On 1 January 2025, Poland took over the Presidency of the Council of the European Union – a groundbreaking presidency in many ways. This period will see the continuation of discussions on the mid-term evaluation of Horizon Europe Programme and on the shape of the next, 10th EU Framework Programme, as well as on the future of financing innovation in the European Union. The National Contact Point (NCP) at the National Centre for Research and Development (NCBR) will be involved in a number of important events planned at this time.
The key presidency event, EU Innovation Journey’25 conference, will be organised by the NCBR on 12-13 May 2025. Participants will include many distinguished guests, including representatives of the European Commission and the European Innovation Council (EIC), the European Institute of Innovation and Technology (EIT), the Ministry of Science and Higher Education and the Ministry of Development and Technology. One of the goals of this event is to create a space for debate on the role of key actors, including technology transfer offices, academia, investors and policymakers, in developing coherent support for innovation in the Widening countries. Another aim of the conference will be to try to analyse the challenges and opportunities in overcoming the innovation gap between different parts of Europe. The conclusion of the expert interviews, discussions and reflections will be published in a summary report after the conference.
The EU Innovation Journey’25 event has been divided into 3 main thematic tracks: the first, called the Main Stage, involves a plenary session with key panel discussion. The second track, the Opportunities and Potential Stage, will present the groundbreaking projects financed from the EU and the national funds and will feature a startup pitching session and demonstration of best practices in deep-tech commercialisation. Lastly, the Challenge Stage, will host discussions on the challenges facing the countries of the Central and Eastern European region. Exhibition and networking space will be available during the conference. There will also be side meetings, including: #EUInnovateTogether and Trusted Investors Network, presentation of the new pre-accelerator instrument and the European Prize for Women Innovators.
The European Commission has entrusted the National Centre for Research and Development with the organisation of the EU Innovation Journey’25 conference, both in terms of its content, which is coordinated by the National Contact Point for Horizon Europe (NCP), and in terms of the organisation.
During the Polish Presidency, the NCP will also provide substantive support to numerous industry conferences. The degree of involvement will vary – from participation in organisational committees, through the organisation of information stands and brokerage events and the preparation of thematic sessions or information days, to expert participation in debates and conference speeches. The NCP will participate in events such as:
EuroHPC Summit Week 2025
This three-day conference, which will take place from 18 to 20 March 2025 in Cracow, aims to bring together key European High Performance Computing (HPC) stakeholders. The event is organised by EuroHPC JU with the support of CYFRONET AGH. The meeting will be an excellent opportunity to present the latest achievements and opportunities in the European supercomputing sector, but also to discuss and reflect on current and future challenges in the field of HPC, quantum computing and artificial intelligence. The NCP representative, Rafał Duczmal, as the chairman of the EuroHPC JU Governing Board, will take an active part in the sessions and events accompanying the Summit. The NCP experts will also be involved in promoting the event among stakeholders of their thematic areas, so that the largest possible group of Polish scientists and entrepreneurs can benefit from organisation of the Summit in Poland.
International Space Info Day & Brokerage Event
The event, to be held on April 23-24 in Warsaw, is addressed to stakeholders of the European space sector, including Polish entrepreneurs and representatives of scientific entities. The agenda of the meeting will include a presentation of the potential of the Polish space sector, including the achievements of Polish entities implementing international research projects in the field of space technologies, a presentation of new initiatives in the area of the European space sector under the EU framework programs, a presentation of new initiatives in the area of the European space sector, a presentation of funding opportunities for space technologies under the Horizon Europe Framework Program and a presentation of the results of the COSMOS4HE project, a brokerage session and a pitching session. The event is organised by the NCP and the COSMOS4HE project consortium.
Blue Economy Baltic Forum
The second edition of the Blue Economy Baltic Forum, to be held on April 28-30 in Sopot, will be a follow-up of the 2022 event, which aimed to strengthen cooperation in the Baltic Sea region. Bringing together stakeholders, showcasing successful initiatives and providing relevant information on funding opportunities, the Forum will support the EU’s mission “Rebuilding Our Oceans and Waters” and strengthen the Baltic ecosystem, which plays a key role in achieving climate neutrality and restoring nature. This year’s edition will combine events such as Blue Mission Banos (Baltic Arena 2025) and the Sustainable Blue Economy Partnership (Workshop). Blue Economic Baltic Forum is organised by the National Contact Point.
