Pielke's Perspective: The Future of Science Advice in Europe

The Future of Science Advice in Europe

Last month, when the European Space Agency’s Rosetta mission orbited comet 67P (Churyumov–Gerasimenko) and deployed its Philae landing module, it was a triumph for collaborative science and technology in the EU. But on the same day, the European Commission (EC) and its newly elected president, Jean-Claude Juncker, announced that it would be getting rid of the office of chief scientific advisor (CSA). That meant that Anne Glover was the first and, for now, the last chief scientific advisor to the president of the EC.

The stark contrast between the technological achievement in space exploration and the bureaucratic wrangling down below did not go unnoticed. James Wilsdon of the University of Sussex observed: “The European Commission chose the evening before the Rosetta landing to confirm quietly that its most senior scientific role, that of chief scientific adviser (CSA) to its president, is being scrapped.” Now that the dust has settled a bit, what does the termination of the Commission’s CSA signify for the future of science advice in Europe?

Epitaphs written in the aftermath of Juncker’s decision to eliminate the CSA often elevated the office to a status that it never had in its short existence under Juan Manuel Barroso. For instance, Sir Paul Nurse, president of the Royal Society commented: “This appears to be a very backward step by the new Commission, having only made the enlightened decision to raise the profile of scientific advice three years ago.” Professor Dermot Kelleher, president of the European Academies of Medicine, lamented that the Commission’s CSA office “was key in catalyzing scientific advice from across the spectrum, to inform the work of the European Commission in formulating sound policies for Europe.”

The reality of Anne Glover’s role in the Commission over the past three years was far more prosaic than these comments would suggest. Last August, at a conference in Auckland on global scientific advice organized by Sir Peter Gluckman, chief scientist to the New Zealand government, Glover gave a candid and revealing talk on her experiences as the Commission’s CSA. It was a remarkable talk, as I noted at the time. Slides from her talk, “1000 Days in the Life of a Science Advisor,” have been downloaded more than 6,000 times (available here). ...

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