CoR Secretary-General Jiří Buriánek was a
member of a delegation who on 17 July informed EU Commissioner in charge of
space issues Elżbieta Bieńkowska about cross-border research cooperation on the
Zugspitze and the international activities of the Schneefernerhaus
environmental research station in Bavaria.
The scientific coordinator of the Environmental Research Station
Schneefernerhaus, Prof. Michael Bittner, informed about the international cooperation
and networking of sound research stations in the "Virtual Alpine
Observatory" (VAO). He reported on the tasks, goals and current research
projects.
The VAO is an association of eight sound research stations in the Alps. Through
the cooperation of the institutions scientific research, questions in the
system about atmosphere, biosphere, hydro and cryosphere are to be clarified.
Possible health effects of environmental influences are also investigated,
which would not be possible without this cross-border and interdisciplinary
cooperation.
In the discussion about possible cooperation in the future, Dr. Jiří Buriánek
presented the advantages of establishing a European Grouping for Territorial
Cooperation (EGTC). This instrument would allow the bundling of cross-border
management within the framework of a clearly developed strategic agenda and at
the same time constitute a focal point for synergistically usable EU funding
such as the EU Structural Funds on the one hand and EU Research Funds on the
other.
In addition, the CoR Secretary-General called for better connection of space
policy applications with EU infrastructure policy in energy, transport and
digital economy sectors.
The EGTC is an EU instrument established in 2006 with the aim of facilitating
and promoting cross-border, transnational and interregional cooperation. It is
composed of Member States, regional and local authorities and / or public law
bodies.
CoR
EGTC Monitoring Report 2017