SCIENCE EUROPE - Key Persons
Job Titles:
- Director General of the Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding of Romania ( UEFISCDI )
Adrian Curaj
Director General of the Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding of Romania (UEFISCDI)
Adrian Curaj is Director General of the Executive Agency for Higher Education, Research, Development and Innovation Funding of Romania (UEFISCDI). He is also the head of the UNESCO Chair on Science and Innovation Policies at the National University of Political Studies and Public Administration, as well as professor at the Politehnica University of Bucharest. He has worked as a consultant for the World Bank, UNESCO, UNIDO, ETF, and European Commission for studies in Tertiary Education, Science and Innovation, Foresight, and Smart Specialisation. He is a member of the Board of Directors of the US Fulbright Commission in Romania, and a fellow of the World Academy of Art & Science. He is also a former minister of education, science, and innovation.
Job Titles:
- Senior Policy Officer in Charge of Dossiers Related to the European Research Area
Adrien Braem is the Senior Policy Officer in charge of dossiers related to the European Research Area and Science Europe's activities related legal matters and to Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion. As a law graduate specialising in EU law and policy, he has worked for several organisations in research policy, public health, international co-operation, and human rights.
Alexander Halksworth joined Science Europe as Communications Officer in September 2023. He has previously worked in a similar role for ELIXIR Belgium, an intergovernmental organisation supporting life science research infrastructure. Alexander holds a Master of Arts in Philosophy of Natural Science from Leiden University, and a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Manchester.
Job Titles:
- Director of the National Institute for Nuclear Physics ( INFN ) Italy
- Professor in Physics at the University of Roma Tor Vergata
Anna Di Ciaccio is a full professor in physics at the University of Roma Tor Vergata and a member of the Executive Committee of the European Physical Society. She is involved in research in experimental particle physics with the ATLAS experiment at CERN. She has previously worked at the University of Freiburg, at Harvard University, and at the Brookhaven National Laboratory in the USA. She is a member of the Equal Opportunity Committee of the Italian Society of Physics. She was selected for the 100 Women Against Stereotypes project, an online platform collecting 100 names and CVs of female experts in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics), a sector historically underrepresented by women.
Artemis Rodopoulou has been working in Science Europe since 2012 and is the Office Manager since January 2020. She is responsible for the good financial management of the organisation and provides support to Human Resource matters. Educated and trained in Human Resource Management (MA) and Business Administration (BA), she has held various positions in the private sector and the European Commission.
Job Titles:
- President of the Austrian Science Fund FWF
Christof Gattringer is the president of the Austrian Science Fund FWF and Professor for Theoretical Physics at the University of Graz (currently on leave of absence). Previously he has served as Vice Rector of Research and Career Development and as Dean of the Faculty of Natural Sciences at Graz University. The academic career of Christof initiated with a PhD at the Werner Heisenberg Max-Planck-Institute in Munich, with subsequent PostDoc appointments at UBC Vancouver, the MIT in Boston and the University of Regensburg, as well as a sabbatical at the University of Washington in Seattle.
Job Titles:
- Executive Chair of the Arts and Humanities Research Council, UK Research and Innovation ( UKRI )
- Professor
Professor Christopher Smith is the International Champion for UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and Executive Chair of the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC). He has been Professor of Ancient History at the University of St Andrews since 2002, and he was also Vice-Principal (2007-2009), before being seconded as Director of the British School at Rome, the UK's leading humanities and creative arts research institute overseas, from 2009 to 2017.
He is the author or editor of over 20 books from textual editions to museum studies. He is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Edinburgh and a Member of the Academia Europaea.
Dr Bregt Saenen joined Science Europe as Senior Policy Officer in November 2021. He has previously worked for several membership and policy organisations, including the European University Association, DG EMPL of the European Commission, SOLIDAR and the EU office of the International Labour Organization. Bregt has a Doctorate in EU Studies from Ghent University in Belgium and was a visiting researcher at New York University. He also has a Master of Science in EU Studies from Ghent University, as well as a Master and Bachelor of Arts in History.
