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Brussels, 06th October 2010
Turning Europe into a true Innovation Union
See also IP/10/1288
For the full text of the Innovation Union communication, please see here.
What is innovation?
There is no one single definition. But innovation as described in the Innovation Union plan broadly means change that speeds up and improves the way we conceive, develop, produce and access new products, industrial processes and services. Changes that create more jobs, improve people's lives and build greener and better societies.
What is the Innovation Union?
The Innovation Union is key to achieving the goals of the Europe 2020 Strategy for a smart, sustainable and inclusive economy. It aims to improve conditions and access to finance for research and innovation in Europe, to ensure that innovative ideas can be turned into products and services that create growth and jobs.
The Innovation Union focuses on major areas of concern for citizens such as climate change, energy efficiency and healthy living. It pursues a broad, balanced concept of innovation, both technological innovation leading to efficiency gains in production processes and improved performance of products and innovation in business models, design, branding and services that add value for users. It includes public sector and social innovation as well as commercial innovation. It aims to involve all actors and all regions in the innovation cycle.
The policies in the Innovation Union Plan aim to do three things: make Europe into a world-class science performer; revolutionize the way public and private sectors work together, notably through Innovation Partnerships; and remove bottlenecks – like expensive patenting, market fragmentation, slow standard setting and skill shortages - that currently prevent ideas getting quickly to market.
Why do we need the Innovation Union?
Boosting our research and innovation performance is the only way for Europe to support sustainable growth and create good and well-paid jobs that will withstand the pressures of globalization.
Currently Europe has many strengths but is in danger of lagging behind the US, while other countries are catching up fast (see annex).
We are spending 0.8% of GDP less than the US every year and 1.5% less than Japan in Research & Development (R&D). We have not yet achieved our target of investing 3% of GDP in research and innovation – instead the current rate is under 2%. Private sector R&D is increasingly outsourced to emerging economies and thousands of our best researchers and innovators have moved to countries where conditions are more favourable. Although the EU market is the largest in the world, it remains fragmented and insufficiently innovation-friendly. Too few of our innovative SMEs grow into large, globally successful companies. Other countries like China and South Korea are catching up fast.
What is there to gain from the Innovation Union?
Achieving our target of investing 3% of EU GDP on R&D by 2020 could create 3.7 million jobs and increase annual GDP by €795 billion by 20251. To be able to achieve the target, Europe would require at least one million more researchers in the next decade.
Of course, Europe can create many more jobs if all the other changes put forward in the Innovation Union Plan can also be put into practice.
What will the Innovation Union do that has not been tried before under the Lisbon Strategy?
This is the first time the European Commission has presented a comprehensive innovation strategy from research to retail. The Innovation Union is one of the seven flagship initiatives of the Europe 2020 Strategy which was agreed by Member States in June 2010 and which builds on the progress made under the Lisbon Strategy.
Its over thirty action points include groundbreaking proposals like the European Innovation Partnerships, to tackle major societal challenges and give the EU first-mover advantage in the markets of the future. The Partnerships are a new way of bringing together actors at EU, national and regional levels and of combining supply and demand-side tools for innovation (see below).
The Innovation Union also introduces the strategic use of public procurement budgets to finance innovation, a comprehensive Innovation Scoreboard based on 25 indicators, and a European knowledge market for patents and licensing.
It includes measures to reinforce successful existing initiatives like the Risk Sharing Finance Facility, which has attracted in stakeholder funding so far 15 times the combined Commission and EIB contribution of over a billion euro. Another central element is measures to revitalize and speed up efforts to build a European Research Area.
What are the main obstacles to innovation in Europe?
First, unfavorable framework conditions: private investment in research and innovation is being held back and ideas prevented from reaching the market by poor availability of finance, costly patenting, market fragmentation, outdated regulations and procedures, slow standard-setting and the failure to use public procurement strategically.
Second, fragmentation of effort: national and regional research and innovation systems are still working along separate tracks, which leads to costly duplication. By better pooling our efforts and focusing on excellence, and by creating a true European Research Area, the EU can enhance the quality of research and Europe's potential for major breakthroughs. And through Innovation Partnerships and other measures, the EU can rebuild broken links in the chain that links research with the market.
What is a European Innovation Partnership?
European Innovation Partnerships are a new approach to EU research and innovation. They will each tackle a specific societal challenge that is shared across the EU, and where there is a large new market potential for EU businesses.
The Partnerships will have clear and measurable goals, bringing important benefits for citizens and society as a whole before 2020. The Partnerships will bring together all relevant actors at EU, national and regional levels – across policy areas and industrial sectors - in order to: (i) step up research and development efforts; (ii) coordinate investments in demonstration and pilots; (iii) anticipate and fast-track any necessary regulation and standards; and (iv) mobilise demand in particular through better coordinated public procurement to ensure that any breakthroughs are quickly brought to market.
What will Innovation Partnerships make happen that does not happen now?
The Partnerships will create a strong political and commercial focus on specific final objectives and divide work towards those goals into smaller "work packages". They will have a governance framework (see below) which can make things happen and pool resources from EU, national and regional, public and private sources in way never possible before. This will make it easier to co-operate and achieve better and faster results compared to what happens now. They will streamline and simplify existing instruments and initiatives (e.g. Joint Programming of national research efforts, Joint Technology Initiatives) and complement with new actions where necessary. The Partnerships will integrate all initiatives into a single coherent policy framework as well as implementing new ideas, such as joint procurement schemes.
How will the Innovation Partnerships work concretely?
Each partnership will be led by a representative Steering Board chaired by the European Commissioner or Commissioners with lead portfolio responsibility for the policy area or areas concerned and supported by a secretariat which the Commission will provide. The Board will be composed of a limited number of high level representatives of Member States (Ministers), members of Parliament, industry leaders, researchers and other key stakeholders. The Board's first task will be to draw up a multi-annual strategic work plan, containing concrete targets, research and demand-side activities, assessing funding requirements, allocating responsibilities and defining milestones to monitor progress.
All stakeholders involved in a Partnership will be expected to contribute to its financing; the Commission will seek to leverage the EU budget to provide "seedcorn" funding.
What will be the first Innovation Partnership and when will it start?
The Commission proposes to launch a pilot project on active and healthy ageing by the beginning of 2011. Its aims should be, by 2020, to enable citizens to live longer independently in good health by increasing the average number of healthy life years by two. Achieving this target will improve the sustainability and efficiency of our social and healthcare systems and create an EU and global market for innovative products and services, with new opportunities for EU business.
Why active and healthy ageing?
