Commissioner Geoghegan-Quinn
Launch of Assistive Technologies in Autism and
Intellectual Disability (ASSISTID) Marie Curie
COFUND Programme
Daughters of Charity Disability Services,
St Joseph’s Centre, Clonsilla,
Dublin, 15 May 2014
Mr Desmond, Sister Zoe, Mr Cronin, Professor Harvey,
Ladies and gentlemen,
I am delighted to be here with you for the launch of the
EU Marie Curie ASSISTID COFUND - Assistive
Technologies for autism and intellectual disability.
I'm also very pleased to have this opportunity to learn
more about the essential work you are doing.
Autism and intellectual disability represent a heavy
burden worldwide, affecting 3 million people in Europe.
For those affected and their families, this can often mean
severely reduced quality of life. The challenges posed by
autism and intellectual disability are multifaceted,
encompassing several sectors such as care, education,
employment and social inclusion.
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So
this
means
that
the
solutions
should
be
multidisciplinary, spanning the whole range of action
from basic research to improve our knowledge, to
translating that knowledge into better care and social
inclusion of people with autism and intellectual disability.
The DOCTRID Research Institute is not only bridging the
different disciplines, it's also fostering international
collaboration between Ireland and the United States.
So I am very pleased to announce the launch of the
ASSISTID
COFUND
Programme,
which
will
help
strengthen DOCTRID's work internationally.
For the next five years, the programme will provide 40
fellowships to experienced researchers in the field of
assistive technologies and behavioural sciences, applied
to autism and intellectual disability.
You will also be part of an even bigger research
landscape, the EU's Marie Skłodowska-Curie actions. I'd
just like to say a few words about them and the
COFUND scheme in particular.
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The Marie Skłodowska-Curie Fellowships are European
research grants available to individual researchers
regardless of their nationality or field of research.
They have supported thousands of researchers over the
years. In 2007, the European Commission set up
COFUND
to
co-finance
programmes
rather
than
individual Marie Skłodowska-Curie projects.
COFUND
has
already
supported
167
research
fellowship programmes, providing funding for almost
10,000 fellowships.
Around a quarter of the programmes focus exclusively
on health sciences, which means that COFUND will help
around 2,500 research fellows to develop their careers in
health-related fields.
But it's not just a question of numbers. It's also about the
quality of fellowships offered in Europe and Europe's
reputation in research. By supporting these fellowships,
we will attract more students to research careers as well
as top scientists from outside the EU.
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The ASSISTID COFUND Programme is one of the many
areas in which the European Commission is focusing
efforts to address the challenges of autism and
intellectual
disability
through
multidisciplinary
and
international research.
The EU's 7th Framework Programme for Research
invested more than 2 billion euro in research on the
brain and brain diseases between 2007 and 2013,
including 117 million euro in research on autism
spectrum disorders.
This research has been geared towards a better
understanding of the mechanisms underlying autism and
intellectual disability, as well as developing solutions and
tools that can directly help the patients and carers
involved.
European efforts have also taken the form of a publicprivate partnership, the Innovative Medicines Initiative
Joint Undertaking, aimed at advancing health research
through partnering between academia, industry, patients
and regulators.
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Its work includes the EU-AIMS project, an alliance
between academic institutions and the pharmaceutical
industry to research the genetic determinants of
intellectual disability and to develop better diagnostics
and treatments for autism.
Information and communications technologies can also
advance the knowledge base in autism and mental
disability.
My colleague, Commission Vice President Neelie Kroes,
launched the Human Brain Project last year to explore
how ICT can give us a deeper understanding of the
brain, develop new treatments for brain diseases and
build revolutionary new computing technologies.
ICT can also provide immediate and practical solutions
for patients. For instance, research on human-computer
interaction is developing toolsets to help young people
diagnosed with autism to handle situations where they
have to act autonomously, as well as to develop their
social and self-management skills.
