The aim of the project was the organisation and conduct of the inaugural meeting of the scientific area programme "The Economics of Science", issued by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research (BMBF), Bonn, on the 31st of May and the 1st of June, 2012 in Mannheim. We conducted the inaugural meeting on behalf of the BMBF. The meeting at the ZEW intended to contribute to the general goals of the programme "The Economics of Science". Among others, it was the aim to foster the capacities for economic research on science and its empirical fundaments. The meeting in Mannheim provided the opportunity for researchers and experts to discuss selected themes of the economics of science and to gather information on the projects that are funded by the scientific area programme. Participation was free of charge. Professor Paula Stephan, University of Georgia, USA, gave the keynote speech at the first day of the meeting. She introduced the research area "The Economics of Science" with a focus on universities. For further information, please visit our homepage Inaugural Meeting "The Economics of Science".