The ageing of the population is a pressing societal challenge having significant social and economic implications. Looking ahead to the period between now and 2060, age-related expenditure is expected to increase to 4.75% of GDP on average in the EU. It is therefore critical to renew our commitment to expand the lifespan spent in activity and good health, as well as contribute to improving the sustainability of our welfare systems, through more efficient healthcare and long-term care spending.
As ageing of the European population is expected to have consequences across the whole of society, we need to bring together all relevant actors to tackle and use this momentum to its best.
How will you achieve and measure an increase by two years of more healthy life?
We will need to put in place better preventive measures, medical advances to combat chronic diseases, innovative and more integrated care systems, and develop and deploy innovative products and devices specifically aimed at elderly people.
To measure and monitor the development of healthy life years we will use the Healthy Life Years (HLY) indicator that is one of the European Structural Indicators. Given the differences between genders and Member States in baseline values for the HLYs, the EU HLY target should be complemented by national HLY targets for men and women, agreed by Member States.
What kind of solutions could this partnership help bring to the market?
The i2HOME project (http://www.i2home.org), was originally financed by the EU's 6th Framework Programme for Research and Development, and developed a simple platform allowing elderly people who become forgetful to control home appliances in a very simple and centralised way.
In practice, users are reminded to take medicines, close windows and turn the heating off, helped in their itineraries outside of the home and to control their energy consumption through a very intuitive interface, accessible through their TV set or mobile phone for example. This Universal Remote Control (URC) technology is now being integrated into mainstream products.
The partnership aims to shorten the time between the blue-sky research needed to develop these solutions in the first place and their integration in the daily life of individuals who want to benefit from them.
Why is there only one pilot, given the urgency? When will further Partnerships come forward?
Innovation Partnerships are a novel concept, which the Commission first wishes to test through a pilot partnership before launching a further set of partnerships. But it also intends to move fast.
There are a number of societal challenges identified in the Europe 2020 Strategy which European Innovation Partnerships can help tackle.
Active and Healthy Ageing was chosen as a pilot case because it involves a clear and balanced action plan for addressing a major societal challenges within the Europe 2020 strategy –one which affects every family and every citizen.
By the end of 2010, the Commission will develop a robust set of selection criteria and a rigorous and transparent selection process for future partnerships. These criteria and this selection process will be operational from January 2011. Based on this process, and the application of these criteria, and a confirmation of the readiness of the potential partnerships in areas such as energy, "smart cities", a sustainable supply of raw materials, water efficiency, smart mobility and agricultural productivity and sustainability, the Commission will from February 2011 onwards present the further proposals for partnerships to the other institutions.
How can governments invest in innovation at such a time of austerity?
The OECD and others have strongly urged governments to maintain and increase research and innovation investments even at difficult times, because these are pro-growth, anti-crisis investments. The Commission absolutely shares this position and the Innovation Union Communication makes that clear. Research and innovation investments will speed up economic recovery, create jobs and improve European competitiveness.
But the Innovation Union is not only about investing public money, it is above all meant to better use public money to release private sector investment and to put smarter regulation in place to drive innovation. Given the need for value for money, the Innovation Union aims to avoid costly duplication and overlap by pooling efforts and expertise on research and innovation.
What about the 3% R&D target?
Raising investment in R&D to 3% of the EU's GDP is one of the five priorities of the Europe 2020 Strategy. This target is for the EU as a whole and is based on 1% public investment (a target already met or nearly met in many MS) and 2% private investment (a target nowhere near met in most – the gap in private investment is about €100 billion).
The European Commission is currently, as agreed at the European Council in June 2010, working with each Member State bilaterally to finalise ambitious but realistic national targets. Member States will include those and initial indications of how to get there in their draft National Reform Programmes to be submitted mid-November 2010 - these will be firm commitments as part of Europe 2020 governance.
What is the role of education in the Innovation Union?
Excellence in education and skills development is essential to ensure that Europe has a sufficient supply of highly qualified workers. The Commission will support business-academia collaborations to develop new curricula addressing innovation skills gaps and promote e-skills for innovation and competitiveness. In 2011, it will present the results of a feasibility study to develop an independent, multi-dimensional international ranking system to benchmark university performance, which will allow the best performing European universities to be identified.
What does the Innovation Union propose for researchers' careers?
The Innovation Union recommends that, by the end of 2011, Member States put strategies in place to train enough researchers to meet their national R&D targets – this will require a million more researchers across Europe - and to promote attractive employment conditions in public research institutions.
Completing the European Research Area will also mean removing current obstacles to cross-border careers, notably difficulties in transferring pension and social security rights.
The Eighth Research Framework Programme – including Marie-Curie actions aimed at promoting mobility for promising researchers, and European Research Council grants for both experienced and younger top researchers to undertake specific frontier research work - will also be crucial to the Innovation Union and the role of the researchers within it.
Does the Innovation Union contain proposals for getting more women into science?
The Innovation Union prioritises a gender balance in research careers in the European Research Area framework. It recommends that Member States fully take gender and dual career considerations into account in their national R&D strategies.
What will be the role of the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT)?
By mid-2011, the European Institute of Innovation and Technology should set out a Strategic Innovation Agenda to expand its activities as a showcase for the Innovation Union. This should map out its long term development within the Innovation Union, including the creation of new Knowledge and Innovation Communities (KICs), close links with the private sector and a stronger role in entrepreneurship. It should also build on the EIT Foundation being set up in 2010 and on the introduction in 2011 of the "EIT degree" as an internationally recognised label of excellence.
(See also IP/09/1950)
How will the role of the European Research Council (ERC) be further developed? Will it get more money?
The ERC, launched by the Commission in 2007, has been a resounding success and will play a central role in FP8. Excellence in frontier research is a must. Many of the inventions we now take for granted and which have driven economic growth are the result of research that had no apparent immediate commercial purpose. The internet is the outstanding example. A greener and smarter economy and many other societal challenges also require knowledge and massive research breakthroughs.
Given that EU budget negotiations for the period post 2013 have not begun, it is impossible to speculate about the future size of any part of the EU budget, including the ERC's allocation. What is more the comprehensive review of FP7 and the ensuing public consultation on FP8 will not conclude until well into 2011.
But the Commission will sustain in the negotiations the view that research and innovation, central to the Europe 2020 Strategy agreed by the Member States, should be top budgetary priority.
Meanwhile, the ERC will continue to fine-tune its approach in line with the Innovation Union concept. For example, in order to strengthen its role in the innovation chain, from blue sky research to commercialisation, the ERC plans to launch next year a "proof of concept" funding option with the aim of covering a funding gap in the earliest stage of an innovation. ERC grant holders will be given the option to apply for additional funding to establish the innovation potential of ideas arising from their ERC-funded frontier research projects. They will be able to use the funding for activities such as technical validation, market research, clarifying IPR position and strategy or investigating commercial and business opportunities.