AeroDays
This science and business conference, to be held on May 7-9 in Warsaw, is organised by the Łukasiewicz Research Network – Institute of Aviation. The event aims to promote the Polish aviation sector in the EU and in the world, identify common areas of industrial activity in Europe, and promote policy coordination to strengthen research, development, innovation and climate in the aviation sector. The conference also aims to highlight the need to ensure synergies between ongoing R&D projects, facilitate knowledge exchange among stakeholders, and create opportunities for new strategic alliances and consortia by strengthening the capacity and capabilities of SMEs, among others. The NCP is scheduled to participate in one of the conference panels.
FISA-EURADWASTE 2025 & SNETP Forum 2025
A leading research and innovation event in the EURATOM area scheduled for May 13-15 in Warsaw. The conference aims to: promote nuclear research in the EU and globally, review the progress of ongoing projects since the previous edition of the conference in 2022, identify areas of synergy, challenges and plans for the operation of future nuclear partnerships. The conference will be accompanied by the SNETP Forum 2025 meeting, the announcement of the winner of the Nuclear Innovation Prize 2025 and the ENEN Phd Prize. The event is organised by the National Centre for Nuclear Research (NCBJ) and the European Commission, among others.
LIFESCIENCE4EU
The conference on “Research and innovation in leveraging technology to strengthen the EU competitiveness in life sciences” will be held on May 15-16 in Cracow. The event received funding from the European Commission under the Cluster 1 – Health of Horizon Europe Programme. The conference will address the challenges of integrating advanced technologies to solve healthcare problems and improve quality of life. The event aims to foster a discussion on how to build a resilient and independent healthcare sector, strengthening collaboration between R&D sectors, regulators and patient advocacy groups, and promoting innovations such as digital health, artificial intelligence and biotechnology in line with the EU health priorities. The conference is organised by the Klaster LifeScience Kraków Foundation. The NCP’s booth will be present at the event.
Climate change adaptation mission Forum
The Forum, to be held on May 19-20 in Wrocław, aims to support the EU regions, cities and local authorities in their efforts to build resilience to the effects of climate change. The meeting will showcase best practices and success stories of local governments and projects under the EU Mission: Adaptation to climate change. The Forum is organised by the European Commission, the Ministry of Climate and Environment and Wrocław University of Science and Technology. The NCP’ experts will act as moderators of the sessions and will take part in panel discussions. The annual Forum is a key component of the Mission’s governance and an opportunity for an in-depth exchange of views, enabling the identification of successes and challenges and shaping the future direction of the Mission.
EUIndTech2025
The conference, to be held on June 2-4 in Cracow will aim to present solutions and best practices and develop written recommendations for the EU policies in four areas: technology, materials, science and business, community in action. The themes of the event will encompass green and digital industrial technologies, advanced materials, mineral resources, innovation and regional cooperation and action. The organisers of the conference are the Mineral and Energy Economy Research Institute of the Polish Academy of Sciences and the Marshal’s Office of the Małopolska Region. The NCP, as a participant in the NCP4Industry project, will organise pitching and matchmaking sessions.
Europe and mobilities: challenges and opportunities for socio-economic transformations
This three-day conference in the field of social sciences and humanities, will be held on June 4-6 in Warsaw. The aim of the event is to discuss the EU’s key societal challenges, confront scientific and policy perspectives on socio-economic transformations and challenges, such as social inequality, migration and demographic challenges, energy, labour and technology market transitions, the digital revolution, and to enable and strengthen the dialogue between science and policy. The event is organised by the Centre of Migration Research at the University of Warsaw, while the NCP will use its expertise to organise an international information day and brokerage meetings on the Horizon Europe 2025 calls for proposals.
The NCP at the NCBR will also be a co-organiser or participant in other meetings and events, including State Representative Groups within the European Partnerships 2Zero (zero-emission transportation), CCAM (autonomous transportation), and Clean Aviation (aviation topics) and Sesar (aviation topics).
The events presented above are selected undertakings illustrating the involvement of the National Contact Point and the National Centre for Research and Development in the upcoming initiatives of the Polish Presidency of the Council of the European Union. We are already inviting you both to participate in these events and to follow the NCP website, where we will keep you updated on the activities undertaken during the current six-month Polish Presidency of the Council of the EU.
