29 Apr 2024
The Guild calls for strengthening EU-UK research collaboration in EU Framework Programmes
The Guild of European Research-Intensive Universities has issued a statement stressing the importance of the reassociation of the UK to Horizon Europe and its successor programmes, as well as the urgent need for Switzerland to associate to enhance Europe’s competitiveness and resilience to better address societal challenges.
The Guild calls for making the re-connection of the UK to the European research programmes impactful, especially for the generation of UK researchers that has never had the opportunity to engage in the EU framework programme. UK and EU partners should collectively strive for new research collaborations and optimally exploit the opportunities offered by the reassociation. Universities could support this re-engagement by providing seed funding for Horizon applications and exploring bilateral agreements that could enable researchers to join larger networks. The statement focuses particularly on the SSH disciplines, quoting them as "an example of an area where the Framework Programme funding has made a visible impact in research communities through Pillar 1".
The Guild also highlights the fact that the Swiss research community is still lacking Horizon Europe association and not able to play its full role in European scientific networks, and welcomes the restart of the negotiations between EU and Switzerland, calling for a swift reassociation.
For more information:
Statement by The Guild’s Deans of Social Sciences, Arts and Humanities (SSAH)