What is the role of the Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) in the Innovation Union?
In the JRC, the Commission possesses a valuable source of scientific expertise in areas relevant to many of the societal challenges that the Innovation Union will tackle. This will be exploited by providing scientific evidence to underpin policy choices. By reviewing scientific developments in particular areas and undertaking forward looking activities, the JRC will also highlight areas where policy responses are needed. The JRC will contribute to the implementation of innovation partnerships falling within its areas of competence and will further strengthen Europe's capacity to assess the impact of various research and innovation policies on jobs and growth.
Which role can regions play in increasing innovation potential?
The accompanying Commission Communication - 'Regional Policy contributing to smart growth in Europe 2020' - shows how EU regional funding is essential to achieve growth, by targeting investment in innovation in all regions. A key plank of this is to encourage national and regional governments to design 'smart specialisation strategies' to help regions identify their best assets. Concentrating resources on a limited number of priorities will ensure a more effective use of public funds and help to lever in higher levels of private investment.
How is the Innovation Union going to stop the brain drain?
The Innovation Union proposes that, by 2012, the European Union and its Member States put into place integrated policies to ensure that the best academics, researchers and innovators reside and work in Europe and to attract a sufficient number of highly skilled third country nationals to stay in Europe for limited periods of time, exploiting the possibilities under the Scientific Visa Package and the Blue Card Scheme.
Also, a key actor in tackling and reversing brain drain is the European Research Council, which aims to keep top talent in Europe as well as to attract to Europe first-rate researchers from anywhere in the world.
What do you mean by a European Research Area and what progress has been made towards it?
The creation of a European Research Area (ERA) was proposed by the European Commission in January 2000 to improve the coordination of research efforts across Europe and avoid costly overlaps and unnecessary duplication.
Progress has already been made in five main areas: human resources, research programmes, research infrastructures, knowledge transfer and international science & technology cooperation. But Europe's researchers, research institutions and funding agencies still face many legal and practical obstacles that prevent them from working and operating freely, particularly across borders. In 2012, the Commission will propose a European Research Area framework and supporting measures to remove these obstacles. The Innovation Union proposes to set the deadline of end 2014 for achieving a genuinely unified European Research Area in which all actors, both public and private, can operate freely, forge alliances and gather critical mass in order to compete and cooperate on a global scale.
What about research infrastructures?
Resources must be pooled to provide Europe with world-class infrastructures which enable ground-breaking research and innovation. The Innovation Union recommends that, by 2015, Member States together with the Commission have completed or launched the construction of 60% of the priority European research infrastructures currently identified by the European Strategy Forum for Research Infrastructures (ESFRI). (See IP/09//856)
How should the EU collaborate with the rest of the world in the research and innovation fields?
The Innovation Union proposes that the EU and the Member States treat scientific cooperation with third countries as an issue of common concern, and that, with their third country partners, they develop common approaches, notably on intellectual property protection and standardization. This should contribute to global approaches and solutions to societal challenges and to the establishment of a level-playing field. By 2012, agreement should also be reached with international partners on the development of research infrastructures which, given their cost/complexity, can only be developed on a global scale.
How will the Innovation Union be taken into account in EU programmes?
Future EU research and innovation programmes will focus on Europe 2020 objectives and particularly the Innovation Union. In 2011, the Commission will set out ways for future research and innovation programmes to focus more on societal challenges, streamline funding instruments, broaden access and radically simplify procedures through a better balance between a control-based and a trust-based system. There will be a full open consultation before the Commission comes forward in late 2011 with a formal legislative proposal for the Eighth Research Framework programme.
How will the Innovation Union enhance access to finance for innovative companies?
The Innovation Union aims to release private sector investment and proposes among other things to increase European venture capital investments which are currently a quarter the level of the US. Current EU schemes show that a contribution from the EU budget can leverage more than twenty times the amount of investment from private capital. The Commission proposes scaling up these successful schemes and creating a regime to allow cross-border Venture Capital Funds.
The Commission will strengthen cross-border matching of innovative firms with suitable investors. It will appoint a leading figure to lead the process. In addition, in the context of the SME Finance Forum, the Commission will focus inter alia on the particular financing problems faced by small, innovative companies.
How will the Innovation Union address the needs of European SMEs, many of which do not perform research?
Many of the measures announced in the Innovation Union will benefit European companies independently of their size, such as the measures aimed at improving the intellectual property regime in the EU and at modernising standard setting. Other measures are expected to benefit European SMEs in particular, such as the measures proposed to improve access to finance for innovation, to re-orientate public procurement in favour of innovation and to simplify future research and innovation funding programmes. Yet other measures aim at broadening the scope of European innovation policy beyond technological innovation, such as the European Design Leadership Board – aimed at better integrating design, user and non-technological aspects into innovation – and the Social Innovation Pilot.
What are the Risk-Sharing Finance Facility (RSFF) and the Competitiveness and Innovation Framework Programme (CIP)? What is their role in the Innovation Union?
The RSFF is a credit risk sharing scheme jointly set up by the Commission and the European Investment Bank (EIB) to improve access to debt financing for private companies or public institutions promoting R&D and innovation activities which can yield major public benefits but have a financial risk profile that may deter private investors unless there is public backing. It was set up by European Commission and European Investment Bank. To date, contributions for the RSFF of €430 million from the EU budget and €800 million from the EIB, as risk-sharing partners, have supported over € 18 billion in investments (15 times the combined contribution to the RSFF and 42 times the EU budget contribution).
The CIP financial instruments cover loan guarantees and venture capital, and are managed by the European Investment Fund (EIF) whose majority shareholder is the EIB. To date, the €400 million contribution to the CIP financial instruments up to the end of 2009 has leveraged investments of €9 billion (22 times the budget contribution), benefiting some 68000 SMEs.
What further role could the European Investment Bank (EIB) play in the Innovation Union?
Working with the EIB, the Commission proposes to scale up both the RSFF and the CIP. The Commission will also work on further proposals with the European Investment Bank Group, national financial intermediaries and private investors, for example to address investment in knowledge transfer and start ups and guarantee venture capital for fast growing firms expanding on EU and global markets.
Why is the creation of a single market for innovation so important?
The EU market is the largest in the world but the reality is too often one of fragmented national markets with costly procedures. The Innovation Union proposes to create a genuine single market for innovation which would attract innovative companies and businesses. To achieve this, several measures are proposed in the fields of patent protection, standardization, public procurement and smart regulation. An EU patent alone, on the lines proposed by the Commission already but so far not agreed by all Member States - would save innovative businesses an estimated €250 million.
