“The advisory council is a great way of sharing my knowledge of science”

With effect from 1 June, Ellen Moors has been appointed a member of the Advisory Council for Science, Technology and Innovation. “For me, this is a great way of enabling scientific research to create an impact.”

The new position will not make her work any quieter. Alongside her already busy job as Professor of Innovation and Sustainability at the Utrecht University Copernicus Institute for Sustainable Development, Ellen Moors will be spending two days every month on the Advisory Council for Science, Technology and Innovation (AWTI for short) providing advice to government and Parliament. In a personal capacity, she will primarily focus on providing solicited and unsolicited advice on innovation and technology development within healthcare.

Creating an impact

Moors intends to use her new position to create an impact. “There are numerous ways of doing this, such as giving a presentation or a newspaper interview. But I think that an advisory council is a great way of sharing my knowledge about scientific research and by doing so having an impact on Dutch policy. It combines well with what I am already doing and provides me with inspiration and a challenge.”

Not just one-way traffic

Although Moors will mainly be focusing her advice on innovations in healthcare, she does not intend to shy away from other subjects, such as sustainability and transition. Quite the contrary. She is quite happy to immerse herself in all of the knowledge that the Copernicus Institute has to offer and to share that knowledge with the government and Parliament. But it is not just one-way traffic, says Moors. “It also gives me great insight into government policy, knowledge I can use for teaching and our students’ graduation opportunities.”

Transition

Currently, the issue of transition is much discussed. “This transition is also something I see in healthcare,” explains Moors. “All kinds of things are set to change because of digitisation. What will it mean for patients? Will there be job losses? These are the questions that will be preoccupying me in the period ahead.”

Exciting questions

Moors hopes to be able to apply her experience in the academic world on other issues. “I think there are still further benefits to be had from improving the national research policy. In cases where academics currently have to compete for large grants, more room could be created for collaboration in the future. The internationalisation of education is also in the process of transition. Is education in its current form future-proof? What improvements can be made to it? These are exciting questions and I find it a great challenge to contribute my ideas about them in the context of the AWTI.”