Brussels, 19/07/2016 (Agence Europe) - Research ministers from EU member states and the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) adopted the "Bratislava Declaration of Young Researchers" during an informal research meeting on Tuesday 19 July. This declaration seeks to provide support to research in the Union and help create new careers in this domain, particularly for women.
Welcoming the adoption of this declaration, which he described as "historic", the Commissioner for Research, Carlos Moedas, stated "Without research, there is no growth… When you look at the figures, we are going to need 1 million more researchers".
The text cites four major areas of action: creating the conditions for "enabling great people and ideas";-guaranteeing "sustainable and transparent career trajectories";-improving the "research environment";-ensuring a "work-life balance".
As part of the first thematic, ministers called on financing bodies to "radically" reorganise their support for young researchers. They believe that the current system is completely focusing on economic imperatives and is characterised by bureaucratic practices, which is scarcely the best environment to encourage the emergence of new ideas.
They also called for research and scientific skills to be more effectively promoted in secondary education and appealed to the European Commission to develop a sustainable and effective financing system. For example, they submitted the idea of developing a subsidy system that specifically targets young researchers.
On the question of a professional trajectory, they called for the introduction of explicit criteria to ensure both career progress and stability within this area and for the subsequent reorganisation of financing systems to help reduce the number of short-term contracts. They called on both the member states and the Commission to coordinate mobility channels for researchers between the private and public sectors.
With regard to the research environment, ministers expressed their concern about the relatively low level of diversity characterising the average profile of European researchers. The member states and European Commission could support a charter for diversity and equality, they suggested to improve this situation. This charter would constitute a preliminary condition for accessing European funding the long term. Policies in favour of data and ideas sharing, particularly in the realm of research ethics, were also mentioned. In this connection, ministers gave their support last May to the so-called "open" research principle in the period leading up to 2020 (EUROPE 11560).
With regard to the subject of a balance between professional and private life, the declaration proposes that the research institutions improve their support mechanisms for childcare and support flexible working conditions and opportunities for pursuing dual-careers.
It is highly likely that this declaration could form part of the conclusions that are formally adopted by the Council of the EU in November, explained the Slovak Minister for Education and Science, Peter Plavèan. (Original version in French by Pascal Hansens)