This is the summary report of the Mutual Learning Exercise (MLE) on ‘Widening Participation and Strengthening Synergies’ that was carried out during 2017-2018 by 12 Member States (including one Observer) and one associate country.
Research integrity is a foundation of excellent science and the cornerstone of societal trust in researchers and research institutions. Advancing research integrity across Europe is of the utmost importance to ensure the high quality of science, including reproducibility of research results, and to ensure a fruitful relationship between science and society.
This report was developed between February 2017 and February 2018 as a Specific Support Action to Bulgaria under the Horizon 2020 Policy Support Facility (PSF), which provides expertise and operational support to Member States in designing, implementing and evaluating national research and innovation policies, including country Peer Reviews and Specific Support to policy reforms, as well as thematic Mutual Learning Exercises to improve policy-making practice through exchanges among several countries.
This report summarises the work of the PSF panel of four independent experts, from January to December 2017, including a mission to Sofia to consult stakeholders and discuss potential recommendations, to support the Bulgarian government.
To support countries in reforming their research and innovation systems, the Directorate-General for Research & Innovation (DG RTD) of the European Commission set up a Policy Support Facility (PSF) under the European Framework Programme for Research & Innovation ‘Horizon 2020’. It aimed to support Member States and associated countries in improving their national science, technology and innovation systems.
The Background Report provides an overview of the Bulgarian science, research and innovation system in the context of the Specific Support to Bulgaria within the Horizon 2020 Policy Support Facility.
This report builds on the exchange of experiences and mutual learning of 13 countries: Armenia, Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden and Switzerland. It provides an overview of various challenges of Open Science implementation across Europe as discussed throughout several meetings in 2017.
An overview on the MLE on Widening Participation and Strengthening Synergies
The JRC managed Public Research Funding (PREF) study has collected information on and analysed national public research funding. It provides an overview of its evolution and current state in European and selected non-European countries, particularly as concerns funding themes, fields and the types of allocation (competitive project based versus institutional funding). The study was conducted by a consortium led by IRCRES CNR and involving researchers from USI, AIT and NIFU as well as a number of country experts.
The MLE will focus on exchanges of national practice at the operational level in relation to how best to support national participation in EU framework programmes, as well as how best to use ESIF and exploit synergies at the national level to build up a knowledge economy.
