German-Polish-Czech conference builds bridges across borders : Date: , Theme: International Affairs
The German-Polish-Czech Science Platform took place in Dresden on 8 and 9 October under the theme “Cross-border innovation for the Central European region(s)”. The conference was organized by the German Federal Ministry of Education and Research in cooperation with the Free State of Saxony and brought together high-ranking representatives from politics, science and research from all three countries.
Government representatives from Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic to provide fresh impetus for regional development
Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic want to intensify the pooling of forces in research and innovation in order to strengthen Central European innovation regions and provide new impetus for regional development across all of Europe. At the invitation of Federal Research Minister Anja Karliczek in cooperation with the Minister-President of Saxony Michael Kretschmer, the conference at the Gläserne Manufaktur in Dresden on 8 and 9 October will bring together the President of the German Bundestag, Wolfgang Schäuble, the Prime Minister of Poland, Mateusz Morawiecki, and Deputy Minister at the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic, Petr Očko, as well as further representatives from politics, science and research in the border triangle. Participants will discuss opportunities and challenges of research and innovation for the sustainable economic development of Central Europe.
Central European cooperation as a driver of forward-looking innovation
The central objective of the conference is to prepare for tackling the joint challenges facing Germany, the Czech Republic and Poland in the border triangle and coal mining regions in particular. Successful, economically and socially sustainable structural change requires smart links between science and industry. This can only be achieved through networking and cross-border cooperation in research and innovation. In this context, Central European partnerships can serve as a stepping stone for encouraging innovation and advancing regional development. The high profile of innovative Central European partnerships should be used to share examples of how regions in transformation can develop into knowledge regions also at European level.
Agenda German-Polish-Czech Science Platform
Day 1, 8 October 2021
Central European Funding Advisors and Managers Networking Event (upon separate invitation by the Saxon State Ministry for Science, Culture and Tourism and ZEUSS EU-Service Saxony) Moderator: Wolfgang Kill, Head of Division, Saxon State Ministry for Science, Culture and Tourism, Free State of Saxony Conference language: English | |
| 09:30 – 10:00 | Arrival and registration of participants of the networking event |
| 10:00 – 12:00 | Networking event of funding advisors and managers according to separate agenda |
| 12:00 – 14:00 | Light lunch and optionally tour of the Gläserne Manufaktur (car production) |
Main programme: Science Platform part 1 Moderator: Alexandra Gerlach, journalist, Deutschlandradio Conference languages: German/ Polish/ Czech/ English | |
| 12:00 – 14:00 | Arrival and registration of participants of the Science Platform without prior participation in the networking event, light lunch and optionally tour of the Gläserne Manufaktur (car production) |
| 14:00 – 14:20 | Opening of the conference |
Welcome speeches Wolf-Dieter Lukas, State Secretary, German Federal Ministry of Education and Research | |
| Sebastian Gemkow, Saxon State Minister for Science, Culture and Tourism | |
| 14:20 – 15:20 | Roundtable: Border triangle Germany – Poland – Czech Republic: Historical developments and recent challenges |
Roundtable Oliver Schenk, Chief of the State Chancellery and State Minister, Saxon State Chancellery | |
| Wojciech Murdzek, Secretary of State, Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education | |
| Petr Očko, Deputy Minister, Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade | |
| Arndt Freytag von Loringhoven, Ambassador, German Embassy Warsaw | |
| Andreas Künne, Ambassador, German Embassy Prague | |
| 15:20 – 15:45 | Coffee break |
| 15:45– 16:30 | Plenary session: Regional innovation initiatives for Central Europe |
Keynote speeches with subsequent discussion "Research and innovation perspective with a view to the regional specifics in the border triangle" Welf-Guntram Drossel, Executive Director, Fraunhofer Institute for Machine Tools and Forming Technology IWU | |
"Best practice in cross border cooperation" Stefan Dziembowski, Head of Cryptography and Blockchain Lab, Copernicus Award 2020, University of Warsaw | |
"Building an AI ecosystem together" Vladimír Mařík, Scientific Director, Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and CyberneticsCzech (CIIRC) | |
| 16:30 – 16:45 | Break |
| 16.45 – 16:55 | Signing Ceremony |
Memorandum of Understanding in the field of industry 4.0 and artificial intelligence Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC): Vladimír Mařík (Scientific Director) German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI): Antonio Krüger Supporter: Wolf-Dieter Lukas (BMBF), Petr Očko ((Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade), Wolfgang Wahlster (DFKI) | |
| 17:00 – 18:30 | Strengthening regional innovation in Europe – Special challenges for the border triangle Germany – Poland – Czech Republic |
| 17:00 – 17:20 | Welcome speeches Anja Karliczek, Minister, German Federal Ministry of Education and Research |
| Michael Kretschmer, Minister-President, Free State of Saxony | |
| Wolfgang Schäuble, President, Bundestag (German Parliament) | |
| 17:20 – 18:30 | Political roundtable Anja Karliczek, Minister, German Federal Ministry for Education and Research |
| Michael Kretschmer, Minister-President, Free State of Saxony | |
| Wolfgang Schäuble, President, Bundestag (German Parliament) | |
| Mateusz Morawiecki, Prime Minister, Republic of Poland | |
| Petr Očko, Deputy Minister, Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade | |
| 18:30 - 21:00 | Joint dinner for all participants |
Day 2, 9 October 2021
