Addressing societal challenges requires new ambitious models of research and innovation that are increasingly collaborative, interdisciplinary and enabled by data and digital technologies. What are the implications for future EU policy frameworks and funding programmes?

Line-up:

• Interactive high-level panel debate on future directions for Open Science, with Wolfgang Burtscher, Deputy DG, DG RTD & Jan Mengelers, President of Eindhoven University of Technology, among others
• Showcase of digital state-of-the-art solutions illustrating different dimensions of Open Science
• Networking reception in the atmospheric Gallery of the Dinosaurs, Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences

More information & registration

Privacy has become a central factor in all international business transactions. On 22 September 2016 the Bitkom Privacy Conference in Berlin will discuss many of the questions facing organisations such as: How to adapt to the requirements of the EU General Data Protection Regulation? What are the new standards to legally transfer data out of the EU?

Privacy experts from various backgrounds will come to Berlin to identify a common understanding on privacy and showcase best-practice solutions. The 150 participants can look forward to more than 30 renowned speakers from international companies, high-level representatives from regulatory bodies, and leading academics in the realm of privacy and data protection.

All information on the agenda and registration at www.privacy-conference.com

In 2016, Europe has started a historic reform of its telecoms and digital laws. Against the backdrop of this reform, there is renewed hope that a redefined communications industry will bring more benefits to consumers, attract investment and promote the development of innovative services. As the provider of state of the art networks, telecom operators are uniquely positioned as the gateway to both new technologies and social change.

But as the world globalises and technologies converge, is Europe able to compete against other leading markets, and can it nurture much needed, home-grown innovation?

The FT-ETNO Summit will gather leading policymakers, regulators, industry executives and investors from Europe and beyond to discuss and debate the direction of sector reform proposals, and their impact on the role of telecoms in the rapidly developing communications space.

More information

This year, the Digital Assembly falls under the so-called 'Digital Week' as it will be preceded by the ICT Proposers’ Day taking place on 26-27 September in Slovakia.

The event will be held at the Slovak National Theatre in the heart of the old Bratislava.

The Digital Assembly will be attended by high-level officials from EU Member States and European Institutions, policy-makers, representatives of industry and academia, start-ups, NGOs, digital users, etc. We can already highlight the presence of the Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico, the Slovak Vice-Prime Minister Peter Pellegrinithe, the European Commission's Vice-President Andrus Ansip and Commissioner Gunther Oettinger.

For the ninth year Telecentre Europe will organise its annual conference under the theme of Digital Skills for Future Work on 6-8 of October. The event will be hosted by Belgian member Digipolis Ghent at the NH Gent Belfort Hotel in Ghent. Day 1 (Thursday 7^th Oct) will be focused on policy and practice around digital skills for future technologies and modes of employment. Delegates will then consider the future needs of citizens and plan for interventions that will support them. Day 2 (Friday 8th Oct) will provide further in-depth discussion on future skills for learning and recruitment, how industry and government can help organisations to adapt, with some practical ‘how to’ sessions.

The culmination of the conference on Friday evening is the Telecentre Awards 2016 ceremony to recognise the best individuals and organisations in digital inclusion across Europe. Delegates will also be able to preview the Ghent Digital Interactive Fair on Saturday 8^th October.

In 2016 EU Code Week will take place between 15 and 23 October, although "every week is Code Week".

EU Code Week is a grass-roots movement that celebrates creating with code. The idea is to make programming more visible, to show young, adults and elderly how you bring ideas to life with code, to demystify these skills and bring motivated people together to learn. The initiative was launched in 2013 by the Young Advisors for the Digital Agenda Europe.

EU Code Week is run by volunteers. One, or several, Code Week Ambassadors coordinate the initiative in their countries, but everyone can organise their own code event and add it to the codeweek.eu map.

In 2015, 46 countries took part in EU Code Week – all EU member states plus Iceland, Norway, Switzerland, Albania, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Serbia and Turkey events took place in Australia, Belarus, Bosnia and Hercegovina, China, South Korea, Moldova, Morocco, Taiwan, Tunisia, Ukraine and the United States.

To mark EU Code Week 2016, Public Libraries 2020 will host ‘Generation Code: born at the library’. This interactive exhibition will demonstrate how Europe’s public libraries are meeting the digital age. The exhibition will consist of several interactive stations, showcasing the excellent work that public libraries are doing on all things digital from a range of member states - including coding, robotics, 3D printing, virtual reality experiences, tech advice workshops and digital making. Each station will have sessions of 30 seconds to 2 minutes where participants can build a digital skill and experiment with new technologies. There will be plenty of surprises, publicity moments and follow-up events in member states to look forward to. The exhibition will also explore the status of digital skills development, specifically in non-formal learning environments, across the EU.

More information available on Public Libraries 2020 website, Facebook and Twitter pages.

High-Level Conference under the EU Slovak Presidency

Join us on 18 October 2016 in Bratislava, where policy makers, business leaders and experts from across Europe will gather to reflect on the revolutionary impact that digital technologies have on the way we live, learn, work, today and in the years to come. This digital transformation relies on the availability of appropriate digital skills for all citizens, from the youngest to the oldest, as acquiring such skills will have a positive impact on finding jobs, reducing unemployment and integrating all citizens into the national life.

The conference will take stock of the current digital landscape and explore what the future could bring. We will examine how any gaps could be filled and assess the impact of the previous and current actions. We will address how the momentum initiated by the EU e-skills strategy will be sustained in the future.

The Digital World is fast paced and ever-changing. The impact of the Internet of Things, the new Privacy Shield agreement between the U.S. and the EU, and Europe’s endeavor to create a Single Digital Market are still unknown. What we do know though is that the parameters of online commerce and the flow of information continue to change and these changes have an impact on all business, both current and future. Predicting the impact will not be an easy task, but arming yourself with relevant updates and the perspective of industry leaders will help you shape your practice and business strategy and guide your clients down the path to smarter protection.

Save the Dates: the conference is on December 1-2. Registration launches on September 14. For further details visit www.inta.org/2016digital.

The 2016 Internet Governance Forum (IGF): ‘Enabling Inclusive and Sustainable Growth’, is tentatively scheduled to take place from 6-9 December 2016 in Guadalajara, Mexico. The 2016 overall programme and intersessional activities are being built in a bottom-up manner in consultation with the growing IGF multistakeholder community, with an aim to enhance participation from stakeholders from developing countries, youth and those joining the IGF online.

More information: www.igf2016.mx