Sign petition against budget cuts to COST program

Today I received a troubling message from the COST Office that the H2020-budget for the COST program is proposed to be cut. I don't agree to these cuts for a number of reasons:

• The COST program has a special place within H2020, and fosters the collaboration of scientists from different countries. Moreover, it actively promotes the participation in research of young researchers, investigators from less research-intense countries, and promotes a gender-balanced participation.
• As Chair as one of the COST Actions I admire these networking tools, and the scientific output they create. The main outcome of the COST program is not an sich the scientific publications (although it fosters these significantly), but creating an open mind to science and how to achieve things collectively.
• For all these reasons, I wholeheartedly support the petition by COST to have stable and adequate budget for Science in general, and the COST program in particular.

Therefore I would ask all to sign the petition by the COST Office. More information about the proposed budget cuts can be found at the COST website.

Petition link: https://forms.cost.eu/petition