In the article entitled “Een wetenschapper biedt opties aan” (“A scientist offers options”), Bert Weckhuysen explains the importance of public-private interactions in order to achieve radical innovation.
Weckhuysen: “Science and technology are still underfinanced in the Netherlands, which makes it essential for companies and academia to work better together”. For a government, it is not interesting to invest money in developing a product that has no significant importance for the society yet, while scientists are eager to create prototypes that currently only “speak to the imagination”. Companies, on the other hand, have a clear vision of what they want to achieve or be able to provide in the future. They can provide the financial support that is necessary for researchers to create and bring further their innovative developments.
A collaboration of this scale could lead to more awareness and interest from the government.
“This is important, because a bond between industry, government, and science, is essential in realizing such dreams”.
Read more:
The full article “Een wetenschapper biedt opties aan” (in Dutch);