Main programme: Science Platform part 2 Leading through the day: Frithjof Maennel, Deputy Director-General, German Federal Ministry of Education and Research Conference language: English | |||
| 08:30 – 09:00 | Arrival and registration of participants | ||
| 09:00 – 10:30 | Strengthening regional innovation in Europe – the border triangle as motor for a sustainable European energy supply – (Green) hydrogen for the future Moderator: Oda Keppler, Deputy Director-General, German Federal Ministry of Education and Research | ||
| 09:05 – 09:50 | 3 x 15 min Kick-off pitch Young scientists from Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic on "Green hydrogen as facilitator for industrial transformation and climate protection" | ||
| Philipp Hauser, Advisor Scientific Studies, VNG AG | |||
| Marek Skrzypkiewicz, Department of High Temperature Electrochemical Processes (HiTEP), Institute of Power Engineering, | |||
| Martin Prokop, University of Chemistry and Technology Prague | |||
| 09:50 – 10:30 | Panel discussion Young scientists in dialogue with stakeholders from Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic The young scientists interrogate the other experts: | ||
| Robert Schlögl, Max Planck Institute for Chemical Energy Conversion / Fritz-Haber-Institute | |||
| Mario Ragwitz, Fraunhofer Research Institution for Energy Infrastructures and Geothermal Systems IEG | |||
| Jakub Kupecki, Institute of Power Engineering, Center for Hydrogen Technologies (CTH2) | |||
| Petr Mervart, Plenipotentiary of the Minister of Industry and Trade for Hydrogen Technologies | |||
| Karel Bouzek, University of Chemistry and Technology Prague | |||
| 10:30 – 11:15 | The digital transformation in industrial production – Artificial Intelligence as a key enabler for future industry 4.0 applications Moderator: Herbert Zeisel, Deputy Director-General, German Federal Ministry of Education and Research | ||
Industrial AI from the perspective of science RICAIP – European Centre of Excellence for Advanced Industrial Production Wolfgang Wahlster, Chief Executive Adviser, German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) | |||
| Vladimír Mařík, Scientific Director, Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC) | |||
Industrial AI from the perspective of industry Uwe Wieland, Head of Software Development Center Dresden, Volkswagen AG | |||
| Petr Švarc, Head of AI Team, Škoda | |||
Signing ceremony Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to intensify cooperation between German and Czech research partners in the field of Industrial Artificial Intelligence (working title) Czech Institute of Informatics, Robotics and Cybernetics (CIIRC): Vladimír Mařík (Scientific Director) German Research Center for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI): Antonio Krüger, (Chief Executive Officer) Supporter: Wolf-Dieter Lukas (BMBF), Petr Očko (Czech Ministry of Industry and Trade), Wolfgang Wahlster (DFKI) | |||
| 11:15 – 11:30 | Break | ||
| 11:30 – 12:40 | Large international research infrastructures and research centres Moderator: Oda Keppler, Deputy Director-General, German Federal Ministry of Education and Research | ||
| German-Polish cooperation in multilateral large facilities – the example of FAIR | |||
| Paolo Giubellino, Scientific Director GSI/FAIR, FAIR - Facility for Antiproton and Ion Research in Europe GmbH | |||
| Alicja Nowakowska, Vice Chair of Administrative and Finance Committee FAIR, Jagiellonian University Krakow | |||
| Maciej Chorowski, Professor, Wrocław University of Science and Technology | |||
| CASUS – Centre for Advanced System Understanding | |||
| Sebastian M. Schmidt, Scientific Director, Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf | |||
| Eugeniusz Zych, Vice Rector Research, University of Wroclaw | |||
Signing ceremony Memorandum of Understanding Wrocław University: Przemysław Wiszewski (Rector) FAIR/GSI GmbH: Paolo Giubellino (Scientific Director), Ulrich Breuer (Administrative Director) Supporter: Wolf-Dieter Lukas (BMBF), Pradeep Ghosh (FAIR) | |||
Memorandum of Understanding FAIR/GSI GmbH: Paolo Giubellino (Administrative Director); Ulrich Breuer (Administrative Director) Wrocław University of Science and Technology: Maciej Chorowski (Professor) Supporter: Wolf-Dieter Lukas (BMBF), Pradeep Ghosh (FAIR) | |||
Memorandum of Understanding on the Framework for Cooperation in Areas of Common Interest in Science, Education and Technology Transfer Helmholtz-Zentrum Dresden-Rossendorf: Sebastian M. Schmidt (Scientific Director), Diana Stiller (Administrativ Director) Wrocław University: Przemysław Wiszewski (Rektor), Eugeniusz Zych (Vice-Rector for Research), Patrycja Matusz (Vice-Rector for International Projects and Relations) Supporter: Wolf-Dieter Lukas (BMBF) | |||
| 12:40-13:00 | Closing of the conference | ||
Wrap-up of day 2 and conclusions of the conference Frithjof A. Maennel, Deputy Director-General, German Federal Ministry of Education and Research | |||
| Light lunch for all participants | |||
Background
Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic look back on many years of successful cooperation in research and innovation. Various funding initiatives have been launched in the past to foster regional cooperation aimed at addressing challenges such as structural change, digital transformation and sustainable development as well as knowledge sharing in Central Europe.
A most recent example is the German-Polish funding programme on the “Digitization of the Economy” which is aimed at developing a joint and coordinated strategic innovation policy. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and start-ups are the key players in this context. Under the German-Czech funding programme to support research projects in the area of Industrie 4.0, funding is provided for collaborations between German and Czech SMEs that involve higher education institutions and non-university research institutions from both countries.
The Polish-German research centre CASUS, which is located in Görlitz, focuses on research on advanced systems. Its unique combination of an open centre for data-intensive and interdisciplinary systems research harbours enormous potential for scientific discovery and technological progress.