New leadership, publishing reforms and more—the biggest research policy news from Europe this year
In 2023, new research and innovation leaders for the EU, efforts to revamp academic publishing, academic freedom and researcher careers led our European news.
Selected by our editorial team, these are the Research Professional News stories that defined European research this year.
1. Research groups put faith in ‘spot on’ Iliana Ivanova (14 September)
Research, innovation and education groups gave their own vote of confidence to Iliana Ivanova, after she won the approval of MEPs to become the EU’s next commissioner for these areas.
2. EU ready to back immediate open access without author fees (5 May)
EU member state governments agreed that immediate open access to papers reporting publicly funded research should become the norm, without authors having to pay fees, and that the bloc should support non-profit scholarly publishing models.
3. Europe’s universities issue warning over government meddling in their activities (23 March)
Universities across the EU urged authorities to give them more freedom, after a major study of university autonomy across Europe found “excessive and unnecessary” political interference in their affairs.
4. EU assessment reform ‘needs to bring whole sector along’ (5 April)
The EU-initiated reform of European research assessment must work across the sector as well as with governments and global partners if it is to be successful, people involved in implementing it said at a Research Professional News Live webinar.
5. Marc Lemaître wins praise after calling for Europe to ‘raise its game’ in research (6 July)
Senior figures in EU research and innovation policy voiced their support for Marc Lemaître after his first months leading the European Commission’s R&I department.
6. ‘Charm offensive’ needed to restore UK-EU partnerships (11 September)
UK researchers may need to go on a “charm offensive” to restore research partnerships with the EU after the country finally rejoined the bloc’s research funding scheme, research managers warned.
7. Research officers ‘should be more proactive’ to gain recognition (6 December)
Research officers “should be more proactive” to help their profession gain the recognition from researchers and policymakers that many in the role think is lacking at present, the head of their European association said.
8. European Unitary Patent finally launches after decade-long wait (2 June)
The EU at long last launched its Unitary Patent, which is intended to make it easier and cheaper to protect intellectual property rights in more than a dozen participating countries, after more than a decade of delays.
9. EU’s ‘sensible approach’ to animal research welcomed (26 July)
The European Commission adopted a “sensible” approach to the use of animals in research, sectoral organisations said after the EU institution published its response to a petition calling on it to legislate for a timeline for ending the practice.
10. EU set for research careers push in 2024 (7 December)
The European Commission is on the cusp of launching initiatives to support EU researchers’ careers, with fresh details revealed to Research Europe. The proposals include funding employers to improve conditions for newcomers.