Robert-Jan Smits

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Robert-Jan Smits (born 1958) is the President of the Executive Board of the

Horizon 2020
.

Early life and education

Robert-Jan Smits was born in 1958 in the

Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy in the United States.[2]

Following his studies, Smits worked for the

Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs from 1985 to 1989, and left in 1989 to work at the European Commission.[3]

Career and impact

Smits is considered one of the main architects of

Horizon 2020, an EU Research and Innovation program providing €80 billion of funding between 2014 and 2020.[2] Smits has also played leading roles in developing the European Research Council, the European Research Area, and the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures.[4]

Recently, Smits has spearheaded the Plan S initiative, which requires scientists make their publications open-access immediately on publication. 11 national funding agencies in Europe, who collectively spend €7.6 billion in research grants per year, have signed up to Plan S.[5]

Controversies

In May 2023, Smits was criticized for physically removing student climate activists engaged in an occupation of two meeting rooms on campus and that were seeking, among other demands, that the university cut its ties with fossil fuel producers and increased transparency about the university's commercial collaborations.[6] GroenLinks and Party for the Animals members of the Eindhoven municipal council questioned Smits' physical intervention and mentioned a previous incident in March 2022 when police had "disproportion[ately] and unlawful[ly]" intervened in a previous student climate protest.[7]

Awards and honors

  • Honorary degree from the University of Edinburgh (2016)[2]
  • Lifetime achievements award from EuroScience (2016)[2]
  • Academy Medal from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (2017)[4]
  • Excellence in Global Science award in South-Africa (2017)[8]
  • Nature's 10 (2018)[9]

Writings

  • Plan S for shock[10] (with Rachael Pells)

See also

References

  1. ^ "Robert-Jan Smits Profile". TU/e. Retrieved 16 October 2019.
  2. ^ a b c d "Robert-Jan – EPSC – European Commission". EPSC. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  3. ^ "Robert-Jan Smits Curriculum Vitae" (PDF).
  4. ^ a b "Robert-Jan Smits". knaw.nl. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  5. PMID 30181639
    .
  6. ^ "Physical intervention during new occupation at TU/e". www.cursor.tue.nl. 11 May 2023. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  7. ^ "Answers to council questions about physical confrontation during protest". www.cursor.tue.nl. 13 June 2023. Retrieved 5 October 2023.
  8. ^ "Mr Robert-Jan Smits". SFSA. 30 October 2018. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  9. ^ "Nature's 10". Nature. Retrieved 23 January 2019.
  10. S2CID 246369795
    .
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