SCIENTIFIC FREEDOM AND THE RRING COMMUNITY - RECOMMENDATION ON SCIENCE...

This session will explore current models and frameworks for scientific freedom. In particular, it will explore the H2020 project “RRING” work on the topic, via its work with UNESCO on the Recommendation for Science and Scientific Researchers (RSSR), which embodies the principles of Scientific Freedom.

The RSSR promotes a fair and appropriate status of scientific researchers and informs adequate national science, technology and innovation policies, and policies to ensure that societies use knowledge from all scientific fields in a responsible manner. Scientific freedom is at the core of the RSSR. RSSR promotes:

• the right of researchers “to work in a spirit of intellectual freedom to pursue, expound and defend the scientific truth as they see it, an intellectual freedom which should include protection from undue influences on their independent judgement;”
• “express themselves freely and openly on certain projects' ethical, human, scientific, social or ecological value.
• “ensure the protection of the human rights, fundamental freedoms and dignity of the human person, and the confidentiality of personal data.”
• “scientific researchers’ right to publish or communicate results”
• “providing scientific researchers in their direct employment with adequate career development prospects and facilities” and “providing the necessary funds and mechanisms for, career development, and/or redeployment”.

The overall project aim of RRING is to bring Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) into the linked up global world to promote mutual learning and collaboration in RRI. RRING will align RRI to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the UNESCO RSSR as a global common denominator and global Framework.

Solutions that the session will explore are:

• Barriers researchers experience in exercising scientific freedom.
• How can the RSSR be enabled as a practical instrument for researcher freedom/ researcher career security and reduced precarity?
• How do funders and funding organisations influence scientific freedom?
• Use of the RRING tools by countries in their 4 yearly review reports for RSSR: South Africa, Lithuania, Serbia.

AGENDA

Part A: Speakers section on RRI and RSSR:

1. Dr Rosarii Griffin, University College Cork, Ireland & International Consortium of Research Staff Associations, [email protected], moderator - – Introduction about the ICoRSA (5 minutes)
2. Dr Gordon Dalton, Plataforma Oceánica de Canarias, (Gran Canaria, Spain) & International Consortium of Research Staff Associations, [email protected], RRING Coordinator, main speaker (15 minutes)
3. Ms Juliana Chaves Chaparro, UNESCO - Social and Human Sciences Sector (Paris, France) [email protected], speaker, presenting the RSSR and 4 yearly monitoring (15 minutes, virtual)

Three case studies of countries using RRING tools to prepare country reports for submission to UNESCO:

1. Shadrack Mkansi , National Research Foundation (NRF) and SAASTA, speaker, presenting the South Africa case study in the RRING project (10 minutes)
2. Dr Reda Cimmperman, Research Council of Lithuania (Vilnius, Lithuania), [email protected], speaker, presenting the Lithuanian case study in RRING project (10 minutes)
3. Mr Bojan Kenig, Center for Promotion of Science (Belgrade, Serbia), [email protected] – speaker, presenting the Serbia case study in the RRING project (10 minutes, virtual)
4. Eric Jensen- UNESCO contractor, speaker, presenting the SiDA Project, 7 country case studies (10 minutes )

Part B: Workshop panel session (organized by NRF/SAASTA). Workshop theme: South Africa country case study in RRING

The following will be explored in the Workshop panel: (80 minutes )

• What tools will South Africa (SA) use for the next RSSR review?
• Who will be on the South Africa Working Group (SA WG)?
• Will South Africa engage with the RRING community for bottom-up feedback and input?

Panel: members:

• SA WG
• UNESCO SA
• ICORSA
• NRF

Wrap-up: 10-minute summary by Rosarii Griffin

Side event organizer:

Organization: International Consortium of Research Staff Associations (ICoRSA, a non-for-profit company based in Ireland), Rosarii works at University College Cork (UCC), Ireland

Co-organised by: National Research Foundation of South-Africa (NRF), South African Agency for Science and Technology Advancement (SAASTA)

Moderator:

• Full name: Dr Rosarii Griffin FRSA, Secretary and Director of ICORSA
• Title: Secretary/Director of the International Consortium of Researcher Staff Association (ICORSA) and Chair of the Researcher Staff Association at University College Cork, Ireland (UCCRSA)
• Country: Ireland.
• Telephone: + 353 86 1952551

Please reserve your spot here on Eventbrite until November 29, 2022, 17:00.

The ZOOM session link will be sent to the participants after the registration.

More information about the RRING is here.

This session is a part of the World Science Forum. More information is here.

Host or Publisher NRF, SAASTA and ICoRSA