New advisory structure for the NWO domain Science
The board of the NWO domain Science has found chairs for seven disciplinary advisory committees. The disciplinary advisory committees form a new advisory structure, which supports the NWO Science board.
Since 1 January 2017, NWO has a new organisation structure with domains and an institutes organisation. The board of the NWO domain Science has operated since January 2017. The board is relatively small - six people including the chair - and the domain is large and diverse. Therefore during the first few months the board has been busy getting to know the domain's activities. In addition to this, the board increasingly focused on the new structure of the domain and the plans for the future. The NWO Science board would like to be advised by disciplinary advisory committees for the seven disciplines within the NWO domain Science so that it can ensure that the domain properly fulfils its tasks as a science funding body, coordinator and broker. The committees shall advise, for example, about strategy, research programmes and funding instruments as well as strengthening the research field.
The board has first of all focused on finding suitable chairs for the advisory committees and is pleased that the following people are willing to take on this task:
- Earth sciences: Henk Dijkstra;
- Astronomy: Koen Kuijken;
- Chemistry: Bert Weckhuysen;
- ICT: Maarten van der Steen;
- Physics: Gijsje Koenderink;
- Mathematics: Jan Karel Lenstra;
- Life Sciences: Ody Sibon.
In the coming period the advisory committees will be established further. The NWO Science office will support the committees and ensure good harmonisation between them. When necessary the office will also provide the connection with the other NWO domains. The disciplinary advisory committees will therefore form the basis for interdisciplinary collaboration, an important characteristic of the new NWO.
The discipline advisory committees will not replace the advisory committees of the former FOM Foundation. The NWO Science board believes it is important that the research field is well organised and it therefore wants to make use of all existing strengths to jointly give form to the NWO domain Science. The discipline advisory committees will form the link between the board and the research field including the former FOM advisory committees and the study groups that already exist.