It has taken months of preparation, but finally the moment has arrived on 1 July. For the next six months Belgium will be holding the EU Presidency for the twelfth time. Those who wish to keep closely abreast of developments can visit the official website of the Presidency www.eutrio.be. This site is the authentic source of information and communication for the press and for anyone who is professionally involved in the Presidency. The public at large can also find pictures there as well as news items about the EU and a calendar of cultural events. The Flemish sub-site www.eutrio.be/vlaanderen not only provides information about Flanders and the EU Presidency, but also about any activities that will be organised by the Flemish authorities during the Presidency.

As a result of the unique rotation system the Brussels-Capital and Walloon Region act as representatives for the fields of research and industry respectively. Yet, Flanders also aims to leave its mark on the Presidency through the realisation of the Flemish priorities (sustainable society, attention to SMEs, innovation, the European Research Area, and the implementation of the EU2020 Strategy) and through the organisation of a number of high-level conferences. As organiser, the Department of Economy, Science and Innovation is actively involved in the content and financing of various conferences within the policy area. A complete overview is available at www.ewi-vlaanderen.be/en/euvoorzitterschap. Important conferences for Flanders are listed below.

The bio-economy is a very varied field with applications for food and feed, chemicals, detergents, industrial lubricants, paper and pulp, textiles, pharmaceutics and energy. At this Knowledge Based Bio-Economy towards 2020 Conference central focus is placed on innovative applications in the bio-economy to tackle great social challenges, such as climate change and food safety. In practice, a stocktaking exercise of the progress made since 2005 will take place. In addition the conference wants to provide a substantial contribution to a new European vision and action plan for the bio-economy within the framework of the EU2020 Strategy. To view the entire programme and to register, please visit the following website www.kbbe2010.be.

The EurOCEAN 2010 Conference is a unique opportunity for the European marine science community to discuss policy developments and to highlight new challenges and opportunities for marine research in the next decade. EurOCEAN 2010 aims to make a valuable contribution to the scientific underpinning of the European Strategy for marine and maritime research. The conference is concluded with the “Ostend Declaration" which formulates concrete points for action to be taken by scientific and maritime policy makers. For more information and to register, please visit www.eurocean2010.eu.

Energy technology is indispensable to achieve the European targets for 2020 and 2050 with regard to the fight against climate change, the continuity of the energy supply and the competitiveness of European enterprises. The aim of the European Strategic Energy Technology plan (SET-Plan) is to accelerate the development and introduction of low-carbon energy technologies in order to meet the ambitious European climate and energy targets.

The fourth SET-Plan Conference will be organised in Brussels on 15 and 16 November. The primary target of the conference will be to inform the large group of stakeholders (research, industry, policy, financial community) about the progress of the implementation of the European SET-Plan. Special attention will be devoted to the launch of two European industrial initiatives, the Bio-Energy Initiative and the Sustainable Nuclear Initiative, following the previously launched initiatives for Wind, Solar, Electricity Grids and Carbon Capture, Transport & Storage (CCS). The current state of affairs regarding the establishment of a Smart Cities Initiative will be discussed as well. In addition, the conference will focus on the development of the International Science & Technology (S&T) cooperation in the SET-Plan. Among other things the S&T cooperation between Europe and the United States and Japan will be touched upon. As of September, more detailed information will be available at www.setplanconference2010.be.