A harmonised and coordinated framework for a European approach to integrity and ethics in R&I in the face of emerging challenges

ERA Action 18 in the ERA Policy Agenda (2025-2027)

This action aims to anticipate, prevent, tackle, and mitigate emerging challenges and safeguard research integrity in critical technology areas in the light of the recent update of the European Code of Conduct for Research Integrity and the Commission’s Recommendation on critical technology areas for the EU's economic security.

• Taking a concerted approach to integrity and ethics to facilitate the sector's response to this and other emerging challenges;
• providing a wide range of tools to foresee, prevent, manage, and mitigate novel disruptive challenges to research integrity;
• develop a truly operational, coherent and sustainable European approach to support researchers to address ethical challenges.

Objectives

• Creation of a community of exchanges to facilitate the discussions on a new approach to ethics and integrity in research that is technology-neutral and will facilitate innovation and support excellence, respecting simplification and the ethics-by-design approach;
• coordination of actions to enhance ethics and integrity, prevent breaches, and address barriers to implementing existing ethical guidelines;
• gradually develop a European network to establish a framework for research integrity and ethics, including a roadmap of actions and performance indicators, taking into account already existing networks and structures;
• create a vision for an ecosystem of ethics advice and support based on trust, enabling science and research to drive responsible innovation aligned with societal interests.

Expected outcomes

• Development of a coordination structure (in the form of a European platform) that will bring together the existing European networks on research ethics and integrity;
• a detailed roadmap of actions and performance indicators;
• practical guidelines, operational toolboxes, and standard operating procedures;
• an approach to joint training actions approach on a pilot basis.