Science at the service of Europe. A guide to the 2008 annual activity report of the European Commission’s Directorate-General for Research

The Seventh Framework Programme (FP7) is the main vehicle used by the European Union to support transnational cooperative research and technological development underpinning the so-called 'Lisbon strategy' to make Europe the world's most competitive and dynamic knowledge-based economy. In 2008, with FP7 in its second year, the initial applications under several new funding mechanisms began to take shape, alongside initiatives based on instruments proven in the previous Framework Programmes. At the same time, a number of projects from the predecessor, FP6, reached successful conclusions.

In this brochure based on the Annual Activity Report 2008, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Research presents a brief overview of the year's main events and achievements, illustrated by selected examples of results obtained and work in progress. This includes news of joint actions undertaken with the Member States, outreach to other world countries in tackling global problems, and a series of public-private partnerships launched to aid speedy recovery from the year-end economic crisis.