Joint Research Centre

European Union

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The Joint Research Centre (JRC) is the European Commission's in-house science service under the responsibility of Tibor Navracsics, Commissioner for Education, Culture, Youth & Sport. The current JRC Director General is Vladimír Šucha.^[1]

The JRC provides independent scientific and technical advice to the European Commission to support a wide range of European Union policies. It has seven scientific institutes—located at six different sites in Belgium (Brussels and Geel), Germany (Karlsruhe), Italy (Ispra), the Netherlands (Petten), and Spain (Seville).

History

The Italian Centre in Ispra originally belonged to the Comitato Nazionale per l'Energie Nucleare (CNEN) and was officially transferred to the Community on March 1, 1961.^[2] Since 1973, non-nuclear research evolved rapidly, especially in topics related to safety and the environment. In 1992, the results of a study led to a proposal to convert the JRC Ispra site into an environmentally-optimised model site; the "ECO Centre". At the beginning of the 1980s, re-examination of the mandate and evaluation of the activities of the JRC began. Future activities were to continue to support the Commission's implementations of Community policies. After 16 years of research, the nuclear reactor at JRC Ispra^[3] was shut down in 1983.^[4]

Institutes and structure

The JRC has seven scientific institutes:

• Institute for Environment and Sustainability (IES) investigates the level and fate of contaminants in the air, water and soil; assesses the effects of these contaminants upon the environment and individuals and promotes a sustainable energy supply.^[5]
• Institute for Energy and Transport (IET) provides scientific and technical support to EU policies related to energy. Special emphasis is given to the security of energy supply and sustainable and safe energy production.^[5]
• Institute for Health and Consumer Protection (IHCP) aims to improve the understanding of consumer health risks posed by the food chain, chemicals, drugs, and biochemical systems in order to support the development and implementation of Community policies designed to alleviate that risk.^[5]
• Institute for Prospective Technological Studies (IPTS) provides techno-economic analyses in support of European policy-making.^[5]
• Institute for Reference Materials and Measurements (IRMM) promotes a common and reliable European measurement system in support of EU policies.^[5]
• Institute for Transuranium Elements (ITU) performs research on risks associated with the handling and storage of highly radioactive elements, to contribute to an effective safety and safeguards system for the nuclear fuel cycle.^[5]
• Institute for the Protection and Security of the Citizen (IPSC) provides research based, system-oriented support to EU internal and external security policies.^[5]

The Directorate-General of the JRC is located in Brussels. The Scientific Policy and Stakeholder Relations Directorate and the Resources Directorate are based in Brussels and Geel, Belgium, and in Ispra, Italy. The Ispra site management (ISM) Directorate is responsible for the site management and for the nuclear decommissioning, safety, security, and protection.

The JRC Board of Governors assists and advices the JRC Director General on matters relating to the role and the scientific, technical, and financial management of the JRC.

Staffing

The JRC employs around 3,023 staff from EU countries.^[6] The recruitment of permanent scientific and administrative staff for the European Commission is organised by the European Personnel Selection Office (EPSO) through open competitions. The JRC can also recruit individuals on a temporary basis under certain conditions.

Publications

The JRC publishes scientific publications including: The JRC Annual Report, The JRC Newsletter, Thematic Reports and JRC Brochures and Leaflets.

See also

• Directorate-General
• Directorate-General for Research
• Directorate-General for Information Society and Media (European Commission)
• European Research Area (ERA)
• European Research Council (ERC)
• European Institute of Technology (EIT)
• European Research Advisory Board (EURAB)
• European School
• Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development
• Joint Technology Initiative
• Lisbon Strategy
• Seventh Framework Programme
• Sixth Framework Programme

References

External links

• Joint Research Centre

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