Diana Potjomkina joined Science Europe in September 2023 as a Senior Policy Officer for the Green Transition. She has previously held various advocacy, teaching, research and project management roles with NGOs, universities and think tanks in Latvia and in Belgium. Most recently, Diana worked for the Brussels office of the University of Cambridge Institute for Sustainability Leadership as a project manager focusing on industry decarbonisation, circular economy and the Green Growth Partnership; and for CECOP/CICOPA as an advocacy co-ordinator dealing with social economy and green and digital transition.
Diana holds a joint PhD degree in Political Science - EU Studies from the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and Ghent University in Belgium, with dissertation dedicated to stakeholder involvement in the framework of trade and sustainable development chapters in the EU's free trade agreements. She has also been a Fulbright Visiting Student Researcher at the George Mason University in Arlington, VA, US.
Dr James Morris is a Senior Policy Officer at Science Europe working broadly on the topics of Research Culture, Research Assessment, and Research Infrastructures. He joined Science Europe in 2019 and has a background in marine and molecular biology and a strong interest in science communication. Before joining Science Europe he was a Marie Skłodowska-Curie Actions post-doctoral fellow at the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences. He holds a PhD in Molecular Biology by the University of Southampton, UK.
Dr Lidia Borrell-Damián has been Secretary General of Science Europe since 2019. Previously, she worked at the European University Association, where she was Director for Research and Innovation. Her areas of expertise cover a wide range of European and global R&I policies, including business R&I and energy. Prior to that she worked as Director of Research at Pompeu Fabra University, and as an assistant professor and visiting scholar in USA and Canada universities. She contributes to several international advisory committees including the Global Research Council. She holds a Doctorate in Chemistry, with a specialty in Chemical Engineering from the University of Barcelona.
Job Titles:
- Senior Researcher at the Institute of Public Goods
- Vice - President for International Affairs, Spanish National Research Council ( CSIC ), Vice - President Representing RPOs
Francisco Javier Moreno Fuentes is Senior Researcher at the Institute of Public Goods and Policies of the Spanish National Research Council (IPP-CSIC). He has a BA in Sociology from the Complutense University of Madrid, a Master in Social Sciences from the Juan March Institute, an MSc in Social Policy from the LSE, and a PhD in Political Science from the Autonomous University of Madrid. Between July 2018 and September 2019, he was Deputy Director of the Spanish High Commission against child poverty. He has been a researcher for the European Social Policy Network (ESPN) of independent experts on social protection and inclusion of the Directorate-General for Employment, Social Affairs and Inclusion of the European Commission since 2014. He led a significant number of research projects on welfare policies and immigration in Spain and the EU, based on a combination of quantitative and qualitative methods. He is the (co-)author of 10 books, 40 articles in peer-reviewed journals, 37 chapters in edited books, and more than 50 reports related to his areas of specialisation. Since July 2022, he is the Vice-President for International Affairs of CSIC.
Job Titles:
- Communications and Events Officer
Iwan Groeneveld is Communications and Events Officer. In that role, he makes sure that Science Europe's events run smoothly, from the planning stage to the actual meeting. Together with the Communications team, he also works on making Science Europe's outputs look good and read well. Before joining Science Europe in 2015, Iwan worked in several communications roles for the City of Amsterdam, including for its web team. Although he holds a Master's degree in Ancient History from VU University Amsterdam, he is a digital native always looking for modern tools and improvements.
Job Titles:
- Director General of the Swedish Research Council ( VR )
Katarina Bjelke was appointed Director General of the Swedish Research Council in 2022. She has a degree in dentistry and a PhD in neuroscience from Karolinska Institutet. She has been University Director at Karolinska Institutet, as well as at Uppsala University. Katarina Bjelke has also held roles such as Chair of the Audit Committee of the Nobel Foundation and the Swedish National Space Agency, and as an elected member of the boards of Young Academy of Sweden, the Association of Swedish Higher Education Institutions, the European Spallation Source, the Swedish Foundation for International Cooperation in Research and Higher Education, and several holding companies.
