The European Life Scientist Organization (ELSO) has launched a petition for life scientists to “tell the European Commission what's wrong with the Framework Programme.” The petition is accompanied by an editorial and feature article in the latest edition of the ELSO Gazette, containing scathing criticisms of the current Sixth Framework Programme (FP6), the main source of centralized funding for research in Europe.
“There are many serious faults with the whole concept and foundation of the Framework Programmes,” says the editorial. “The first step [toward change] is to convince the people in charge—the staff of the Commission and the members of the European Parliament—that there is a problem... They will understand if we can get them to listen and if we speak clearly enough.”
“The European Commission's science funding is so bogged down in baroque application procedures, concerns about management, accounting, training, technology transfer, reporting, contract negotiation, etc. that the research ...
