Each LERU university has one or more members in LERU Social Science, Humanities & Arts Policy Group. The activities of the Social Science, Humanities & Arts Policy Group are guided by a steering group.
The group follows the EU policy developments with relation to SSHA issues aiming at influencing and monitoring the integration the position of SSHA in Horizon Europe.
The activities of the thematic groups Crime & Social Control, Ethics, Law and Theology & Religious Studies fall under the remit of the SSHU Policy Group and will be followed closely, to the extent that these groups continue their activities.
Activities
28 & 29 April 2021, the Deans of the LERU disciplinary policy groups (Biomedicine & Life Sciences, Natural Sciences, and the Social Sciences, Humanities & Arts) met virtually for their annual ‘joint deans meeting’. They exchanged views about the latest developments in EU research, innovation and education policies.
Topics: *State of affairs of Horizon Europe and the European Research Area (ERA); *Erasmus+, the European Education Area (EEA) and the European Universities Initiative; *Building resilience to prevent, react to, and recover from systemic shocks – such as the current pandemic. Read further on LERU.org
At the meeting November 2020 the following topics were discussed
– World Pandemic Research Network (WPRN ) initiative – by Olivier Bouin (Director of the Network of French Institutes for Advanced Studies and President of EASSH)
– The WPRN is the first global real-time directory of research & research resources on the societal and human inpacts of the Covid-19 pandemic.
– LERU and Global Health – by Anita Hardon (Faculty of Social and Behavioural Sciences Programme group: Anthropology of Health, Care and the Body at University of Amsterdam) and Ibrahim Abubakar (Director, UCL Institute for Global Health and Professor of Infectious Disease Epidemiology)
Topics of common interest such as the nexus of teaching and research, research cooperation, student and staff exchange, joint degree programmes, and developing projects in the framework of the Erasmus Mundus and Marie Curie programmes.
LERU Social Sciences and Humanities Policy Group follows EU policy developments with relation to SSH issues aiming at influencing and monitoring the integration of SSH in new Horizon 2020 work programmes. LERU offers its views and advice to the EU in various ways and formats, and participate in EU meetings as appropriate.
LERU has organised SSH voice events with the purpose to underline LERU’s continued support and advocacy for SSH research in the EU programmes.
The Social Sciences and Humanities Policy Group has performed an evaluation of the participation of LERU SSH researchers in Horizon 2020 calls.
To promote SSH in interdisciplinary research is an important point of action for the policy group. LERU sees a need for specific action and work programmes on SSH issues in Horizon 2020.
Within the framework of the group’s work the following texts have been published:
LERU Advice paper 2012, Social Sciences & Humanities, Essential fields for European Research and in Horizon 2020
LERU Note 2013, Essential SSH Research for the Societal Challenge Secure, clean and efficient energy
LERU Roadmap 2013 to improve the position of SSH Research in the ERA and in horizon2020
LERU participated in a global SSH conference in Leiden 20-21 November 2014.
2014 LERU signed the Hefei statement on Characteristics of contemporary research -intensive university’s networks with the aim to restate the fundamental role that SSH play in the global community and call for an expanded role for the SSH in meeting problems through interdisciplinary research.
The statement was signed by the following signatories: League of European Research Universities (LERU), Association of American Universities (AAU), Association of East Asian Research Universities (AEARU),Group of Eight Australia, RU11 Japan, Russell Group (UK), U15 (Canada) signatories committed themselves
-to ensure that SSH disciplines continue to receive effective support within their institutions,
-to highlight the contributions of these disciplines to national and global wellbeing,
-to ensure that SSH research and education programs flow without unnecessary constraint in the wider Community,
-to promote strong funding and support for SSH research and advance global research collaborations, including interdisciplinary approaches.
Related:
Conference, SSH in Horizon 2020
SSH in EU research and innovation programme