Robert-Jan Smits (born 1958) is the President of the Executive Board of the

Eindhoven University of Technology The Eindhoven University of Technology ( nl, Technische Universiteit Eindhoven), abbr. TU/e, is a public technical university in the Netherlands, located in the city of Eindhoven. In 2020–21, around 14,000 students were enrolled in its BSc ...

in the Netherlands since May 2019. In 2018-2019, he was a senior adviser for open access and innovation at the

European Political Strategy Centre Inspire, Debate, Engage and Accelerate Action (I.D.E.A), formerly known as European Political Strategy Centre (EPSC), is a executive agency of the European Commission reporting directly to the President of the European Commission and under her aut ...

and from 2010 to 2018, he served as director-general of research and innovation (RTD) at the European Commission. He is known for his key roles in planning

Plan S Plan S is an initiative for open-access science publishing launched in 2018 by "cOAlition S", a consortium of national research agencies and funders from twelve European countries. The plan requires scientists and researchers who benefit from st ...

, to ensure that all publicly funded scientific publications are available in

Open Access Open access (OA) is a set of principles and a range of practices through which research outputs are distributed online, free of access charges or other barriers. With open access strictly defined (according to the 2001 definition), or libre o ...

by 2020, as well as for being one of the main architects of

Horizon 2020 The Framework Programmes for Research and Technological Development, also called Framework Programmes or abbreviated FP1 to FP9, are funding programmes created by the European Union/European Commission to support and foster research in the Europea ...

Early life and education

Robert-Jan Smits was born in 1958 in the

Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

. He has degrees from

Utrecht University Utrecht University (UU; nl, Universiteit Utrecht, formerly ''Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht'') is a public research university in Utrecht, Netherlands. Established , it is one of the oldest universities in the Netherlands. In 2018, it had an enrollm ...

in the Netherlands,

Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies The Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, or the Geneva Graduate Institute (french: Institut de hautes études internationales et du développement), abbreviated IHEID, is a government-accredited postgraduate institution ...

in Switzerland, and

Fletcher School of Law & Diplomacy The Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy is the graduate school of international affairs of Tufts University, in Medford, Massachusetts. Fletcher is one of America's oldest graduate schools of international relations and is well-ranked in its m ...

in the United States. Following his studies, Smits worked for the

Dutch Ministry of Economic Affairs , type = Department , logo = Ministerie van Economische Zaken en Klimaat Logo.png , logo_width = 250x250px , logo_caption = Logo of the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Climate Policy , image = Overzic ...

from 1985 to 1989, and left in 1989 to work at the

European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...

Career and impact

Smits is considered one of the main architects of

, an EU Research and Innovation program providing €80 billion of funding between 2014 and 2020. Smits has also played leading roles in developing the

European Research Council The European Research Council (ERC) is a public body for funding of scientific and technological research conducted within the European Union (EU). Established by the European Commission in 2007, the ERC is composed of an independent Scientif ...

, the

European Research Area The European Research Area (ERA) is a system of scientific research programs integrating the scientific resources of the European Union (EU). Since its inception in 2000, the structure has been concentrated on European cooperation in the fields of ...

, and the European Strategy Forum on Research Infrastructures. Recently, Smits has spearheaded the

initiative, which requires scientists make their publications open-access immediately on publication. 11 national funding agencies in Europe, who collectively spend €7.6 billion in research grants per year, have signed up to Plan S.

Awards and honors

* Honorary degree from the

University of Edinburgh The University of Edinburgh ( sco, University o Edinburgh, gd, Oilthigh Dhùn Èideann; abbreviated as ''Edin.'' in post-nominals) is a public research university based in Edinburgh, Scotland. Granted a royal charter by King James VI in 15 ...

(2016) * Lifetime achievements award from EuroScience (2016) * Academy Medal from the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (2017) * Excellence in Global Science award in South-Africa (2017) * Nature's 10 (2018)

Writings

* ''Plan S for shock'' (with Rachael Pells)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Smits, Robert-Jan 1958 births living people Dutch civil servants Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies alumni Members of Academia Europaea

Early life and education

Career and impact

Awards and honors

Writings

See also

References