40 th CEPIS Council, Ljubljana, 12 th April 2008 European Policy & Communication activities

1. 40th CEPIS Council, Ljubljana, 12th April 2008 European Policy & Communication activities

2. European Policy and Communication Activity • European Policy • Summary of e-inclusion and Digital Literacy activities • Recent developments in the eSkills domain • Commission’s initiatives in Education • Task Force for Women and ICT • Overview and update on the Council of Europe • Communication Activity • Press coverage • Press releases • Outlook

3. e-Inclusion and Digital Literacy • Communication “European i2010 initiative on e-Inclusion” • e-Inclusion campaign to promote awareness • Strategic framework for action to promote the Riga Declaration • European Commission “…with advice from a Digital Literacy Experts Group will provide guidance on digital competences policy for vulnerable groups by the end of 2008” • ECDL Foundation is a member of the Digital Literacy Experts Group

4. e-Inclusion and Digital Literacy • First set of contributions to the Campaign • Austrian ECDLBarrier-Free Access project showcased • as a good practice for Digital literacy • Other ECDL cases from Croatia, Germany, Greece, Italy and the UK • ECDL defines Digital Literacy training schemes in Europe

5. e-Inclusion and Digital Literacy • Opportunities to participate in the e-Inclusion initiative • Participate in workshops, conferences and other organised by the Commission • Submit proposals, studies, reports, cases that are relevant to e-inclusion, e-government and e-health • Participate in the e-inclusion awards (soon to be announced) • Learn more at the www.ePractice.eu portal

6. eSkills Industry Leadership Board

7. eSkills Industry Leadership Board • March 2008, eSkills ILB meeting with Vice President Günter Verheugen • Offer the seeding investment for creating the eSkills Career Portal • Support the e-competence framework • Geoff McMullen presented the CEPIS foresights Report

8. Thessaloniki eSkills conference 9-10 October 2008, Thessaloniki, Greece • Commission to report on progress implementing the e-Skills communication • Commission to signal their intentions for 2009-2010 • First day experts discussions; Second day VIP sessions • Registration will open in May and close in June- • Website to be live by the end of April

9. Thessaloniki eSkills conference 9-10 October 2008, Thessaloniki, Greece • Thematic areas of the Conference • OECD report on IT skills • Global sourcing • eCompetence framework and Career Portal • eSkills training and certification • Employment and digital literacy, focus on SMEs • ICT Curriculum in Education

10. 2009 European Year of Creativity and Innovation • To support the efforts of the Member States to promote creativity, through life long learning • Key concepts: • Environment friendly to innovation and adaptability • Entrepreneurship • Skills conducive to technological innovation

11. 2009 European Year of Creativity and Innovation • Raise awareness campaign of the European Commission Conferences, workshops, initiatives, identification of good practices • Cross-cutting initiative covering education and culture • eSkills and digital literacy positioned as enablers of creativity and innovation

12. First University – Business Forum February 2008 • Conclusions • Stakeholders recognize the need for closer corporation between Universities and Business • There is pay-off in sharing ideas and experiences • Next Steps • The Commission will organise three thematic forums on: • Curricular Development and Entrepreneurship- September 2008 • University-business cooperation in the context of lifelong learning- Oct 2008 • Management of Intellectual Property by Universities and other Institutions –April 2008 • Report will be available next week

13. WomenandICT Europe needs more ICT graduates (Source: EU-RA from Eurostat) Percentage of male and female computer science graduates (ISCED 5/6) as a proportion of all graduates, 2007

14. WomenandICT • Overall increase in the number of highly educated females • In sectors such as ICT and engineering females graduates outnumbered by male • On a global scale South Africa and Brazil produce more female graduates in the fields of science and technology than Europe does (Source: EU-RA from Eurostat) Percentage of male and female engineering and engineering graduates (ISCED 5/6) as a proportion of all graduates, 2007

15. European Centre for Women and Technology • Aim: Ensure women’s full participation in and contribution to the knowledge-based economy • Enable women to boost the ICT sector in Europe • Ensure that the participation of women in engineering, education and employment in ICT in measurably increased within the next 5 years.

16. What will the European Centre do? • Allow Government, NGOs, industry, unions, and the education and research community to jointly focus on ICT and engineering in: • Secondary and tertiary education • Workforce development • Entrepreneurship • Leadership

17. Other actions: • Support education based on the e-Competence FW • Support the recruitment of women in IT • European database of women IT experts • Act as a focal point for reporting new research • Regional map of resources • Facilitate industry benchmarking • Mapping and roll-out of best practices • .... • CEPIS support?

18. CEPIS and Council of Europe • Applied for renewal of our participatory status on the Conference International NGOs • Approved – 4 years • Renewed our entry in the INGO database – a listing of all members with participatory status • Invited to the next meeting of the Conference

19. Conference of INGOs • A group of INGOs that provide advice to the Council of Europe • The Conference meets 3 needs: • to know the views and aspirations of European citizens • to provide direct representation for them • to publicise CoE activities through INGOs to European citizens • Cooperation with the 3 main bodies

20. Within DG Education & Culture (Secretariat) • Cooperation Programmes: Higher Education and Research • issues related to the recognition of qualifications • public responsibility for higher education and research • higher education governance • establishment of the European Higher Education Area by 2010 (Bologna Process) • supports reform of higher education in their priority regions, mainly the South East of Europe and CIS countries • The Council of Europe's Higher Education and Research programme is overseen by the Steering Committee for Higher Education and Research (CDESR).

21. Communication Activities

22. CEPIS communications • Enhancing the visibility of CEPIS actions: • External communication • Internal communication

23. CEPIS Press Coverage • Skills Foresights Report press coverage • BCS urges Government to reconsider its educational ICT funding • IT skills shortfall on the horizon • IT-Ingenieurmangel auch in der EU • Skills shortages on the European IT labour markets are likely to worsen in the near future • Europe’s skills gap: Industry is taking action • e-Skills ILB News Brief

24. More CEPIS Coverage • President appointment published in EU Agenda • CEPIS entry in Agenda Booklet of IT and Telecommunication organisations active in Brussels • Wikipedia entry • Banking Authentication – submitted to ENISA for publication • Coming soon: Press Release on World Information Society Day, May 17th

25. CEPIS Press Releases • The Secretariat will send the PR out to Member Societies at least 2 weeks before the planned date of public release • Member societies can tailor, and translate the release and prepare to respond to any queries • On the specified date, the CEPIS Secretariat will send out the release to Brussels-based and international media. • We do not send anything to your local and national media in your country – this is your territory!

26. CEPIS Communications Outlook • Monthly newsletter • UPGRADE – 1st on Google, 2nd on Yahoo • search: ‘European Informatics Journal’ • Better utilisation of existing channels (Website/Upgrade) • Enhanced content of existing channels (Newsletter) • Exploration of media channels (Press releases) • Success depends on active engagement of all parties