New+f.STOA Chairs Campos+Ruebig for EuroFora in EUCitizens input on EUParliament Science Options

*Strasbourg/EU Parliament/Angelo Marcopolo/- Both the new 2012-2014 President of EU Parliament's prestigious Committee competent to assess Scientific Options on Topical issues of Crucial importance for Modern Society, (from BioEthics and Energy to Institutions-building or Space Technology), etc., former Minister Antonio Correia de Campos (SD MEP from Portugal), and the experienced former President and now 1st vice-President, Austrian EPP MEP Paul Rübig, replying to "EuroFora"s Questions, invited "EuroFora"s co-Founder to actively contributr into relaying EU Citizens' concerns, queries or ideas, possibly expressed earlier in our Website's MultiLingual Forum, in the final public Discussions at STOA's Workshops together with specialized Experts.

They were speaking at a key moment in a Press Conference in EU Parliament in Strasbourg after a "Constitutive" meeting of the STOA (i.e. "Science-Technology Options Assessment Committee"), where Ruebig switched Today job with Campos, taking over STOA's 1st vice-Presidency, while STOA's other 2012-2014 vice-Presidents are Conservative MEPs Malcolm Harbour from the UK (Comp. Harbour's replies to "EuroFora"s questions in other issues, See previous NewsReports), and Oldrich Vlasak from the Czech Republic.

STOA's New President proposed to "EuroFora" to practically come to STOA's Meetings and Workshops in order to speak, during Discussions with the Panel of Experts, about Questions previously raised by EU Citizens  f.ex. in "EuroFora"s open public discussion Website, where the forthcoming Events would have been anounced to the Public early enough in order to collect People's main reactions. 

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         This was Campos' reaction to "EuroFora"s suggestion to be informed one or more Months before STOA's Workshops about the forthecoming Events in order to launch Public EU-wide Debates via our Internet MultiLingual Forum, where EU Citizens, other Experts, Businesses, Associations, Journalists, national a.o. Politicians, etc. who couldn't be always physically present at the prescribed Time in the precise location of a specific STOA Workshop.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                            >>> - ... "Why don't you come with the Panel to do it yourself ?", STOA's new 2012-2914 President suggested to "EuroFora".

    - "Because most of us (MEPs) are not specialists", so that "I don't know if it's feasible" for us (MEPs) to react to EU Citizens' questions or suggestions on STOA Workshops' issues, he carefully warned. Precisely, "because we don't know, we are asking Civil Society and Specialists. We (STOA's MEPs) are Facilitators So, we cannot answer (personaly) questions" on the STOA Workshops' Scientific/Technological matters , Campos explained.

     - Thus, "we (STOA MEPs), by definition, have not any opinion. The Opinions are from those who are in the Workshop's Panel. "We just need to be sure that they are Respected Members of the Scientific Community, that's all. But they can bring in their own Opinions. We have nothing to say about that".

    =>  In consequence, "the Best Way is for you to come to (STOA's) Meetings or at the end in the Workshops, and Ask Questions at an Open Time for Discussion", he proposed.  "In all (STOA's) Meetings this Possibility exists" for Journalists or other Civil Society members to raise topical questions to the Scientists/Researchers who form each STOA Workshop's Panel", President Campos guaranteed.

    = "Thanking" for "EuroFora"s input in "that Crucial question", the experienced STOA's 1st Vice-President, Austrian EPP MEP Paul Rübig, added that, indeed, "it's very Important for us (STOA) that we'll have Closer Contacts with the Science Community", as wel as "with the Society at large", as adds an Official Communiqué published Today, to which he pointed out.

    => "And (for that purpose) we use All Possibilities in this House", (EU Parliament), " in order to be, as much as possible, Present in the Official Life", as Rübig replied to "EuroFora", obviously including Innovative Methods as our Internet MultiLingual Forum suggestion, close to the "e - Democracy" Tools that a STOA Report had explored under his presidency in 2011 (See Infra).

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                  --------------------------------

-+ "EuroFora"  had initially raised to STOA's Leaders  2 specific Questions, during their Press Conference :

-  "As you know very well, there is a New (8th) Research Framework Program on the pipeline, and  the Pluri-Annual  Funding framework, where there are many Choices to be made on Scientific Issues, that are also Topical Issues". In this regard, "is there any Roadmap that you have prepared on the Main Issues that you think that they should be dealt by the STOA" during 2012-2014 ?

