Big interview: Maria Ottati – clearing a path for successful socio-economic assessment

摘要

Starting a new position during a pandemic isn't easy. Particularly for the head of a committee which, under normal circumstances, has members and stakeholders fly in from across Europe for two-week long sessions at a time. But Maria Ottati has done just that, taking on the chair of Echa’s Committee for Socio-economic Analysis (Seac) on 1 August. "I think it's a challenge," she says over video chat from her office in Helsinki where virtual meetings have become the norm for Seac: "The committee is not just a group of experts that are brought together separately, it is a team, and the in-person meetings are important to build those relationships, particularly as we've got five new members."