[{Image src='Marja_029-768x960.jpg' caption='' height='300' alt='Marja Makarow' class='image_left'}]
!! Xmas Newsletter\\Academia Europaea 2024\\Marja Makarow

!Dear Academia Europaea Community,

__This is the last time I address you, as my 3-year mandate as President of Academia Europaea ends at the end of this year. It has been an enormous privilege and honour to serve the intellectual powerhouse of Europe, you our members, and thereby the European research area.__ 
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While the specific activities of our Classes, Sections, Task Forces and Regional Knowledge Hubs are highly appreciated, let me highlight some of the academy-level achievements of the past three years. A major effort was the establishment of a new entity to be hosted in Munich by the Ludwig-Maximilian University. The entity serves as the Head Office and Seat of __Academia Europaea__ from this year, in tandem with our London Head Office, until such time that all tasks are successfully moved to Munich and our long-standing Executive Secretary, London, __David Coates__ retires fully. The Munich entity is led by our [Vice-President Donald Dingwell|Member/Dingwell_Donald], while __Friederike Brandthaus__ serves as Executive Secretary, Munich.
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The London office has served AE in an outstanding manner. Nevertheless, we are all in general agreement that we need to have our seat of operations located in an EU Member State. This also ensures our participation in and co-ordination of EU-funded projects, such as __SAPEA__ (Science Advice for Policy by European Academies), which is part of the [Science Advice Mechanism|https://scientificadvice.eu] of the EU. I hereby invite our members who undertake projects in the context of __Academia Europaea__ to take advantage of the funding opportunities that the EU Frame-Work Programmes offer.  
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Our science advice activities in __SAPEA__, together with our fellow associations and networks therein, have been very successful. During the last 3 years, six Evidence Review Reports have been published and supported the __European Commission__’s policy-makers’ decisions. According to impact analysis, the __SAPEA__ Reports have been referred to in over a hundred official legislative documents of the __EU__ and national governments, as well as in publications of European Agencies and international bodies such as __OECD__ and __WHO__. The current __SAPEA__ project is ending and will be followed by __SAPEA 2025-2029__, the funding of which has been secured by the [European Commission|https://commission.europa.eu/index_en].  
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This year, we extended our science advice activities from the EU to the global level by joining __S20__, the science advice body for the Heads of State of the [G20|https://g20.org] countries. As you know, the __G20__ members are the world’s 19 strongest economies together with the African Union and the European Union. __S20__ consists of the national academies of those 19 countries. So far, the EU has had no academy in __S20__, but from 2024 on, __Academia Europaea__ has the honour of representing its scientific voice.
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The mission of __G20__ is to find solutions to global challenges, and __S20__ provides the latest scientific knowledge to support the __G20__ decision process. The topics of the 2024 recommendations are __Artificial Intelligence, Bioeconomy, Energy Transition Process, Health Challenges and Social Justice__. Our Board invited five MAEs to the Task Forces drafting the __S20__’s recommendations to the __G20__ Summit that was held on 18-19 November in Rio de Janeiro. I wish to thank all MEAs and staff members who have contributed to the science advice activities in the context of __SAPEA__ and __S20__.
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Our Regional Knowledge Hubs in [Barcelona|https://aebarcelona.eu], [Bergen|https://aebergen.w.uib.no], [Budapest|https://aebudapesthub.hu], [Cardiff|http:/www.aecardiffknowledgehub.wales], [Tbilisi|http://www.aetbilisihub.org] and [Wroclaw|http://acadeuro.wroclaw.pl] are thriving, delivering added value for __Academia Europaea__ and their cross-border regions. Several of them have recently renewed their academic leadership and host institution.
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During the last 3 years, our membership has grown with unprecedented numbers. In 2022 - 2024, a total of 1078 new members were selected, bringing our membership to a total of 5541. The main selection criterion remains scientific and scholarly excellence. However, we signed, together with some 800 European research organizations, funding agencies and academies the principles of __CoARA__ (Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment). According to them, the focus in assessment of researchers and their proposals is based primarily on qualitative indicators, while quantitative metrics such as citations, impact factors and attracted funding are used only to support the assessment of the quality of the substance. This year, these principles were used for the first time in assessing the MAE nominations, allowing e.g. unconventional career pathways and representatives of the younger researcher generation to be acknowledged in the selection.  
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I wish to thank all of you for your trust and collaboration. Allow me to name just those, with whom I have worked on a regular basis, the Board members, the __Head Quarters__’ staff, the __Knowledge Hubs__’ leaderships, staff and host institutions, the __Graz Information Centre__, the __Independent Advisory Group__, the [HERCulES|Acad_Main/Activities/HERCulES] Group, the __Editor-in-Chief__ of the [European Review|Acad_Main/Publications/European_Review], as well as the [Young Academy of Europe|http://yacadeuro.org] and the Board and staff of __SAPEA__.  
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I wish you a pleasant and relaxing Christmas Season and a successful New Year,
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[Marja Makarow|Member/Makarow_Marja]\\
__President of Academia Europaea 2022-2024__