What exactly does the Innovation Union propose regarding the EU Patent?
The Innovation Union recommends that the European Parliament and the Council should take the necessary steps to adopt the proposals on the EU Patent, including on the language regime, so that the first EU patents can be delivered in 2014.
How will the Innovation Union ensure that the exploitation of Intellectual Property Rights is growth and jobs-friendly?
Economic benefits flow from the exploitation of Intellectual Property Rights (IPRs, including patents, design and copyrights) in innovative products and services. The markets for trading IPRs need to become less opaque and fragmented so that IPR buyers and sellers can find each other efficiently, financial investments are made in IPR assets, and transactions take place on fair terms. By the end of 2011, the Commission will make proposals to develop a European knowledge market for patents and licensing. The Commission will also facilitate effective collaborative research and knowledge transfer and promote open access to the results of publicly funded research. make open access to publications the general principle for projects funded by the EU research Framework Programmes.
Why is slow standard setting currently a problem and what is the Innovation Union proposing to speed it up?
The development of common standards is essential. Today innovation cycles have become much shorter than the time it often takes to develop a European standard. These deficiencies have wide ramifications for the EU's position in global markets. The Commission will present by early 2011 a legislative proposal on standardisation. Its aim is to speed up standard-setting to enable interoperability and foster innovation in fast-moving global markets.
What is the role of public procurement?
Public procurement accounts for some 17% of the EU's GDP. It represents an important market for innovation, particularly in areas such as health, transport and energy. From 2011, Member States and regions should set aside dedicated budgets for pre-commercial procurements and public procurements of innovative products and services. This should create procurement markets across the EU starting from at least €10 billion a year for innovations that improve the efficiency and quality of public services. This refers to procurements of R&D services (pre-commercial procurement) and of new technologies and innovations as identified by the European Innovation Partnerships. The ambition will be to increase these levels over time towards the level in the US, which is around 50 billion dollars per year.
What about eco-innovation?
By early 2011, the Commission will propose an eco-innovation action plan, an example of smart regulation to drive innovation. Stricter environmental standards, for example CO2 emissions for cars, which provide future predictability, provide a major boost for eco-innovation.
How will the Innovation Union affect public services?
To meet the evolving needs and expectations of public service users against a backdrop of fiscal austerity, the public sector needs to innovate more than ever and is under pressure to provide "more for less". Starting in 2011, the Commission will support a substantial research programme on public sector and social innovation. As an immediate step, it will pilot a European Public Sector Innovation Scoreboard as a basis for further work to benchmark public sector innovation.
What is social innovation and its role in the Innovation Union?
Social innovation is about tapping into the ingenuity of charities, associations and social entrepreneurs to find new ways of meeting social needs which are not adequately met by the market or the public sector. It can help bring about the behavioural changes needed to tackle the major societal challenges, such as climate change. Social innovations empower people and create new social relationships and models of collaboration. They are thus innovative in themselves and good for society's capacity to innovate.
Examples of social innovation include citizen participation in public budget decisions, social networks to provide community-based support to the elderly and ethical financial products. In 2011, the Commission will contribute to scale up ongoing and new social innovation policies and programmes at EU level and in Member States, regions and municipalities. It will launch a European Social Innovation pilot which will provide expertise and a networked 'virtual hub' for social entrepreneurs and the public and non-governmental/voluntary sectors. The Innovation Union proposes that social innovation becomes a mainstream focus in the European Social Fund (ESF) programmes.
How will the social partners be involved in the Innovation Union?
As most innovation happens in the workplace, the role of both employers and workers will be central.
In particular, the Commission will consult the social partners to examine how the knowledge economy can be spread to all occupational levels and all sectors, including by encouraging "bottom up" employee-led innovation. It will ask the social partners for proposals on how to develop a sectoral labour market strategy for the "caring sector", which will continue to grow as populations get older.
Will the Innovation Union benefit all Member States?
Yes. The Innovation Union aims to involve all regions to avoid an "innovation divide" between the strongest innovating regions and the others. A better use of the Structural Funds (€86 billion for the period 2007-2013) will have a critical role to play. The Commission will propose a framework for post 2013 Structural Funds with more focus on innovation. Already starting in 2010, the Innovation Union proposes that Member States considerably increase and improve their use of existing structural funds for research & innovation projects, helping people to acquire the necessary skills, improving the performance of national systems and implementing smart specialization strategies and trans-national projects. Funding overlapping projects should be avoided.
What is Joint Programming and what is its role in the Innovation Union?
Joint Programming is the process whereby Member States engage on a voluntary basis in the definition, development and implementation of a common research agenda addressing today's major societal challenges such as climate change, energy supply, food supply or big diseases. The Innovation Partnerships will build on the experience of joint programming (gained for example in the first Joint Programming on neurodegenerative diseases) and better connect the research agenda to the innovation end of the chain, so that scientific progress can be translated more quickly into new products and services.
How will progress be measured?
Starting immediately, the Commission will monitor overall progress on innovation performance using an Innovation Union scoreboard bringing together 25 key indicators. This will allow much more in-depth and clearer comparisons than before.
These indicators are set out in the annex to the Innovation Union Communication. They are as comprehensive as is possible at this stage. But further work is needed to develop indicators on aspects such as non-technological innovation, design, service innovation, and performance at regional level.
What is more, the European Council requested the Commission to develop a new Innovation indicator, complementing the 3% of GDP target, that would be reliable, internationally comparable and cover all forms (technological and non-technological) of innovation. A high-level panel chaired by Professor Andreu Mas-Colell was set up to explore this and concluded that the best single indicator to meet the European Council's request would be the share of fast-growing innovative firms in the economy. However, it will take around two years to develop this indicator in full. The development of such an indicator would require the agreement of EU Member States to make available the necessary data and cooperation with the relevant international fora such as the OECD to ensure international comparability.
What does the Commission expect from the European Council?
The Commission expects the European Council to endorse its proposals for an Innovation Union at the first European Council meeting devoted to research and innovation in December 2010. In particular, the Commission will be calling on the Member States to endorse the concept of the European Innovation Partnerships and to approve the pilot project on active and healthy ageing.
The Commission brought out a communication on simplifying research funding in April - what has been done since then?
This communication on simplification (See IP/10/472) triggered a wide debate with Council, Parliament and many other stakeholders. There is consensus on several measures bringing quick progress, in particular on the financial management of projects. The Commission is determined to implement these short term measures in the coming months. More profound improvements require a decision by the Parliament and Council on the revision of the Financial Regulations proposed by the Commission. Those changes will be included in the Commission proposal for the Eighth Framework Programme.
What are the implications of the Innovation Union for FP8?
