On March 9-10, 2023, for the first time in Brussels the Science: Polish Perspectives Meetup was held! SPP Meetup Brussels was a joint initiative of the Polonium Foundation, Polish Science Contact Agency “PolSCA”, the Brussels Office of National Centre of Research and Development – Business & Science Poland, end the Embassy of the Republic of Poland to the Kingdom of Belgium. The organizers were united by the common goal of gathering representatives of the Polish scientific diaspora from the Benelux countries.
The event gathered mainly scientists working in Belgium, the Netherlands, Luxembourg, Poland, other European and non-European countries, such as Brazil. Among the speakers and participants we hosted also representatives of the European Commission, other EU institutions, business and diplomacy. In total, over 70 people from 7 countries took part in SPP Meetup Brussels! It was not only one of the largest Meetups organized by the Polonium Foundation so far, but also one that gathered an extremely multidisciplinary group of recipients. For a large part of the participants, it was the first event of the Polonium Foundation in which they participated on-site.
Our involvement in the co-organization of the first SPP MeetUp in Brussels was a natural decision, because events of this type not only support the national scientific community working in Poland, but above all, strengthen its network with Polish scientific diaspora – admitted Tomasz Poprawka, director of the PolSCA Office of the PAS in Brussels.
The main part of the conference was preceded by a networking evening at the Embassy of Poland to the Kingdom of Belgium, during which the participants were welcomed by the Ambassador, Mr Rafał Siemianowski. The main issues discussed during the scientific part of the event were the sustainability, green transformation, as well as the role of science in responsible shaping of EU policy. The keynote lecture entitled “Cutting through proteins links brain and mind” was delivered by prof. Leszek Kaczmarek from the Nencki Institute of Experimental Biology of the Polish Academy of Sciences (PAS).
The cooperation between science and business is a necessary catalyst for sustainable development, the future of Europe and the world: from understanding how individual body cells work to advanced energy technologies – said Małgorzata Gazda, Team Leader for Scientific Content at the Polonium Foundation.
The first thematic session focused on sustainable energy production and consumption. Participants could get to know the priorities of the European Commission in this area, learn more about the latest developments of wind technology, the challenges of energy transformation and citizen involvement with the example of Polish local communities. This session hosted the following speakers:
- Katarzyna Gryc – DG Energy, European Commission
- Malgosia Bartosik – WindEurope
- Aleksandra Zarzycka – Royal HaskoningDHV
- Weronika Radziszewska – PAS Institute of Fluid-Flow Machinery, PAS Institute of Systems Research Institute
The aim of the second session was to discuss the role of science and researchers in shaping EU, national and local legislation. Examples of various activities concerned e.g. the scientists’ influence on the decisions of policy makers e.g. regarding the pandemic, free public transport or the AI usage in the development of military equipment. The following speakers joined this session:
- Jacques Verraes – European Commission
- Katarzyna Jodko-Piórecka – Łukasiewicz Research Network
- Monika Maciejewska – the Vrije Universiteit Brussel
- Magdalena Pacholska – University of Amsterdam
- Prof. Krzysztof Pyrć – Jagiellonian University
On Saturday morning, some of the meeting participants visited the House of European History in Brussels, presenting the history of modern Europe, as well as the place where the famous photograph of the Solvay Conference was taken in 1927.
The Polonium Foundation has been running similar events since 2012. According to Aga Gawda, vice-president and CBO of the Polonium Foundation, holding such an event – for the first time in Brussels – brought many positive comments and satisfaction of the participants, which emphasizes the value of the Foundation’s mission and motivates its members to continue working.
The upcoming SPP Meetup will take place in June in Paris and will be held under the topic “Women in Science and Business”. On behalf of the Polonium Foundation we already cordially invite you to join it!
