Einstein Telescope as the cement of long-term cooperation
Each country individually will benefit less from the Einstein Telescope project than all the countries together in a good partnership. This is the opinion of the Flemish top economist Geert Noels of Econopolis. Earlier this week, his research report on the effects of the Einstein Telescope for Flanders was published. The report calculates that the underground telescope offers opportunities that have never before occurred and are unlikely to occur in the future. This makes it an effective weapon in the fight against the effects of an ageing population. A few additional questions for Geert Noels, looking at the Euroregional perspective.
Many people will dive into your report looking for figures on jobs or return on investment…
‘The number of direct and indirect jobs is reasonably in line with other large construction projects. But if you look at the longer term, that is not the most important thing. It would be a shame to see the Einstein Telescope as a “major construction project”. It is a Big Science Project and that is where the attention should be focused. Such a project has merits primarily in terms of the ecosystem that you have to build and also in terms of the broad impact on society in the form of STEM profiles, attracting top scientists and creating a culture of excellence.
Your assignment and therefore scope was to look at Flanders. Can the outcomes in a general sense also be translated to the other countries or regions within the Meuse-Rhine Euroregion where we want to build the Einstein Telescope?
‘The impact of the Einstein Telescope does not stop at national borders. If we approach it intelligently, all partner countries of the Einstein Telescope will enjoy equal benefits in the form of scientific insights, connections to each other’s research institutions, the creation and strengthening of a high-tech cluster and the strategic collaboration of universities, research centres and companies. The comparison with CERN in Switzerland is apt in that respect, because not only that region itself, but also the entire country and its neighbouring countries, in addition to the partner countries, have enjoyed positive effects from CERN as a Big Science Project.
In your opinion, what should these cooperating countries/regions do to benefit as much as possible from the Einstein Telescope?
‘The participating countries should not look at their own interests, but at the common interest and the unique opportunity to broaden the scale of cooperation. Each country individually will gain fewer benefits from the Einstein Telescope project than all the countries together in a good partnership.
What is needed for this?
‘Each of the collaborating countries must be able to consider itself the project’s “home country”. That way, the benefits will be optimal. This way, everyone can enjoy the strength of a much larger ecosystem, which can never be achieved on its own. With the Einstein Telescope, you cement this collaboration for decades, because it is a long-term project.’