+ Moreover,  "in some issues, not only BioEthics but also on other points, as you know very well, the Legal Principle of Precaution has been accused, sometimes, by certain parties, to excessively block research mauy , while, on the contrary, other parties, sometimes consider that it's not always efficient, or not enough."=> "As a matter of General Principle, and taking into account your Experience on various issues, don't you think that the Precaution principle could also Stimulate and Justify (Scientific and Technological) Research, just in order to be sure that some Technological Choices are Safe ? So that it could also be "Research-Friendly" ?, we asked.
-----------------------------------

 - "Thank you for the Questions : You mentioned 2 Important issues, (including also) BioEthics and the Principle of Precaution, in order to have a "Friendly" liaison with Science", STOA's New President De Campos started to reply to "EuroFora" :

- But, "the better way to say what we (STOA) are, is to say what we are not :- We are not Science Makers, we don't do research : we are not researchers. We are not Science Managers : the only manager here is the (EU) Commission. "So, we do not take Decisions on these Difficult Science issues".

- "We are simply Facilitators : Our Legitimacy comes out from our Panels : 5 (EU Parliament's) Commissions that elected our Members and appointed us to run this project'. I.e., "we help to inform Decision makers, for doing themselves the decision. We Enlarge the Discussion, we make the Information more Transparent, we Inform our Collegues (MEPs) for the Options, But we (STOA) never take decisions" (on he substance of the Issues raised), he explained.

 - Thus, "we are running Workshops without any Connexion between these Workshops and our (personal) Opinions" : - "For instance, we are going to have a Workshop on (the highly Controversial issue of) "Human Enhancement", on (Bio-)Ethics, with the European Council of Churches. Many Churches are represented there, (but) neither from us (MEPs) is taking a position there. We (simply) think that it's Worthwhile to have this Panel of Different Opinions", De Campos observed.

- 'Our Duty is to inform collegues (MEPs) about such issues", after hearing all invited Speakers : Scientists, Businesses, Government agents, Associations, Journalists, other Politicians, etc., he concluded.
----------
- Indeed, "our 1st and central Priority is our Duty to inform and Help Collegues (MEPs) on the Decision-Making Process" in ordrer "to help them on Options", i.e. "to make the (Scientific and Technological) Options as Easy, as Intelligent, as Transparent as possible, in order to share the Technicalities and the Difficulties in interpretation, to bring this in  a Smooth, Transparent, and Easy way, for all of us (Euro-Politicians) to make Decisions", as Campos explained earlier.

So, "We don't decide ourselves, we decide through Others, but... >>> - "Here, on Science, because it takes Options that are very Important for Society, we need to be very Conscious of what these Options are : That's our Duty", he stresssed, apparently in relation to the "BioEthical"/"Precaution Principle" Question, initially raised by "EuroFora" (Comp. supra).
----------------------

 -  "That's a Crucial question, thank you", started to reply to "EuroFora" also the Experienced out-going STOA's 2009-2012 President, and New 1st Vice-President, Austrian EPP MEP Paul Rübig.

In this regard, - "I think that it's very Important for us (STOA) that we'll have Closer Contacts with the Science", " it's quite Essential to bring Together the Science area with the Politics level", he pointed out.  "This can bring a Better Undestanding of what is needed from the Political side, and what is needed from the Science - Research side".  Indeed, "It brings not only a Study. It also Builds Personal Relations", with a lot of ideas on how to cooperate in the most important areas of Science and to built Personal Contacts with these People, because I think that this is the road to Succes", Rubig added earlier.

=> That's why, "we (STOA) decided to have a "Pairing Scheme"  (where) MEPs should meet with Scientists Twice in a Year. Once in EU Parliament, another time at a Workplace of the Scientific Researchers". While "we (STOA) are also in relation with the World Science Conference in Japan which is  the biggest in the World, as well as the European Science' Conference in Budapest, and we plan to bring one also in the EU Parliament, by presenting the World Science Conference", he anounced.
---------------------
    - About the "RoadMap" asked by "EuroFora" (See supra), Rubig reminded, earlier, concerning the recent Past (2009-2012)n that, - "during the Last 3 Years, we (ST0A) focused on 3 Items" : (a) Eco-Mobility (i.e. when World Population grows from 2 to 10 Billions of People during our Lifetime, which Options can we offer world-wide for a good Mobility situation, as f.ex. in the program "Eco-Efficient Transport", etc.;  (b) Sustainable Resources,  (when we have Rare Resourcess around the world, here also we wanted to show the Options available for the Political level, for the Business level, with experience from the Science area : A Priority for the Long-track, where we must still look how to become more efficient);  (c) Social Networks and E-Goverment, (f.ex. this New Technology of Back up which is quite important for efficiency, but we have to see where we can be Transparent, and where we must keep Privacy, so that there is an InFight between these two Principles, which will go on in Future", (etc), as he said.
-------------
    + Now,  concerning "what the Principles for the Future will be", while "we (STOA) are looking about what Technology Options we have for the Future", the outgoing STOA President, (and new 1st Vice-President), limited himself into simply referring to a Press Release (See Infra), while also giving the speech to his successor, De Campos :