Job Titles:
- President of the Dutch Research Council
- President of the Dutch Research Council ( NWO ), Vice - President Representing RFOs / Netherlands
Marcel Levi is president of the Dutch Research Council (NWO) and professor of Medicine at the University of Amsterdam's Medical Center and at University College London, as well as consultant in Acute Medicine and Haematology. He has previously worked at the Universities of Perugia and Oxford, as well as the Center for Transgene Technology and Genetherapy of the Catholic University of Leuven. He currently chairs or sits on the boards of several national and international health and research organisations and charities. He is also a member of the Royal Netherlands Academy of Science.
Job Titles:
- Chief Executive of the Research Council of Norway ( RCN )
Mari Sundli Tveit was Deputy Director-General of the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise before leading the Research Council of Norway (RCN). Prior to that, she was Professor of Landscape Architecture and Rector of the Norwegian University of Life Sciences. She has also held numerous elected positions, including as a board member at the European University Association and at the Centre for Advanced Studies of Chalmers Technical University, as well that of president of Universities Norway. She is experienced in leading large mergers, organisational integration, strategic development, and working with a large international network within academia, the business sector, and government.
Job Titles:
- Professor of Empirical Macrosociology at the Max Weber Institute for Sociology
- Vice - President of the German Research Foundation ( DFG )
Matthias Koenig is professor of Empirical Macrosociology at the Max Weber Institute for Sociology at Heidelberg University. Currently, he serves as Vice President of the German Research Foundation (DFG). His research covers sociological theory, human rights, religion, and migration, focusing on global and local dynamics of governing diversity. He has held visiting scholar positions in Canada, France and the United States, and he was fellow at the Max Planck Institute for the Study of Religious and Ethnic Diversity. He has sat on numerous editorial boards and councils of national or international scholarly associations.
Job Titles:
- Communications Manager
- Communications Team
Rosemary Hindle joined Science Europe as Communications Manager in February 2024, having previously held similar roles in organisations supporting public social services, public health, and youth work at European level. She holds an MSc in Corporate Communications and Public Affairs from Robert Gordon's University in Aberdeen, and an MA in History from Aberdeen University.
Sara Cesari joined Science Europe as Policy Officer in March 2022. Previously, she worked as a project officer at several institutions and NGOs in Morocco, Italy and Belgium, including the UC Louvain university as project manager of the Metrolab project, a EU-funded applied urban research laboratory [ERDF 2014-2020]. Her professional background includes more than ten years of experience in policy and project management roles. Sara has contributed to strategy development for the organisations where she worked. She specialised in the fields of urban research, human rights, and public management of culture. Sara holds a master's degree in cultural anthropology and a postgraduate degree in peace studies. She also recently completed a master's degree in public affairs and European communication.
Job Titles:
- a Senior Policy Officer
- Senior Policy Officer
Sophie Lemahieu joined Science Europe as a Senior Policy Officer in June 2023. Previously, she has experience working as a Policy Advisor at the Belgian national level, on research and innovation as well as employment policy. Sophie has been following closely the developments linked to Horizon Europe and the European Research Area. She also specialised in international and cross border collaboration through her previous roles, and has a specific interest in these topics. Sophie holds a master's degree in European and North American politics, as well as an advanced master's degree in European studies.
Job Titles:
- Personal and Administrative Assistant
Stéphanie Flouquet joined Science Europe in March 2021 as Personal Assistant to the Secretary General and administrative support to the team. Prior to that, Stéphanie worked for more than 15 years for international companies in the chemical and healthcare sector as well as European organisations.
Theodora Famprikezi joined Science Europe as Policy Officer in February 2024. Previously, she worked as Policy & Project Officer in the European University Association's Research and Innovation Unit, as well as the Higher Education Policy Unit. Her professional background includes the European Research Area, the green and digital transition, and the ERASMUS+ programme. Previously, she worked on participatory democracy and EU Enlargement at the European Policy Centre and completed her traineeship at the Mediation and Dialogue Support Unit of the European Parliament. Theodora holds a degree in European Studies and Mphil in Conflict Resolution and Reconciliation from Trinity College Dublin.