Johannes Klumpers leads the Scientific Advice Mechanism Unit (SAM) in the European Commission since its establishment in October 2015. The Unit supports the Commission’s Group of Chief Scientific Advisors who, as their name suggests, give science advice to the European Commissioners. The Group of Advisors– with support by the Unit- collaborates in this endeavour with five European Science Academy Networks.

The Unit also supports the European Group on Ethics in Science and New Technologies (EGE), which also advises the Commissioners. Finally, the Unit develops policies on research integrity and assesses Horizon 2020 applications and projects according to their ethical and some legal characteristics.

Silvia Curado, Ph.D. holds a position as Research Assistant Professor at the New York University (NYU) and is the Scientific Program Manager of the NYU Nanomedicine Center (NYU Medical Center, Columbia Univ. and Univ. of Pennsylvania) and Europe (Weizmann Institute, ETH Zurich, Imperial College of London, Stuttgart Univ.) aiming at improving cell therapy by manipulating cell differentiation through mechanical stimuli. Previously she carried out her postdoctoral work at the University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) on regenerative medicine. She holds a M.Sc. and a Ph.D. in Genetics and Molecular / Developmental Biology (European Molecular Biology Laboratory, EMBL, Heidelberg, Germany). Throughout her career she has, in parallel to her research, been involved in multiple leadership activities and has received a Certificate in Business Administration (University of California, Berkeley), co­founded the Business Club at UCSF and served as consultant at the UCSF QB3 New Ventures Consulting Program.

João Rocha is, since 1999, Professor at the Department of Chemistry, University of Aveiro, Portugal, and Director of CICECO-Aveiro Institute of Materials. Ph.D. in 1991 from the Department of Chemistry, University of Cambridge, followed by a one year post-doc in the same department. He has published ca. 500 research papers and 4 patents, which have received over 16,000 citations (Scopus h index 60), and gave over 200 invited talks at conferences. He has mentored 40 post-docs and 25 PhD students, coordinated over two-dozen projects, and consulted widely for industry.

He is member of the European Academy of Sciences (EURASC) and of the Lisbon Academy of Sciences, and Fellow of the Royal Society of Chemistry and ChemPubSoc Europe. Received the Madinabeitia-Lourenço award from the Real Sociedad Española de Química (2015) and the prize for Scientific Excellence from the Portuguese Science Foundation (2005). His present research interests encompass materials chemistry, nanosystems, X-ray diffraction and solid-state nuclear magnetic resonance."

Arlindo Oliveira licenciou-se pelo Instituto Superior Técnico e doutorou-se pela Universidade da Califórnia em Berkeley, em Engenharia Eletrotécnica e de Computadores. É presidente do Instituto Superior Técnico e professor do Departamento de Engenharia Informática, onde lecciona, entre outras, disciplinas nas áreas de Algoritmos, Biologia Computacional e Neuroengenharia. Tem desenvolvido trabalho de investigação em sistemas digitais, síntese lógica, algoritmia, aprendizagem automática e bioinformática. É autor de mais de 100 artigos e de três livros, entre os quais “The Digital Mind”, editado pela MIT Press e recentemente lançado em Portugal sob o título «Mentes Digitais».

Elvira Fortunato is a full professor in the Materials Science Department of the Faculty of Science and Technology of the New University of Lisbon, a Fellow of the Portuguese Engineering Academy, and decorated as a Grand Officer of the Order of Prince Henry the Navigator by the President of the Republic in 2010, due to her scientific achievements worldwide.

Fortunato pioneered European research on transparent electronics, namely thin-film transistors based on oxide semiconductors, demonstrating that oxide materials can be used as true semiconductors. In 2008, she received in the 1st ERC edition an Advanced Grant for the project “Invisible”, considered a success story. In the same year she demonstrated with her colleagues the possibility to make the first paper transistor, starting a new field in the area of paper electronics.

Fortunato published over 500 papers and during the last 10 years received more than 16 International prizes and distinctions for her work.

Currently she is the director of the Institute of Nanomaterials, Nanofabrication and Nanomodeling and of CENIMAT. She is member of the board of trustees of Luso-American Foundation (Portugal/USA, 2013-2020).

Maria Helena Nazaré is, since 2016, the president of the Portuguese Higher Education Council, since July 2017, the president of the Board of Trustees of University Nova de Lisboa and a member of Board of Trustees of Fundação Francisco Manuel dos Santos in Portugal, since 2013.