Through the Europe 2020 strategy and its Innovation Union flagship initiative, the political context for the EU's research and innovation policy has now been firmly set for the years to come. A strong focus on tackling societal challenges through more impact and innovation will be key to delivering on Europe 2020. In addition, this new policy context puts a strong emphasis on creating socio-economic impact through innovation. FP8 will need to be designed against this backdrop and be able to deliver more effectively than its predecessors on these aspects.
Annex – Key statistics
P. Zagamé, (2010) The cost of a non-innovative Europe, http://ec.europa.eu/research/social-sciences/policy-briefs-research-achievements_en.html
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text:
Good morning.
Nic here to share a card with you today using one of the fabulous new digital stamps by Dottie Gleason.
Here is the very sassy Cupcake Claire.
Isn`t she fabulous, I love her large eyes.
and a close up of the image which prints in greyscale so all the shading is there ready.
Thanks so much for looking, you can check out the all the other new images by Dottie Gleason HERE.
Have a wonderful day.
Hugs Nic.


text:
Jason Sardano
GIS Software Engineer
Oakland, ME
MS Spatial Information Science and Engineering, University of Maine
BS Marine Biology, University of New England
I work full time as a Senior Programmer Analyst for the Maine Department of Transportation, creating Geographic Information Systems (GIS) applications to assist the department in support of its mission. I also serve as a freelance GIS Software Engineer, and am currently writing a mobile version of the Arnold Arboretum's Collection Researcher application.
My interest in spatial technologies and my career path in GIS began with a course I took in remote sensing as an undergraduate. I have spent the last 12 years creating solutions for companies and organizations using the ESRI product suite. My programming experience includes C++, Java, C#, Visual Basic, PL/SQL, JavaScript, ActionScript, Perl, PHP and Python.
Professional Presentations
- Tremonte, D. and J. Sardano. Plants in the Arboretum Landscape: A Mobile Application Guide. Presented at the 2012 NEARC Conference, November 14, Rockland, ME. Google Doc


text:
New Browns coach Rob Chudzinski said last month that it would be "premature" to call Brandon Weeden the team's starting quarterback for the 2013 season, something that doesn't seem to have taken Weeden by surprise.
During an appearance in Oklahoma on Friday, Weeden said that he fully expects to have competition for the starting job in Cleveland. Weeden called it "fun" to compete to try to win a job and that he wouldn't be doing things any differently than Chudzinski and company if he were making the decisions for the franchise.
"I expect competition. That's the way professional sports are. Unless you're Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees or these guys, you might as well expect for somebody to try to come take your job," Weeden said, via the Associated Press. "We're talking about a multibillion-dollar corporation, essentially. There's going to be changes. Obviously, we've already seen some. But there's going to be competition. The guys that drafted me are no longer there, so I fully expect there to be competition. I would want competition. I want to go into camp and compete. If I had won 10 or 11 games last year, that may not be the case, but we weren't able to get that done."
Weeden said it was "exciting" to get a chance to play for Norv Turner and said that he's spoken to Troy Aikman about playing for Turner. It's hard to assess Weeden's chances of holding onto the starting job without knowing the identity of who his competition will be, but his attitude should benefit him in any battle for the job. The choice will be based on a lot more than attitude, of course, but Weeden's chances wouldn't be too good if he were pouting about the fact that the new regime wasn't sold on his abilities.


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Mime Amaya <3
Mime Amaya <3
hahaha who the hell requested the pauloxmelody one
sorry mousy
Ahhh I am just so in love with the Twilight Zone one! Probably cause that's all I've been watching the past two days
Ivwas curious. Then I saw dead Daisy and was sad. Then I saw a Death Note and grinned. And THEN I saw those fight!
TessxJessica. This intrigues me.
Fiiiiiiiiiiiiiii tink.... BOOM!
No more Molly for you Augustus! :p
nice! lol
I agree, Sandy. He does look like a little gremlin.
Where's his wrench, helmet, nose, and suit then?
the chaos ritual is so like in my story so il have to say this BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD
(Gnukko is in secret Tzeentch)
The top point on the pentagram should be pointing down.... I feel satanic for knowing this.
Abbey with a death note oO
Sandy is going to a new history LOST xD
And the others I'm not sure of all
That pagan ritual fills my heart with glee~
...is that her gastrointestinal tract?
First picture's not disturbing what so ever.... though I feel it does make sense.
Ya know what? Someone needs to make a BCB fighting game.
I vote that we stage a coup and make Gnukko the new dictator of this website!
Kind of creepy. I was watching that Twilight Zone episode a day ago.
Awww yeah, Mime Amaya versus Clown mike.
haha killed me the BCB Fight 3 part LOL
But DON'T U DARE KILLING SANDY!! >O
Abbey honestly reminds me of Raito <3
jajajajajajajajaja lol
lad you frighten me.
noooo! abbey gotta hold of death note, run for your lives!!!


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Release Details
Agency Highlights Dangers from Inexpensive, Inflatable Pools as Death Reports Rise
With Memorial Day weekend just around the corner, many consumers are preparing to open their pools for the season. As consumers get ready for summer fun, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) is warning about the increase in drowning deaths reported in inexpensive, inflatable pools, and again reminding parents and caregivers to take critical steps that will help protect children from drowning hazards in all types of pools.
CPSC reports there are about 280 drowning deaths of children younger than 5 each year in swimming pools, and an estimated 2,100 children were treated in hospital emergency rooms for pool submersion injuries in 2005 – mostly in residential pools.
CPSC has reports of 17 drowning deaths involving inflatable pools in 2005, up from nine in 2004 and 10 in 2003. Small inflatable pools, about 2-feet deep, can cost as little as $50, and larger pools, up to 4-feet deep and 18-feet wide, can cost under $200. These pools often fall outside of local building codes that require barriers, and may often be purchased by consumers without considering the barriers necessary to help protect young children from the dangers of pools.
CPSC staff is working with the voluntary standards group ASTM International, consumer safety groups, retailers and inflatable pool manufacturers to develop safety standards for these products. Some local jurisdictions already require barriers for larger inflatable pools. For example, the state of New York requires fencing around any pool that is at least 2-feet deep.
"Parents need to understand any pool poses a drowning risk," CPSC Chairman Hal Stratton said. "Consider the danger of water before investing in an inflatable pool."
To reduce the risk of drowning, CPSC recommends layers of protection, including barriers, such as a fence with self-closing, self-latching gates completely surrounding pools to prevent unsupervised access by young children. If the house forms a side of the barrier, use alarms on doors leading to the pool area or a power safety cover over the pool.
It is important to always be prepared for an emergency by having rescue equipment and a phone near the pool. Also, all parents should learn cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR).
