EU-Russia Year of Science 2014

The purpose of the Year of Science was to showcase the multifaceted nature of cooperation between Europe and Russia in science, technology, higher education and innovation, to accentuate past achievements and to point towards future collaboration opportunities for mutual benefit. 

Logo des europäisch-russischen Wissenschaftsjahrs 2014

With more than 170 joint European-Russian events that took place all over Europe and Russia throughout the year, the Year of Science put into focus the diversity of links in research, innovation and higher education between the EU, its Member States and the Russian Federation. These events provided an opportunity for individual researchers, enterprises, laboratories, research and higher education institutions to present their scientific achievements as well as to submit their ideas for future projects to a broader public. As a result, many partnerships between European and Russian researchers were continued or newly established.

The Year of Science coincided with the parallel start of the new EU Framework Programme for Research and Innovation 'Horizon 2020' and the new Russian Federal Targeted Programme 'Research & Development in Priority Areas of Development of the Russian Scientific & Technological Complex 2014-2020'. Both programmes share the goal of increasing economic competitiveness by supporting forward-looking exploratory science and innovative market-oriented research, and offer numerous opportunities for reciprocal collaboration.

The events organised as part of the EU-Russia Year of Science served as a timely reminder that science and innovation are essential ingredients of any approach that seeks to address today's global societal challenges and demonstrated the important contribution international collaborative research and innovation can make towards solving them.