Has been President of the European University Association, 2011- 2015, Vice-President 2009-2011 (elected President in 2011). Served the Portuguese National Education Council as Chair of its Higher Education Commission 2009-2012. Member of the governing Board of University Nova de Lisboa 2014-2017.

Was elected Rector of the University of Aveiro for the first time in 2002 and reelected for a second mandate in 2006-2010. Has been the chair of the Portuguese Rectors Conference Committee for research and knowledge - transference, and a Member of the Research Working Group of the European University Association.

Member of the EUA Institutional Evaluation Pool, since 2004, has participated in the evaluation of universities in Spain, Turkey, Palestine, Slovenia, Kazakhstan, Romania and Ghana. Has also participated in OECD lead projects: in Catalonia, Lombardy and HEInnovate in Bulgaria, Ireland and The Neterlands, ENQA evaluations in Galiza and Finland and World Bank projects evaluation in Nigeria.

Outside academia she served as member of the Administration Board of Aveiro Maritime Harbour 1998-2002, member of the Administration Board of Portugal Telecom 2008-2015, President of the Advisory Board of Fundação Galp Energia and President of the Portuguese Physics Society (2009-2013).

During 2016 was the thinker in residence for the KVAB, the Royal Academy for Sciences in Flanders.
Maria Helena Nazaré, trained as physicist, graduated (Master of Science-1972), from University of Lisbon, PhD from the University of London (King’s College London) in 1978 and habilitation from University of Aveiro in 1989. Obtained a full professorship in 1990. Has been Head of Department between 1988 and 1990, Vice-President of the Scientific Council in 1990-91 and Vice-Rector of the University of Aveiro, a position held until 1998.

Honorary distinctions:
- Grã Cruz da Ordem de Instrução Pública ( 2015)
- Chanceler das ordens de Mérito since March 2016.

Sara Sá has studied Space Engineering and after a brief experience in the field, specialized in Science Journalism. Since 2001 is a permanent journalist at Visão Newsmagazine, covering the topics of science, health and environment. Has been awarded, twice, the journalism prize of Liga Portuguesa Contra o Cancro, and the Unesco prize of Integration and Ethnic Minorities. Is the co-author of the book Cem Mitos Sem Lógica.

He holds a Doctorate in Theoretical Physics from the University of Frankfurt and is Professor of Physics at the University of Coimbra. He is author of Física Divertida, Nova Física Divertida and co-author of Darwin aos Tiros e Outras Histórias de Ciência (Gradiva), among many other books, some of which have been translated and published abroad. He was director the General Library of the University of Coimbra and is in charge of Rómulo – the University’s Life Science Centre and the “History of Science in the University of Coimbra” project. He has received various prizes and distinctions, amongst them the Rómulo de Carvalho Prize, the SIC and Caras Golden Globe and the Order of Infante D. Henrique.

Maria da Graça Carvalho is currently member of the Unit “Scientific Advice Mechanism” of the Directorate-General Research and Innovation of the European Commission. She was a senior advisor of Commissioner for Research, Science and Innovation from November 2014 to December 2015. She was a member of the European Parliament in the EPP group since July 2009 to May 2014. In the capacity she was one of the rapporteurs of Horizon 2020. She has been Principal Adviser of President Barroso in the areas of Science, Higher Education, Innovation, Research Policy, Energy, Environment and Climate Change from 2006 to 2009.

She has been Minister of Science and Higher Education of the XV Constitutional Government of Portugal and Minister of Science, Innovation and Higher Education of the XVI Constitutional Government. She is a Full Professor at Instituto Superior Técnico (University of Lisbon).

Deputy Chair Professor of Sociology, Erasmus University Rotterdam
Professor Dykstra has a chair in Empirical Sociology and is Director of Research of the
Department of Public Administration and Sociology at the Erasmus University Rotterdam.
Previously, she had a chair in Kinship Demography at Utrecht University (2002-2009) and was a
senior scientist at the Netherlands Interdisciplinary Demographic Institute (NIDI) in The Hague
(1990-2009).

Her publications focus on intergenerational solidarity, aging societies, family change, aging and
the life course, and late-life well-being.

She is an elected member of the Netherlands Royal Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW,
2004) and Vice-President of the KNAW as of 2011, elected Member of the Dutch Social
Sciences Council (SWR, 2006), and elected Fellow of the Gerontological Society of America
(2010). In 2012 she received an ERC Advanced Investigator Grant for the research project
“Families in context”, which will focus on the ways in which policy, economic, and cultural
contexts structure interdependence in families.