As in the case of most Community initiatives, research programmes (and the Framework Programme which encompasses them) are proposed by the Commission. The process of identifying new areas for Community action or new methods of action, choice of themes, selection of priorities, etc. is accomplished with the help of various contributions: from the scientific community, industry, national research authorities, etc. Continuously immersed in the environment of individuals and organizations related to research and technological development in Europe, and equiped with its own tools for analysis and research (such as the MONITOR programme, the Forward Studies Unit, or the JRC's PROMPT Institute), the Commission has at its disposal many sources of information on research requirements at a European level . Once the programmes are proposed, the European Parliament and the Council of Ministers examine and discuss them. The Economic and Social Committee also considers them. They are adopted by the Council, following th

e procedures in force in this area. All Community research programmes follow, to a greater or lesser extent, the same model. The basic principle is cooperative, "shared-cost" research. The Commission provides 50 % of the total project costs, carried out by consortia composed of laboratories, business and research centres in different European countries. The number of partners varies depending on the sector, the average varying from 5 to 10. The financial costs of projects can range from a hundred thousand ECUs to millions of ECUs, as in the case of major industrial research projects. Projects are chosen on the basis of a process of public calls for proposals, followed by selection. They are published in the Official Journal and disseminated by many information services. Calls for proposals are generally open for three to four months. Proposals are examined in as an objective manner as possible: the first examination is anonymous, examiners are physically isolated, etc. In all cases, the primary selection c

riterion is scientific excellence. Furthermore, innovatory qualities, the interest of the project for European industry, and its impact on Community economic and social cohesion are also taken into account. The selection ratio varies with each programme, ranging from one project selected in two to three in very specialized areas where the European scientific community is rather small (such as climatology or radioprotection) to one project selected in seven in very open programmes which cover a large spectrum of areas and disciplines (such as the Human Capital and Mobility Programme), going even beyond this in cases such as the first call for proposals for the Medical Research Programme. The Commission manages the programmes together with committees composed of representatives from Member States. There are several types of committees whose powers vary. In all cases, no important decision on the programmes can be taken without their approval. To involve to a greater extent the Member States in the management o

f programmes, national experts are increasingly associated in actually directing them. Within the Commission, the teams managing programmes are made up of scientists, technologists with experience in industry, economists and specialists in the social aspects of technological development. In each project, one of the partners acts as "head of project". He or she is the one who coordinates the administrative, financial and scientific plans of the project. Information activities have developed around research programmes (before, during and after their execution). The Commission and specialized organizations in Member States disseminate different types of information (access guides to programmes, information bulletins, etc.) on the contents of the programme, conditions for participation, deadlines for calls for proposal, contact persons, etc. When programmes are about to be launched, information meetings are organized all over the Community by the Commission and by national authorities. Major meetings/conferenc

es are regularly organised on several programmes such as ESPRIT days, BRITE-EURAM Technological Days, etc. They offer an opportunity for assessing the programme's development, as well as for discussing the needs and perspectives of European research in that particular section. These events offer a unique chance to the programme's candidates and participants for identifying potential partners and preparing new proposals. Once the programmes have been carried out, they are then systematically submitted for evaluation by a panel of independent experts. An objective statement is drawn up which takes into account the expected industrial impact and the quality of management. Evaluation reports are published and widely distributed. The fact that the authors can be critical proves the independence of their work. The evaluation committees make assessments and recommendations which the Commission generally takes into account when it prepares new proposals.

Parallel to the major shared-cost programmes, the Joint Research Centre (JRC) is responsible for a part of Community research activities. The JRC is made up of eight institutes spread across four different sites in Europe, each specializing in one particular area (materials, teledetection, the environment, safety technology, etc.). It carries out research within the context of several specific programmes of the Framework Programme. Moreover, it works on the basis of contracts with public and private external clients and furnishes, to an increasing extent, scientific support for the implementation of major Community policies such as agricultural, environmental and development policies. As it does in general, the JRC specializes in "pre-normative" research (research necessary for the creation of common norms and standards) in these areas.