Digital Europe
Europe is rapidly moving from the industrial age to a global, networked knowledge- and service-based economy. That inevitably necessitates changes not only in the economy but also in the institutions and systems that were designed for a different era. Emphasising the paramount importance of the transformative power of new technologies, as well as education, skills and life-long learning, this initiative seeks to stimulate debate and focus public attention on the issues that are at the centre of a successful knowledge economy.
Among the highlights of the Digital Europe Initiative are:
Digital Europe: Europe's Fast Track to Economic Recovery
July 2009
Viviane Reding, European commissioner for telecommunications and media, delivered The 2009 Ludwig Erhard Lecture, the Lisbon Council's flagship event on economic modernisation. In her landmark address, Commissioner Reding shared her thoughts about forthcoming initiatives on the digital dividend, high-speed broadband Internet, intellectual property rights in the digital age, and m-commerce. She also discussed the broader picture of the challenges the European Commission will need to meet in the next five years; and in particular the role she would like consumers to take in the evolving single market online.
Watch Commissioner Reding's remarks in full
Download Commissioner Reding's Speech
Future of the Internet: How the Obama Generation will Change the World
February 2009
How the Obama Generation will Change the World With more than 1.2 billion users worldwide, the Internet has become as ubiquitous as air, as widely employed as the sidewalk. And yet, a host of important issues still lay ahead for the revolutionary technology that gives citizens unprecedented access to information and knowledge, and empowers people across the globe by making their voices heard. First and foremost, how will society change as the technology becomes more widespread? What will Web 3.0 look like? And how will today’s under 30’s – representatives of the first generation to grow up immersed in digital technology – use the Internet to write their own version of democracy and society? These questions will be addressed by top thought leaders and policy makers, such as Don Tapscott, author of bestselling books Grown up Digital and Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything, and Viviane Reding, European Commissioner for Information Society and Media.
Download Commissioner Reding's remarks
Creativity and Enterpreneurship: Empowering a Workforce for the 21st Century
November 2008
An innovative, skilled workforce is the key driver for an ever growing number of companies. Perhaps more than any other company, Google has internalised the importance of empowering employees to be creative and entrepreneurial. But how does this work in practice? How do you create an environment for entrepreneurial engineers that leads to disruptive innovation and experimentation? How do you create porous borders so that an innovative community can flourish outside of the company? Nelson Mattos, vice president, engineering of Google provided a unique insight into an organisation operating at the leading-edge of innovation and creativity. Anneli Pauli, deputy director-general at DG Research, European Commission, provided a policy perspective and explained how the European Research Area (ERA) can help foster more innovation in companies in general and the workforce in particular.
Read blog entry on this Zukunftssalon: Forum for the Future
The 2008 New Leaders for Lisbon Congress
September 2008
Our New Leaders for Lisbon network, a group of progressive thinkers from across Europe, convened in Brussels for its annual brainstorming session. Participants from Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovak Republic, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, discussed issues ranging from innovation and creativity to the future of Europe’s growth and jobs agenda.
Innovation and Entrepreneurship Day
November 2007
In November 2007, the Lisbon Council convened the Innovation and Entrepreneurship Day. We welcomed entrepreneurs from 14 countries across Europe. Among the highlights of this unique gathering was The 2007 Guglielmo Marconi Lecture, the Lisbon Council’s flagship event on innovation. The Lecture was delivered by Don Tapscott, chief executive officer of Canada-based think tank New Paradigm and author of the bestseller Wikinomics: How Mass Collaboration Changes Everything. Lessons for your Business from Web 2.0. In addition, Charlie McCreevy, EU commissioner for the internal market, gave a keynote address, and Francis Carpenter, chief executive officer of the European Investment Fund, led a session on Financing for Innovation and Growth.
Watch video summary on YouTube
Women in the Knowledge and Service Economy
September 2007
In a Wall Street Journal Europe editorial, Ann Mettler explains why women thrive in the modern, service- and knowledge-based economy. While discrimination still exists in many sectors, women are poised to exercise more political and economic power in the years ahead.
Download the editorial
Zukunftssalon: Skills for the Future
November 2006
Zukunftssalon: Forum for the Future is a network for progressive, future-oriented individuals from the EU institutions, as well as business, academia and civil society. Hosted by Jorgo Chatzimarkakis, MEP and rapporteur of the Competitiveness and Innovation Programme (CIP), the first Zukunftssalon focused on Skills of the Future. Speakers included Mark Spelman, chief European strategist at Accenture and Ester Basri, skills and migration expert at the OECD.
Lisbon Council organises conference on Knowledge Economy together with ING Group and the OECD
February 2006
Together with ING Group and the OECD, a seminar on Globalisation and the Economics of Knowledge was convened at ING House in Amsterdam. The programme had three main focuses -- globalisation and demography, education and social inclusion, and creativity and innovation – which were introduced by internationally renowned experts, Hans Rosling, professor of international health, Karolinska Institutet in Stockholm, Berglind Asgeirsdottir, deputy secretary-general of the OECD, and Emilio Fontela, dean of the faculty of law, economics and business, Antonio de Nebrija University in Madrid.
