4th Session

On 11 November 2024, the fourth meeting of FORWIT took place. Following an informative working breakfast with Federal Minister Polaschek and Federal Minister Gewessler, a workshop on the resilience of the Austrian RTI system was held in cooperation with experts from AIT. Central points of discussion were recent geopolitical developments and the challenge of making an effective contribution to Europe’s competitiveness.

The working session of the Council addressed, among other things, priority topics for 2025 and preparations for next year’s Council meetings. The further development of procedural standards to safeguard equidistance and impartiality in the interest of objective advisory work was also discussed. Council members reported on their activities, including a contribution to the FWF event on CoARA (Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment), initiatives on deep tech funding, and international networking with other councils. Forthcoming events in which FORWIT will be involved were also discussed, in particular the ERA Symposium, the REvaluation Conference, and the 2025 Vienna Ball of Science.