All of these initiatives and successes were showcased
during the European Month of the Brain in May last year,
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organised at the initiative of the European Commission,
under the Irish Presidency of the European Council.
Combating stigma and reinforcing the interdisciplinary
approach to brain research were among the key
recommendations that came out of discussions held
during this event.
Looking to the future, and at the bigger picture, the
challenge posed by autism and mental disabilities
cannot be disconnected from the global challenge of
ageing.
By 2020, a quarter of Europeans will be over 60 years of
age. Children born after 2011 have a one in three
chance of celebrating their 100th birthday.
These are positive trends that are largely thanks to the
dedication of scientists, health professionals and policy
makers worldwide.
But with these positive trends come new challenges.
Family structures are changing. In many cases, older
people can no longer count on the support of family
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members as they did in the past. Care models have to
adapt to these evolving conditions.
This poses a number of unprecedented challenges that
are of direct relevance for people with mental disabilities,
their families and carers.
In this context, we need excellent research to better
understand the problems and find the right answers.
And we need top notch innovation in Europe to ensure a
broader uptake of technological, organisational and
social innovations that can empower older people and
people with disabilities to remain active, independent
and fully engaged members of society.
Let me also highlight the challenge for sustainable health
services. Currently, 70% of health costs are related to
older people. With the ageing population and the advent
of chronic diseases, this figure is bound to increase.
This is why Active and Healthy Ageing was chosen as
the theme of the first European Innovation Partnership or
EIP, established in 2011.
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Its ultimate goal is to add an extra two healthy years to
the average lifespan in Europe. So, the partnership
seeks to translate innovative ideas into tangible products
and services that respond to the needs of the ageing,
elderly and disabled.
This entails close cooperation across the research and
innovation cycle, from supply to demand, and across
sectors and policies, from public health, to digital, to
industrial and innovation policies.
All the stakeholders – EU Member States, regional and
local actors, the private sector and non-governmental
organisations – set the agenda. In November 2011, the
EIP delivered a Strategic Implementation Plan identifying
three pillars on which we are building our actions:
Prevention, Care and Cure and Independent Living.
The involvement of civil society organisations has been
crucial to the process.
Active and Healthy Ageing is also one of the
cornerstones of Horizon 2020, the EU's new 80 billion
euro programme for research and innovation.
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Horizon 2020 represents a major reform of how we fund
research and innovation at EU level. The programme
connects all the dots between basic research and
innovation, while slashing red tape and ensuring that
socio-economic issues are addressed throughout the
programme.
Under Horizon 2020, the Marie Skłodowska-Curie
actions have been streamlined and the co-funding
principle has been extended to support doctoral
programmes.
One of the biggest reforms, though, is the focus on
societal challenges rather than scientific disciplines. The
challenge with the biggest budget, "Health, demographic
change and wellbeing", offers a wide range of funding
opportunities for research on autism and mental
disability.
Current topics such as "Understanding health, ageing
and disease: determinants, risk factors and pathways",
"New therapies for chronic non-communicable diseases"
or "Self-management of health and disease and patient
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empowerment supported by ICT" could be very relevant
to your areas of interest.
I believe Horizon 2020, with its support for collaborative
research and the COFUND programmes dedicated to
the careers of our researchers, offer the right tools to
develop new solutions for the benefit of all those in need
- people with autistic spectrum disorders and mental
disabilities patients, their families, their carers and our
healthcare systems.
These programmes are only tools to offer support. But
I'm very confident that these tools are being placed in
the right hands – in the hands of people like all of you
who are involved in the ASSISTID COFUND
Programme, who in turn will make a difference in the
lives of thousands of others.
I am delighted that you have come today from across
Ireland and from the United States to celebrate this
milestone and showcase your vital work - I look forward
to hearing more about it.
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And before I close, I would just like to say a special
thanks to the Daughters of Charity Disability Services for
hosting this special event.
Thank you.
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