"No one layer of protection is foolproof to prevent drowning in pools," said Stratton. "Use as many layers of protection as possible. Multiple barriers and constant supervision are essential to protecting children."
Many drowning deaths occur when young children are not expected to be near the pool area. In a CPSC study, almost 70 percent of the victims were last seen in the house or nearby on a porch or in the yard before the incident. Drowning can occur in the few minutes it takes to answer the phone. About 77 percent of the victims had been missing for 5 minutes or less when they were found. Precious time is often wasted looking for missing children anywhere but in the pool. Since every second counts, always look for a missing child in the pool first.
Parents may think that if their child falls in the water, they will hear lots of splashing and screaming, and that they will be able to come to the rescue. Many times, however, children slip under the water silently. Even people near the pool report hearing nothing out of the ordinary.
For more information about drowning prevention, read CPSC's Swimming Pool Safety Alert, Safety Barrier Guidelines for Pools and How to Plan for the Unexpected (all items PDF).
Also, CPSC recently updated its Guidelines for Entrapment Hazards: Making Pools and Spas Safer, which gives information on reducing drain entrapment dangers. CPSC recommends having a professional inspect pools and spas for entrapment hazards, and making sure appropriate drain covers are in place. The publication also identifies other important alternatives for addressing entrapment hazards in new and existing pools.
Copies of all these free publications can be obtained by going to CPSC's Web site at www.cpsc.gov, or by calling CPSC's Hotline at (800) 638-2772.
The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission is charged with protecting the public from unreasonable risks of injury or death associated with the use of thousands of types of consumer products under the agency's jurisdiction. Deaths, injuries, and property damage from consumer product incidents cost the nation more than $1 trillion annually. CPSC is committed to protecting consumers and families from products that pose a fire, electrical, chemical or mechanical hazard. CPSC's work to help ensure the safety of consumer products - such as toys, cribs, power tools, cigarette lighters and household chemicals -– contributed to a decline in the rate of deaths and injuries associated with consumer products over the past 40 years.
Federal law bars any person from selling products subject to a publicly-announced voluntary recall by a manufacturer or a mandatory recall ordered by the Commission.
To report a dangerous product or a product-related injury go online to www.SaferProducts.gov or call CPSC's Hotline at 800-638-2772 or teletypewriter at 301-595-7054 for the hearing impaired. Consumers can obtain news release and recall information at www.cpsc.gov, on Twitter @USCPSC or by subscribing to CPSC's free e-mail newsletters.
Please use the below phone number for all media requests.
Phone: (301) 504-7908
Spanish: (301) 504-7800


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Category: Productivity
Release: December 11. 2012
Language: English, Bokmål, Norwegian, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Portuguese, Russian, Spanish
OS: iOS 5.0 or later
Price : $9.99
The agenda that fits in the palm of your hand!
reviously only available for the iPad, the iPlan planner app that adapts to your lifestyle can now also be enjoyed on the iPhone.
★Recognition for iPlan for iPad
One day after the app was released, it jumped to the number one spot in the app stores in thirteen countries
Ranked in the top fifty in more than 40 countries
Winner in the Mobile Favorite Website Awards
iPlan for iPad, the preferred choice of users around the world, is now available on the iPhone.
Sophisticated, attractive design
The simple layout conceals tons of functions
Plenty of options for customizing the app, including by country and language
A multimedia agenda with famous quotes, weather info, and social media
The only thing that's gotten smaller is the size!
A Smarter Way to Live
■Sync with Google calendar and Google tasks
With iPlan, you can keep track of your schedule and stay on top of your tasks wherever you are.
Plus, since iPlan allows you to create events for its internal calendar, it's easy to sort your calendar depending on what kind of event it is.
You can view your events, tasks, and diary in list format on every screen.
No complicated set up is required – just tap the "iPlan" icon at the top of the screen.
There's also a helpful search function that makes it a snap to find the event you're looking for. You can also define the scope of your search.
■Weather information
Using your location information (choose whether the app accesses this automatically or asks you for manual input), the app brings up the weather forecast for the next week and displays it in your calendar.
Being able to see what the weather will be as you are making an event simplifies the planning process.
A Unique Experience for Every User
Choose from among seven different themes. You can choose pastel tones, which can be used for a long time without adding strain to your eyes.
■Localized for a Variety of Countries
iPlan supports eleven different languages so you can use the app to put style in your lifestyle wherever you may be. In addition, the app also allows you to view week numbers in both American and European formats. Want to subscribe to a holiday calendar for your country? Just a few clicks and it's done.
■Plenty of Set Up Options
Users can set up iPlan just the way they like it: choose the day each week begins, the color of the calendar, the default screen, whether to display weekends, whether to display your working hours, whether to show 24-hour time or 12-hour time, the format for displaying dates, and more. There's also a way to customize alarms and even add recurring events, a function not provided on other calendars. Additionally, you can choose from a variety of ways to receive event notifications.
Share with Others
■ Diary
You can add photos to your diary entries and post them on Twitter, Facebook, Evernote, and Tumblr.
■ Send Events on Email
You can send the information that appears in your calendar events as an email. This can be used not only as an event invitation but for a variety of purposes.
We have kept improving iPlan with the help of 100,000 users around the world just like you.
iPlan is designed to reflect the way you live, and we are excited to hear your feedback on this product. If there is anything you are curious about or would like to suggest for future updates, feel free to get in touch with us.
iPlan is here to give your everyday life convenience and style.


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Situated on the beautiful island of Borneo, Sabah is one of the thirteen states which Malaysia is made of. Sabah is the second largest state in Malaysia and shares the island of Borneo with Sarawak, Brunei, and Indonesian Kalimantan.
Sabah is richly blessed with nature diversity, unique cultures, fun adventure, beautiful beaches, and fantastic cuisines for the adventurous taste buds. We have it all, from the world's largest flower - the Rafflesia, one of the highest mountains in South East Asia - Mount Kinabalu, to one of the world's top dive sites - Sipadan Island. Sabah is also known for her great natural treasures which include the world-renowned Danum Valley Conservation Area and Tabin which is Sabah's largest wildlife reserve.
Not only will you be amazed by the places to see and things to do here, you will also be treated with unique Sabahan hospitality. Explore the unique culture and tradition of Sabah and get ready to experience sweet memories to last a lifetime!
Borneo Island
Borneo is the third largest island in the world and is located at the centre of the Maritime Southeast Asia. This island is divided between Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei.
Nevertheless, for people outside of Indonesia, "Kalimantan" refers to the area which is occupied by Indonesia on the island of Borneo. Malaysia's region of Borneo is called East Malaysia or Malaysian Borneo. The independent nation of Brunei occupies the remainder of the island, being the wealthiest of the rest.
