Meeting the challenge of successfully converting research into innovation is a major goal of the European Commission's Horizon 2020 initiative, as Thierry Van der Pyl , Director of Components and Systems in the EC's Information Society and Media Directorate-General, discusses in this new SPIE. TV video interview . Organized to leverage the interdisciplinary nature of solutions to challenges in energy, lighting, communications, healthcare, manufacturing other areas, Horizon 2020 aims to improve Europe's ability to transform knowledge into applications that have an economic impact through the strength of public-private partnership, Van der Pyl says. Photonics is truly a vital part of the interdisciplinary mix, and well-deserving of its recognition by the EC as one of six Key Enabling Technologies. The June 2011 report of the High-Level Expert Group on Key Enabling Technologies estimated that the 5,000 photonics companies in the EU direct...