Atomium – European Institute for Science, Media and Democracy facts for kids
| International Non-Profit Organisation | |
| Founded | November 2009 |
| Founder | Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, Michelangelo Baracchi Bonvicini |
| Headquarters |
Brussels
,
Belgium
|
|
Key people
|
Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, Honorary President, Michelangelo Baracchi Bonvicini, President |
| Revenue | 13,300,000 euro (2021) |
Atomium – European Institute for Science, Media and Democracy (EISMD) is an international group based in Brussels, Belgium. It is a non-profit organisation, meaning it doesn't aim to make money. This group brings together universities, media companies, global businesses, and governments from across Europe.
Their main goal is to create new ideas and plans based on scientific facts. They use this information to help leaders make important decisions. The organisation officially started in 2009. It was launched at the European Parliament by former French President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing and Michelangelo Baracchi Bonvicini.
History
Atomium - European Institute for Science, Media and Democracy was officially created in 2006. It was set up under Belgian law as an international non-profit group. When it first started, over forty leading European universities and businesses joined.
The institute also built a large network of important political leaders. These included Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, Felipe González, and Jean-Claude Juncker. The first Secretary General of Atomium-EISMD was Bruno Le Maire. He is now the French Minister of Economy.
In November 2009, Atomium-EISMD was publicly launched. This event took place at the European Parliament. On November 9, 2009, Giscard d'Estaing and Baracchi Bonvicini signed an important document. It was called the European Manifesto of Atomium - European Institute for Science, Media and Democracy.
On May 18, 2010, Giscard d'Estaing and Baracchi Bonvicini presented a report. It was called the Report on European Research and Innovation 2020. They presented it with Jerzy Buzek, who was the President of the European Parliament. Also present was Máire Geoghegan-Quinn, a European Commissioner. The report suggested ways for the European Commission to improve its research and innovation plans.
In September 2012, there were talks about the EU budget for 2014–2020. Baracchi Bonvicini and Giscard d'Estaing joined with former Spanish Prime Minister Felipe González Márquez. They signed an appeal together. It was titled "For a European Consciousness, For a More Competitive Europe". This appeal asked EU countries to spend more money on research and new ideas. The appeal was sent to all European prime ministers. Many European newspapers also published it.
REIsearch
REIsearch is a special project that doesn't aim to make a profit. It gets funding from the European Commission, Nokia, Elsevier, and other Atomium partners. The main goal of REIsearch is to connect researchers with people who make government rules. This helps ensure that decisions are based on scientific facts.
After REIsearch started, Jean-Claude Juncker spoke about it. He said that new discoveries help people's lives and make the economy stronger. He believed science should be open for discussion and new ideas. He welcomed efforts like REIsearch to solve big problems in society.
For its first three years, REIsearch focused on specific topics. These included Chronic Diseases. This was done with the European Commission's health department. They also worked on Next Generation Internet and Digital Skills. These projects reached many Europeans through media campaigns and surveys.
AI4People
In 2018, Atomium-EISMD started a project called AI4People. This project brought together many different groups. These included university experts, community groups, and big companies. Some of the founding members were Audi, Elsevier, Facebook, and Google. They all wanted to discuss how new Artificial Intelligence (AI) could affect society.
After its first year, AI4People presented an important document. It was called "AI4People's Ethical Framework for a Good AI Society". This framework offered ideas, risks, rules, and suggestions for AI. It was presented at the European Parliament during a summit. Tony Blair opened this event. This work helped the European Commission create its own rules for trustworthy AI in 2019.