Once known as North Borneo, Sabah was under the British colony during the late 19th century till the early 20th century. Sabah gained self-government on the 31st of August, 1963. Sabah, together with Malaya, Singapore and Sarawak formed the Federation of Malaysia on the 16th of September 1963. At 76, 115 square kilometers large, Sabah is the second biggest state in Malaysia after Sarawak.
People and Culture
The people of Sabah are known as Sabahans. Sabah is the third most populous state in Malaysia after Selangor and Johor; it also has one of the highest population growth rates in the country.
There are currently 32 officially recognized ethnic groups in Sabah with the largest non-indigenous ethnic group being the Chinese and the largest indigenous group being the Kadazan-Dusun people. Two other larger ethnic groups in Sabah are the Bajau and Murut, compared to other states in the country; Sabah has relatively very small population of Indians and South Asians.
Apart from the Sabahans' very own diverse mother tongues, Bahasa Malaysia (national language) and English is widely spoken; Mandarin and some Chinese dialects are also widely spoken.
In Sabah, we greet people by saying "selamat datang" (welcome) and/or "terima kasih" (thank you) with a smile. Due to religious reasons, some may prefer not to have physical contact with others. However, a handshake is generally acceptable as a way of introducing oneself.
It's customary to remove shoes before entering a mosque as well as homes. In places of worship, visitors are required to dress modestly. Nude sunbathing is not allowed and is very frowned upon. Avoid pointing your index finger at others, as this is considered rude in the local custom.


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Farminizer Functionality
This is where you select the render engine to use for your render job. The default is the render engine set in your 3D application. Only Videopost (3D Studio Max) cannot be automatically recognized, and needs to be set manually.
Smartcheck / Send to Manager
Smartcheck and send to the manager which checks the scene for compatibility to the RebusFarm, ensuring error-free rendering. Smartcheck is a cut-down version of sending to the manager which does the compatibility check without sending the scene to the manager. To make things faster, Smartcheck doesn't check the textures.


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The season 3 shield wall has been added to PTR. It's pretty nice, but will fall into the category of items requiring an 1850 Personal Arena Rating. Good luck to any Prot warr not willing to respec out to PVP to get a chance to snag this puppy =)
Vengeful Gladiator's Shield Wall
October 29, 2007 By


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Discussion of Motorsports events taking place on a track or road course - Nissan related racing from IRL, BTCC, and JGTC to your local AutoX and Club Racing events.
Use this control to limit the display of threads to those newer than the specified time frame.
Allows you to choose the data by which the thread list will be sorted.
Order threads in...
Note: when sorting by date, 'descending order' will show the newest results first.
Forum Rules


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Wii U's Off to a Wobbly Start
Nov 20, 2012 10:26 AM PT
The Wii U's launch has not been without its bumps in the road, to put it kindly. There were reports of users waiting hours to download and install a very large -- said to be 5 GB -- mandatory firmware update. For some, the wait seemed endless, and they powered off the system before the download was complete. When they powered on again, some found their consoles bricked.
Users took to Twitter to warn against turning off the Wii U during the hours-long update.
"Wii U has stopped functioning before I managed to play a single game. I tried to stop an interminable software update and now... nothing," tweeted Los Angeles Times reporter Ben Fritz.
Now he's looking to sell a "big black paperweight."
Limited Storage
Another complaint has been storage: The basic model has just 8 GB -- not enough to support some of the more popular games. Another frustration is that several multimedia features are missing, including Nintendo's TVii service, Amazon Instant Video and Hulu Plus. Presumably users will have additional major download processes in store when they become available.
For all that, the Wii U has largely sold out around the U.S. Now the new worry is that the device may be in short supply for the holiday season.
First Impressions
The Wii U's tech issues have not led to universal condemnation. Its drawbacks are tempered by some decided pluses. For example, a teardown by iFixit left a favorable impression with readers. It appears the Wii U will be easy for the reasonably tech-savvy to repair themselves.
Still, the early glitches have marred the Wii U's introduction to the market.
"Whenever a new product has a major launch, it needs to be perfect," Charles King, principal with Pund-IT, told TechNewsWorld.
"That is especially true in this case since this is the first major Wii product that has launched in the last six years and the only major gaming launch for this holiday season," he said.
Granted, it might be reasonable to expect a certain amount of consumer frustration or confusion with any new device, King acknowledged. "That said, the last thing a consumer tech vendor wants is for customers to open a box, start to download firmware, and then have to twiddle their thumbs for hours."
It's not just unfortunate, King said, but also inexcusable.
Nintendo has warned consumers not to power down the Wii U during the download process. Users on Nintendo's tech forums are advising others to call Nintendo's customer service to set up a repair call if the device becomes bricked.
Nintendo did not respond to our request to comment for this story.


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In a recent conversation on free will and determinism some confusion (disagreement) arose over the contention that the descriptions of systems and their behaviors being "deterministic" and "random" were a complete cover of the possibilities. This is not the case. Emergent behavior is described as one way to conceptualized the set missing possibilities.
Emergent behavior lately has been described in two ways, "strong" and "weak" emergence. The distinction is claimed in that weak emergence behavioral patterns are derivable (or at least highly suggestible) from local interactions. Two examples of that might be Brownian motion and the ideal gas law. Brownian motion describes the motion of large objects in a bath of small particles. These large particles "dance" and move about. Their speed and travel is determined by the temperature and the relative dimensions and densities of the particles in question. Considered as an aggregate the distance traveled in a set time and the distribution of those distances is quite regular (hence determined). However, exact details of the actual position and travel of a given particle is indeterminate. This hierarchy of regimes is a feature of all systems described to have emergent behavior. Similarly the ideal gas law which we all recall from High School, PV = nRT, where P is pressure, V is volume, n is a number of atoms, and T is a temperature (in absolute scale). This can be derived by using equilibrium statistical physics methods. It is deterministic, but the motion of the atoms in the bath which is being described cannot be described deterministically. Here in one hierarchy you have randomness and at another layer, determinism.
Strong emergent behavior:
Laughlin belongs to a). In his book, he explains that for many particle systems, nothing can be calculated exactly from the microscopic equations, and that macroscopic systems are characterised by broken symmetry: the symmetry present in the microscopic equations is not present in the macroscopic system, due to phase transitions. As a result, these macroscopic systems are described in their own terminology, and have properties that do not depend on many microscopic details. This does not mean that the microscopic interactions are irrelevant, but simply that you do not see them anymore – you only see a renormalized effect of them. Laughlin is a pragmatic theoretical physicist: if you cannot, possibly ever, calculate the broken symmetry macroscopic properties from the microscopic equations, then what is the point of talking about reducibility?
