Dear EuroBioForum Participant,

As the Chief Executive of the European Science Foundation, I would like to welcome you to the Third EuroBioForum Conference in Strasbourg, France. EuroBioForum, a joint initiative with the European Commission, aims to provide a networking forum to initiate and facilitate alliances between researchers and funders (public and private) on selected life sciences research topics in Europe.

During the two days of EuroBioForum, we will explore latest developments in life sciences, alongside new strategies for coordinating this research, with high-profile speakers and participants from across Europe’s funding and research community. The selected topics for 2008 are: the biology of ageing, generating tools for human proteome analysis, DNA barcoding for biodiversity, the human metagenome, a new map of the human genome and using bacteria for renewable energy production.

Our speakers and roundtable participants include Dr. Patrick Chaussepied, Coordinator, Department of Biology and Health, National Research Agency (ANR), FR; Dr. Manuel Hallen, Director of Health in DG Research, European Commission; Mr. Volker Rieke, Director of Life Sciences, Federal Ministry of Education and Research, DE; Mr. Hans van den Berg, Executive Director of Research Coordination, Organon (Schering-Plough), NL and Dr. Nicolas Carboni, Director of Alsace BioValley, FR. 

I invite all participants to join us in helping to advance a strategic research agenda for life sciences in Europe and in the follow-up activities to develop and implement ambitious large-scale research programmes.

Finally, I would also like to acknowledge the support of the European Commission through the Sixth Framework Programme, the French Ministry of Research, as EuroBioForum 2008 is an official event of the French Presidency of the European Union (July-December 2008), the City of Strasbourg and the Region Alsace.

I look forward to welcoming you in the beautiful city of Strasbourg, home to the European Science Foundation, for a rewarding and productive two days.

Marja Makarow

Chief Executive