EU: More society in research with Engage2020

The European Commission has said it wishes to increase the use of societal engagement methods in research within Horizon 2020. The EU-funded Engage2020 project will create an overview of methods used in research and innovation to include members of society and to identify methods and solutions to new societal challenges.

Moving towards Horizon 2020, a consortium of six partners is initiating Engage2020. Over the next year and a half the project will map how, where and why members of the public, stakeholders, consumers and other groups of society are engaged in the research process, from early policy development to the delivery of research activity.

The purpose of Engage2020 is to identify and present concrete methods to reach increased public participation and democratic processes in European research. The project will produce a systematic overview on the methods to create awareness amongst researchers, policy makers and other relevant parties in research as inspiration on how to involve people. The project will map existing policies, structures, methods, approaches, tools, and instruments as well as recommend promising new approaches for future use.

Areas to receive focused research include: health; food security; secure and clean energy; smart transport; and climate action.

The Commission said it considers new forms of governance in the field of research and innovation as necessary. There is an increased interest in including members of society as a great party with influence in research to give more robust and sustainable solutions.

Engage2020 will present its results by autumn 2014 to include the results in 2015 calls of Horizon 2020.