Matthias Jarke Appointed to CONNECT Advisory Forum

RWTH Professor Matthias Jarke has been appointed to the newly formed CONNECT Advisory Forum, CAF for short, which is to advise the EU commission’s General Directorate for Communications Networks, Content and Technology (CONNECT). Connect is responsible for the implementation of the “Digital Agenda for Europe” project, initiated by the commission’s Vice President Neelie Kroes. On 28 February 2013, the founding meeting took place in Brussels. CAF consists of 28 members selected from 350 candidates. Aside from Matthias Jarke, there are two further members from Germany, with a background in business and industry. Jarke is Head of the Chair of Computer Science 5, Information Systems and Databases, and Chairman of the Fraunhofer Information and Communication Technology Group.

The advisory forum supports the development of the HORIZON 2020 research program in the fields of computer science and information and communication technology (ICT). How can information and communication technologies help to address the great societal challenges of the future, such as demographic change, the renewable energy transformation, or European security?

Apart from being concerned with questions like these, the expert group seeks to find ways to strengthen the innovative power of the European information and communication sector and to boost excellent basic research activities in the field. Furthermore, the group is concerned with questions of regulation, the reduction of bureaucracy in European research funding, and the assessment of the risks and benefits of IC technologies.