ZEW Launches Seven New SEEK Research Projects in 2019
SEEK
In 2019, ZEW launches seven new projects as part of the international research programme “Strengthening Efficiency and Competitiveness in the European Knowledge Economies” (SEEK). In these projects ZEW researchers will analyse the specific aspects of European economic development and shed light on the conditions for intelligent, sustainable and inclusive economic growth.
Are the instruments of the European fiscal institutions successful in their role of ensuring efficiency and transparency in EU spending? How do measures to implement equal opportunities impact the economic development of individual countries? Is the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) slowing down innovation activity in Europe? Do more stringent environmental policies have a positive effect on the competitiveness of regulated companies? These are just some of the questions that will be addressed as part of the new SEEK research projects at ZEW over the next two years.
External experts have evaluated numerous SEEK project proposals in an evaluation procedure. Projects were selected according to criteria such as the scientific quality and originality of the proposed research, the relevance of the research question, as well as the intensity of the intended cooperation with international partners. Criteria like the likelihood of a project to attract third-party funding or to develop ZEW’s competencies in science-based political advising also played an important role in the procedure.
The following ZEW research projects were selected for the next round of the SEEK programme:
- Social Mobility and Economic Performance
- Balancing Privacy and Innovation: The Impact of the EU GDPR on the Online Market for Mobile Applications
- Digitalisation and Heterogeneity
- Political Biases in EU Spending: Mechanisms, Extent and Counter-Measures
- Innovation and Knowledge Transfer by Firms in Biotechnology Clusters in Germany
- The Impact of Environmental Regulation on Innovation and Firm Performance in Europe
- Cross and Common Ownership of Firms and Their Effect on Competition and Innovation
More than 40 SEEK projects implemented
The ZEW research programme “Strengthening Efficiency and Competitiveness in the European Knowledge Economies” (SEEK) has been funded by the State of Baden-Württemberg since 2010. The overarching aim of the programme is to promote excellent economic research. In addition, a particular focus is placed on developing ZEW’s international network. Up to now, researchers at ZEW have completed over 40 application-oriented research projects in collaboration with international partners as part of the SEEK programme.
Convinced of the programme’s success, the state of Baden-Württemberg has extended funding for further two years for the period of 2018 to 2020, which enabled ZEW to launch several new projects in January 2019. The projects are all characterised by their high practical relevance, which is why many of the research results translate into policy recommendations, enabling policymakers in Europe to make decisions based on factual evidence.
