SPIRE Goes To Parliament

A date for your 2013 diary. On Thursday 24 January 2013 MEPs will be talking SPIRE at a lunch time debate on innovation for resource efficiency at the European Parliament in Brussels. The meeting is hosted by Amalia Sartori, MEP and Chair of the ITRE (Industry, Research and Energy) Committee of Parliament in association with A.SPIRE (the European Association for Sustainable Process Industry through Resource and Energy Efficiency) and registration is open now.

The debate is entitled a “new industrial (R)evolution through the SPIRE Public Private Partnership’ starts at 13h00 and will include contributions from Madame Sartori (pictured left), A.SPIRE President Klaus Sommer of Bayer and Waldemar Kütt from Commissioner Geoghegan-Quinn cabinet among others.

Compelling arguments and a remarkable consensus exist between policy makers and industry about the need to improve the way we manage resources and energy, especially when these resources are rare or finite.

Industry has a responsibility and a unique ability to respond to these challenges. Through an ambitious research and innovation agenda, the proposal for a public-private partnership for Sustainable Process Industry through Resource and energy Efficiency (SPIRE) is one of the instruments that can help achieve Europe’s aspirations in this area.

Commitment for competitiveness
SPIRE’s high ambitions are matched by strong industrial commitment on an unprecedented scale (at least 20% of total European manufacturing industry, both in terms of employment and turnover, are represented in the SPIRE consortium) and, through it, Europe could significantly enhance its competitiveness and sustainability and achieve its goals for smart, inclusive and sustainable growth.

The lunch debate will be an ideal opportunity to hear more about the proposed SPIRE PPP, discuss its aims and ambitions with leading members of the eight major European industry sectors that are support and developing the SPIRE initiative.

The ITRE Committee is meeting on 23 – 24 January and the latest study requested by the committee is ‘Resource Efficiency in European Industry’ so the lunch time debate is well timed.

For more information on SPIRE visit its website. To find out more about the lunch debate including registration possibilities contact the SPIRE secretariat.