Minister of Innovation Hanke appoints Uwe Cantner to FORWIT council Internationally renowned innovation expert and former chairman of the German Expert Commission on Research and Innovation joins the government advisory body
High-profile newcomer to the Council for Research, Science, Innovation and Technology Development (FORWIT): At the behest of Peter Hanke, Federal Minister for Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure, University Professor Dr. Uwe Cantner is appointed as a new member of the advisory body to the Austrian federal government.
Uwe Cantner is considered one of the world's most renowned experts in innovation and technology policy and has long been involved with key technologies.
With this expertise, Professor Cantner is a true asset to Austrian FTI policy, as Minister of Innovation Peter Hanke emphasises: “With the Industry Strategy 2035, we as the federal government have paved the way for how we want to catch up again with the leading industrial nations of the world. Defining a total of nine key technologies and areas of strength is an essential component of this. With his extensive experience in high-level advisory bodies and his scientific as well as politically relevant expertise, particularly concerning transformative innovation policy, productivity, technological change and governance under uncertainty, Uwe Cantner will be a major asset in the council.”
Cantner succeeds Sylvia Schwaag Serger, who had stepped down from her mandate due to capacity reasons. Uwe Cantner was the chairman of the Expert Commission on Research and Innovation (EFI) for the German federal government from 2019 to 2025. The EFI carries out similar tasks to those of the FORWIT in Austria. In his main occupation, he is a professor of economics at the Friedrich Schiller University Jena and as such a specialist in innovation and transformation economics. This makes Cantner an outstanding expert who can draw on versatile experience.
Uwe Cantner, particularly in this current time marked by major challenges, will become an extraordinarily valuable member of FORWIT as an advisory body to the Austrian federal government. The BMIMI is proud to have acquired such a recognised expert, who will further strengthen the role and significance of FORWIT for Austria as a strong research, technology, and innovation location.