Two examples of this might be, from biology, the behavior of termites (drawn from Gazinaga's book on the brain and free will) in which local rules driving the action of termites when the population and health of a colony passes a certain threshold, the underground colonies suddenly alter their behavior to the large cemented/clay towers seen in southern Africa. Another example might be schooling behavior of fish and flocking by birds. Local simple rules governing speed and direction when a size threshold is reached suddenly change the behavior from individually driven to schools or flocks. And while (like with Brownian motion) some general characteristics of the school/flock might be imagined to be derivable, the direction and course of that flock is not (which akin to not being able to predict the direction and distance that a individual large particle travels in a set time period).
So in general we see a hierarchy of regimes in which a lower random bath can give rise to very regular behavior at a large level. When that emergent behavior is a computational network or like the brain large collections of such networks… then things can get interesting and at that point you are well in this unknown not-derministic/not-random world.


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Working Lands Enterprise Board Announces over $1 million in Available Grant Funds
The Working Lands Enterprise Initiative, (Act 142), is administered by the Agency of Agriculture, Food and Markets, in partnership with the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation and the Vermont Agency of Commerce and Community Development. The Working Lands funds are administered by the Vermont Working Lands Enterprise Board (WLEB), an impact investment organization whose mission is to grow the economies, cultures, and communities of Vermont's working landscape by making essential, catalytic investments in critical leverage points of the Vermont farm and forest economy, from individual enterprises to industry sectors.
"The Working Lands Enterprise Initiative allows for a targeted investment into the businesses and organizations who are working hard to advance our farm, forestry, and forest products sectors," said Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets Secretary Chuck Ross. "This is a historic initiative, capturing Vermont's culture, character, and community."
"The working landscape is the foundation of several of our most important economic sectors: fundamental to agriculture, forest products, stone and minerals, and renewable energy, and also to our tourism economy," said Agency of Commerce and Community Development Secretary Lawrence Miller. "Interacting with the land in work and in recreation is a critical part of our culture."
"Vermont's forests provide significant contributions to our economy and well-being," said Department of Forests, Parks & Recreation Commissioner Michael Snyder. "When we invest in support services and capital and infrastructure for working forests and forest products enterprises, this pillar of our economy grows stronger and we bolster both Vermont's character and integrity."
The WLEB announces the availability of over $1 million in grant funds for investment into farm, food systems, forestry, and forest products enterprises. Applicant Information Sessions are scheduled for November 4th, 5th, and 6th. Details can be found at http://workinglands.vermont.gov/webinar. Working Lands funds are available in three investment areas:
1. Agriculture, Forestry & Forest Products: Enterprise Investments - $3,000 - $20,000
Applicant Informational Sessions: November 5th and 6th, 4:30pm-6pm
Investment areas may include infrastructure, marketing, market development, business development and technical assistance to meet a need not already filled by existing programs.
2. Agriculture, Forestry & Forest Products: Working Lands Service Provider Grants - $10,000 - $150,000
Applicant Informational Session: November 4th, 4:30pm - 6pm
Grants are available for service providers to provide the following types of technical assistance:
- Production training
- Process improvements
- Needs assessments/studies of baseline data critical to sector development
- Professional and organizational development services
- Product research services
- Marketing assistance/market development
- Business development
- Financial planning
- Access to capital
- Regulatory assistance and training
- Addressing workforce development need
3. Agriculture, Forestry & Forest Products: Capital and Infrastructure Investments - $15,000 - $75,000
Applicant Informational Sessions: November 5th and 6th, 4:30pm - 6pm
Eligible activities include specialized personnel, access to land (acquisition or easements); building and equipment costs (e.g., processing, storage, distribution); long-term working capital, information technology; farm or forest based renewable energy business expansion; and other collaborative ventures that build capacity within the supply chain, open new markets, and/or create a replicable, innovative model.
Since WLEB began operations in August 2012, over 400 applications were received requesting over $12 million in funds. The WLEB granted over $1 million in 2013. At least $750,000 in public, private, or non-profit funds are being leveraged as a result of these projects:
- Twenty Enterprise grant recipients: 14 in agriculture and 6 in forestry were awarded $220,000. Enterprise grants ranged from $3,000 - $15,000.
- Eight Service Provider grant recipients: 6 in agriculture and 2 in forestry, for a total of $369,802. Service Provider grants ranged from $10,000 - $100,000.
- Eight Capital & Infrastructure grant recipients: 4 each in agriculture and forestry, for a total of $411,522. Capital and Infrastructure grants ranged from $15,000 - $100,000.
Applicant Information Sessions will be hosted at the following locations:
Nov 4th, 4:30pm - 6pm:
- Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets, Montpelier
Nov 5th, 4:30pm - 6pm:
- Rutland Area Farm and Food Link (RAFFL), Rutland
- Northeastern Vermont Development Association, St. Johnsbury
- Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets, Montpelier
Nov 6th, 4:30pm- 6pm:
- Brattleboro Development Corporation, Brattleboro
- Vermont Agency of Agriculture, Food & Markets, Montpelier
To access Applicant Information Sessions by webinar and for location details - http://workinglands.vermont.gov/webinar
To access our Working Lands Applicant Guides - http://workinglands.vermont.gov/apply/rfp


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Beyond the Classroom
Learning at Thomas Aquinas College is geared toward the education of the whole person, and as such it is not limited to the confines of the classroom. The Socratic discussions that begin in class spill into the dining commons, the quad, and the residence halls. Concerts and lectures are held on campus throughout the year. The Faith, which informs all classroom learning, manifests itself in every other facet of campus living as well, from daily Mass and adoration to evening rosary and processions. Students can also refresh their minds, their bodies, and their souls through a number of extracurricular activities.
Chief among these are the College's music, theater, and sports programs, but there are others as well. The College employs two student athletic directors, who organize the intramural sports schedule throughout the year, and two student activity directors who organize on-campus events, including dances, open-mic nights, movies, food drives, and retreats. There are also various student-run organizations such as the de Tocqueville Society (politics), the Pre-Medical Society, a pro-life group, and the Legion of Mary.
The life of the College, however, extends not only beyond the classroom, but beyond the campus. Students have the great blessing of living in Southern California with its beaches, mountains, and more. Because the College borders the Los Padres National Forest, hiking is a popular activity, as are outings to the ocean, Santa Barbara, and the finer cultural offerings of Los Angeles.
In addition to studying and prayer, there is always something to do at Thomas Aquinas College — something worthwhile, something fulfilling, and something geared toward ever-greater spiritual and intellectual growth. Here beauty, goodness, and truth are truly one.