ERC chooses Bourguignon as new president

Science : The European Research Council (ERC), the European Union’s primary research funding agency, has reportedly chosen Jean-Pierre Bourguignon, a French mathematician, to replace Helga Nowotny, the ERC president since 2010. Bourguignon previously served as the head of the Institute of Advanced Scientific Studies in Bures-sur-Yvette, France, a position he stepped down from on 1 July 2013 after 19 years of service. Bourguignon is a graduate of the École Polytechnique in Paris and received his PhD from the University of Paris VII after specializing in differential geometry. If he is confirmed by the European Commission, which is very likely, he will replace Nowotny on 1 January 2014. The ERC is a popular source of funding for cutting-edge research in Europe, and its budget is expected to grow from €7.1 billion to around €13 billion in the next seven years. Unlike some other European sources of research funding, ERC grants are awarded on merit and without reference to the grantees’ country of residence.