ULAB
The Ulab Project, “European Laboratory for modelling the technical research University of tomorrow”, is an innovative think-tank of five leading Technical and Research-intensive European Universities, committed to working together to renew University policies in research, valorisation, entrepreneurship and outreach.
Funded by the European Commission under the Science in Society programme (SiS) of the 7th Framework Programme, Ulab aims to create the right structure in which the best practices in the field of research management will be identified, tested and evaluated.
The partners are Universidad Politecnica de Madrid (coordinator), Politecnico di Torino, Technische Universität München, University of Oxford and Paris Institute of Technology.
Ulab will work as a University Laboratory carrying out experimental best practices in order to demonstrate how networking and open innovation between universities can increase the quality of research and innovation in the quest for excellence.
Four main themes related to support structures of university research and innovation will be covered in Ulab by decision making and management teams of each institution:
· Research, covering the exchange of current best practices in Research Strategy planning, structures to support the researchers in their participation in R&D funding programmes (National, Regional and European) and Human Resources management.
· Valorisation, including best practices in IPR, valorisation of patents and technologies, and their commercialisation or licensing.
· Entrepreneurship, exchange Entrepreneurship education programmes for students and researchers, and best practices in the award of business ideas, and the mentoring of start-ups.
· Outreach, oriented towards jointly defining the means and strategies of an effective and successful Science and Technology outreach to citizens.
The project will be steered by an Advisory Panel comprising representatives from European and national university associations. The Panel will support Ulab strategy, will help identify synergies with other European initiatives related to the research and innovation management in universities, and will ensure a wide dissemination of the project results.
The new thinking emerging out of these exchanges will form the basis of a White Paper on “How to build the Technical Research University of Tomorrow” which will provide recommendations to tackle specific challenges for the university of the future. The White Paper will be presented in an open event in Brussels by the end of 2012.
The project runs from the 1st of January, 2011 until the 1st of January, 2013 (2 years).
THE PROJECT TEAM AT TUM
Luca Martinelli