    -  Of course the "Innovation" topic is on board on all Issues, and not only in our Universities, especially in the comming Horizon 2020 project", for the New EU Pluri-Annual Research Program, "which is the Biggest EU ever had", stressed from the outset the in-coming, New STOA President.  - Indeed, EU's 8th RST Framework Program 2013-2020 "is improving from 50 to 80 Millions €, it's important, and we hope that it will help Reduce the Gap of Development which exists between Societies"?

    + "We (STOA) are also concerned with Basic Science, and that's why we organize our big Science event at the CERM, on November of this year, in earby Geneva), which is a Huge Laboratory which has produced already 16 Nobel Prizes", Coreia de Campos anounced.

    -Finally, "if we look at Sciences that can materialize easily, we shall look also to Social Sciences, in order to see how we can keep, here in Europe, our so succesful for 60 Years Social Model, in order to be Happy enough to produce more Science in the Future", as he said.
---------    
     + Concerning Future projects, "EuroFora" also reminded Campos that he had personaly chaired (together with MEP La Via, EPP from Italy), a Pioneer Workshop on "CO2: Future Fuel ?", which aimed to start exploring a Pioneer Idea, strongly supported by Strasbourg-based "European Materials Research Society" (EMRS), to use CO2 as an Alternative Fuel in the Horizon of 2050, last March 2010 in Brussels, (Comp. relevant earlier "EuroFora"s NewsReports).

    - "This is going to be Changing a lot", immediately reacted the New STOA's 2012-2014 President, even he carefully acknowledged that he "doesn't know" yet how far might go, in this regard, the consequences of the 2010 Fukusima Disaster, which notoriously provoked even Germany's decision to drop Nuclear Energy, thereby augmenting the need for New Energy Sources, given Oil - Gas' currently growing Prices and External EU's dependency, as well as Renewables' too Slow development. Topically, STOA's New "Initiatives"" for the "Coming Years", anounced Today (See infra), include, precisely, such "Alternative Fuels"        
----------------------------------                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                     
    + Rübig, after consulting Campos on "EuroFora"s 1st Question, (See supra) pointed at a Press Release published Today,  which not only anounces that "in the Coming Years" STOA's "scheduled Iniiatives" target (1) "Cloud Computing, Science Metrics, Alternative Fuels, and Technology Options for Feeding 10 Billions of People", as well as (2) "the use of new Mobile Media" to inform all MEPs, but also officially confirms that "STOA will further continue to organise, pro-actively and in response to ongoing developments, Information Events, relevant-to (EU) Parliament's Work and to (EU) Citizens' Expectations and Concerns in every area where Science and Technology assessment will  be required".

    -"Visibility ..is Vital for the accomplishment of STOA's Mission, which requires active Knowledge-Sharing with MEPs, the (overall) Schientific Community and the Society at large", today's Document indicated by Ruebig also stresses from the outset.

    => One of STOA's recent Reports (2011) even builds upon "EuroFora" co-Founder's original 1997-2007 idea, (as officially proposed, while Heading a Team of experienced European Journalists from various EU Countries, Universitarians, etc. for an Innovative EU Commission's project since as early as 1997, whose Timely adoption would certainly have contributed into Preventing the notoriously Negative 1999-2004 period of sharply growing Majority Abstentions in EU Parliament's Elections, followed by 3 "No" to EuroReferenda in France, the Netherlands and Ireland, etc. from 2005), to invent new ways, using the Modern Tools of Tele-Communication (including Interet, etc), of systematically associating all genuinly interested EU Citizens' participation in Public Debates and Dialogue before EU Institutions take important Decisisons affecting their Lives....  

    + It topically includes, in the same framework, also Lisbon Treaty's EU "Citizens Initiatives", on which "EuroFora" has already pubished many Original NewsReports with INTWs and replies of main actors to  our Questions, (f.ex. EU Parliament's Rapporteur, former Minister for EU affairs, Alain Lamassoure, EU Commission'q vice-President Maros Sfcovic, new EU Parliament's President Martin Schulz, etc. : See relevant earlier "EuroFora"s NewsReports).  and which is due to start working, as informed EU sources recently confirmed us, from April 1st.
-----------------------------------------