This was determined in the meeting of the chief scientist at TMT and the US Undersecretary of Commerce for Technology. At the meeting, activities in the fields of biotechnology, protection of critical infrastructures and nanotechnology were defined as the Commission's main and strategic areas of activity
The Israel-US Science and Technology Commission, through the Israel-US Science and Technology Foundation, will continue its activities, as the Chief Scientist at the Ministry of Science and Technology, Dr. Eli Ofer, recently concluded with the US Undersecretary of Commerce for Technology, Phil Bond.
Dr. Oper and Bond defined activities in the fields of biotechnology, critical infrastructure protection and nanotechnology as the Commission's main and strategic areas of activity. This is in line with the commitment of the Minister of Tourism, Ehud Olmert, to promote these areas.
As a leading leader in the field of nanotechnology in the US, Phil Bond expressed an interest in including Israel in the various activities taking place in the US in this field. Bond and Ofer served as hosts at the "Round Table" event in the field of nanotechnology that took place as part of the conference
US National Nanotechnology Initiative – From vision to Commercialization.
At the conference, Israeli and American nanotechnology experts met and discussed the steps required to create cooperation between Israel and the US in the field. The Israeli delegation to the conference was headed by the Chief Scientist at the Ministry of Science and Technology, Dr. Eli Ofer, and it included professors and vice presidents for research and development and heads of nanotechnology centers from all universities in Israel. The members of the Israeli delegation presented projects in the field that received great interest from a team of American experts. As part of the discussions, ideas were put forward to promote bilateral cooperation, such as drawing up a strategic plan for the field of nanotechnology in Israel based on a review and analysis of existing developments and the identification of Israeli capabilities and resources in the field.
Another issue decided upon at the conference is the facilitation of access to research in the field of nanotechnology and the creation of cooperation between Israeli and American research bodies in the field. The issue of increasing awareness of intellectual property rights was also raised. The Israel-USA Science and Technology Fund will operate in these two areas.
background
The Israel-USA Science and Technology Commission was established in 1993 with the aim of promoting joint activity in the fields of science and technology. For this purpose, each country allocated 15 million dollars for the activity. In this framework, the Commission supports projects and is engaged in promoting an infrastructure to remove obstacles in the fields of legislation and enforcement between the countries. The commission believes in creating strategic relationships, holding workshops, seminars and conferences. It works to strengthen the relationship between industry, government and academia. The Commission believes in creating collaborations at senior levels of government and industry and for this purpose has established several panels to speed up processes in several key areas of industry such as information technology and biotechnology.
In addition, the Commission creates joint ventures that link Israeli innovation and entrepreneurship with American technology and marketing ability. The commission's work processes are under the supervision of a board of directors consisting of four Israeli members Dr. Eli Ofer, Uziah Galil, Prof. Zeev Tadmor and Yoram Yahav and four American members, with Dr. Ofer and Phil Bond acting as co-chairs.
