camp.
Tuesday 27 - Wednesday 28 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Business - Energy, environment and climate - Research and innovation
IndTech2020 - Transition to sustainable prosperity
Online
'IndTech2020 - Transition to sustainable prosperity' will take place in Mainz from 26 to 28 October.
IndTech2020 invites interested parties from research, industry and politics to discuss future trends and technological challenges. The conference will identify some of the key challenges facing society and the industrial technologies sector in 2020, as well as how cutting-edge European research and innovation will address these challenges. A special focus will be battery technologies, digitalisation and biologically inspired innovation in materials science, production and manufacturing technologies, the European Green Deal and low-carbon and circular economies.
Tuesday 27 - Wednesday 28 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Culture, education and youth - Research and innovation
'museum4punkt0': Developing the future together – Enhancing the museum experience with digital processes
Berlin
Over the last three years, the joint project 'museum4punkt0' has looked at new ways of digitally interacting with visitors, developing individualised content for them and addressing additional target groups. The project has developed and tested uses for modern digital exhibition technologies such as virtual/augmented reality, 3D modelling and artificial intelligence.
The results will be introduced and discussed in an international conference on 27 and 28 October in Berlin. The goal is to present the resulting digital applications and prototypes and to make them available to museums throughout Europe.
Tuesday 27 - Wednesday 28 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Research and innovation
Conference on sustainable chemical conversion in industry 2020
Berlin
As an industrialised country, Germany has a special responsibility to actively contribute towards the Paris Climate Agreement without compromising its competitiveness. The defossilisation and modernisation of energy-intensive industries plays a key role in this process.
Funded by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research, the Carbon2Chem® collaborative project has been working on using harmful CO2 from industrial manufacturing as a raw material for the chemicals industry since 2016. By connecting different sectors and using renewable sources of energy, CO2 can be turned into a valuable resource for the ecofriendly production of synthetic fuels or basic chemicals. Carbon2Chem® aims to sustainably utilise around 20 million tonnes of CO2 emitted from industrial processes by 2030. The third Carbon2Chem® conference will provide information about the goals that have already been achieved and highlight the challenges of implementing innovative approaches.
Wednesday 28 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Research and innovation
Necessity or luxury? Digital sovereignty in Germany and Europe
Online
Digital sovereignty is a crucial condition for administrative digitalisation in Europe. Important software and hardware for operating systems and office communication continues to be sourced from outside the EU.
This state of affairs is being critically reviewed, and not only since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic and related discussions about supply chains and dependencies from suppliers outside the EU. In June of this year, for example, France and Germany introduced their common initiative for a European cloud.
How can the use of European products be more strongly promoted in the future? How can public administration help strengthen European software industries? Representatives of the German state of Bremen and their counterparts at the European level will discuss these questions. Bremen is one of the central locations for the development of alternatives to what are hitherto standard products.
Wednesday 28 October
European Parliament | Political Meetings | Institutional affairs
European Parliament committee meetings
European Parliament, Brussels
2021 EU Budget: the Budgets Committee will adopt Parliament's priorities for next year's EU budget. MEPs want to boost funding for programmes and projects that will support the young, researchers, health workers, entrepreneurs as well as transport infrastructure, agriculture, fundamental rights, security and external action.
InvestEU: the Budgets and Economic and Monetary Affairs committees will vote to reinforce the existing EU investment support mechanism for 2021-2027, to help EU companies and ensure private investment for medium- and long-term priorities, such as the Green Deal and the digital transition.
Wednesday 28 - Friday 30 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Asylum and migration - Culture, education and youth
Young people, migration and the demographic crisis in the Western Balkans
Berlin
Demographic change and above all rising emigration rates have become a growing problem in the Western Balkan countries over the last few years. Germany is one of the main destination countries for skilled and non-skilled workers. Like the destination country governments, we have an interest in ensuring that these processes are sustainable and do not come to jeopardise stability.
The conference is intended to help foster this sustainability by putting the topic on the EU-Western Balkan agenda, increasing what is known about this phenomenon and raising awareness of its various aspects and the interests of the migrants' countries of origin. Participants are to include representatives of the Western Balkan countries, EU countries and institutions, international organisations, business, academia, youth and civil society, as well as members of the German Bundestag. The expert panel discussions will be preceded by a ministerial segment.
Wednesday 28 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Culture, education and youth
Framing creative futures forum meets ECIS 2020
Berlin
The traditional annual European autumn conference on the cultural and creative industries, the 'European Creative Industries Summit' (ECIS), held by the respective Presidency of the Council of the EU with the participation of the European Creative Business Network will take place in 2020 as an online event.
Weekly discussion rounds will be conducted over a period of five weeks prior to the final high-level event on 28 October. These discussions will serve to look at the developments and opportunities in the European creative sector during and after the coronavirus crisis and to explore new approaches to providing political support within the context of the Research Framework Programme and industrial policy. The German Cultural and Creative Industries Forum will also feed its input into the conference.
Thursday 29 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | EU regional and urban development - Research and innovation
Grand challenges, answers from North Rhine-Westphalia - AI made in NRW: sustainability and trust for artificial intelligence technologies
Brussels
As a key technology of digital change, artificial intelligence (AI) is of central importance for business, science and society. Intelligent procedures improve the quality and efficiency of existing processes along value chains and open up new markets. Currently, a wide range of technological and societal challenges has to be met.
The North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) AI strategy is guided by the triad of excellence in research and education, success in business and ethics in implementation. NRW ideally reflects the heterogeneous demands placed on AI and can draw on the expertise of renowned scientists, outstanding flagship projects and a strong industry and start-up scene. Research topics range from AI service concepts, privacy, security and the explainability of AI models, to cognitive compatibility and social implications.
Thursday 29 October
Presidency of the Council of the EU | Events/Conf/Fairs | Asylum and migration
EMN annual conference : Towards an effective asylum and migration management
Nuremberg, Germany
Every year, the European Migration Network (EMN) organises two conferences in cooperation with the current Presidency of the Council of the EU.
The EMN annual conference 'Towards effective asylum and migration management – Innovative approaches and their implementation in practice' will address the EU's common challenges and practical strategies for effective asylum and migration management. The agenda covers a broad range of topics, from discussions about information management in the context of migration, through the digital transformation of the asylum procedure, to the humanitarian admission of people seeking protection.
The conference will bring representatives from EU countries, the European Commission, international organisations, civil society and the research community together. It will also provide an opportunity for sharing views and experiences regarding the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on migration.
Friday 30 October
European Economic and Social Committee - European Parliament | Events/Conf/Fairs | Business - Covid-19
New challenges and opportunities for EU industry during the COVID-19 crisis
Online
On 30 October 2020 the European Economic and Social Committee (EESC) and the European Parliament are organising a virtual half-day conference on 'New challenges and opportunities for EU industry during the COVID-19 crisis'.
The event will focus on topical questions such as industrial recovery from the pandemic crisis, Europe's competitiveness on the global stage and the transition to a green and digital economy. It will also explore the need for reconstruction and transformation of European industry and it will concentrate on the role of civil society organisations in designing the future of European industry.