The European reform of research assessment initiative is taking shape, and the Reform of Research Assessment Agreement is almost final. Soon, the process of establishing a coalition before the end of 2022 will start.
May was a busy month, with meetings of both the Core Group of Experts and the 2nd large Stakeholder Assembly. The Drafting Team incorporated feedback received from the survey that was launched in April, and an updated version of the draft agreement (Version 3) was shared with the Stakeholder Assembly, as planned, on 16 May.
On 19 May, over 200 participants connected for the 2nd Stakeholder Assembly meeting, co-organised by Science Europe and the European University Association (EUA). The objective of the meeting was to present and discuss the current state of the Draft agreement and conditions for the formation of a coalition to share good practice and support the community of endorsing organisations.
Participants were given the opportunity to provide focused input to the updated commitments and provide first thoughts on the proposed coalition through 11 parallel breakout sessions. A poll was held at the end of the discussions, and Science Europe and EUA were delighted to see the very positive response to the Draft Agreement:
Similar to the 1st Stakeholder Assembly meeting in March, there were lively and positive discussions throughout, and the Drafting Team is now integrating the input received. While the previous versions of the Agreement were restricted to stakeholder assembly members, the resulting new version will be released openly.
Currently, 330 organisations have expressed their interest in the initiative. This includes 27 (out of 40) Science Europe Member Organisations. A full list of interested organisations is publicly available.
This 3rd assembly meeting will focus on the creation and organisation of the coalition. It remains foreseen that the agreement will be finalised and opened for signing in Autumn 2022, and with the process to establish a coalition beginning before the end of the year.