Research fundings enable Europe to drive innovation, address societal challenges, and maintain global competitiveness. While the value and benefit of applied research is relatively easy to understand for policymakers and the public, the link between fundamental research and societal value is less evident for them. As a consequence, it is increasingly clear that Europe lags behind other major powers in terms of investment in transformative frontier research and that this threatens its future.
Horizon Europe, the main research funding programme available to researchers based in EU member states and associated countries, is one of the key drivers of innovation in Europe. Not only does it fund research that aims to address our societal challenges, such as climate change, but the results of Horizon Europe funded projects often lead to unexpected discoveries, to unforeseen impact and even to solve upcoming new challenges. This impact is widely recognised and highlighted by the European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, mentioning the need to promote competitiveness through “invention and ingenuity” as part of the Commission guidelines for the coming years.
However, does the European Union and its member states have the mechanisms required to transfer this new knowledge into tangible applications and for supporting evidence-based policies?
This Great Debate will explore the procedures to bring research results closer to policy, economy and society.
Involvement of researchers in policymaking and other societal actions appears to be limited, often not well recognised, and not easily accessible. In addition, the interest in specific projects usually fades away after their termination whereas the repercussion of obtained results may only arrive later. Knowledge hub, government Scientific Advisory Boards or Science Advice Mechanisms are not systematically in place across Europe.
During this session, panellists from European research funding, scientific, and policy communities will debate: How can individual researchers contribute effectively in societal and policy actions? Which mechanisms should be created to facilitate the harnessing of research results? Should the use of research results be left in the hands of dedicated professionals (e.g., officers at the research institutions)? What is the role of Scientific Advisory Boards? And where is research budget best invested?