As part of its commitment to responsible research, the UOC is training its faculty and researchers in RRI

With the goal of fostering responsible research and innovation (RRI), the UOC is launching a training programme that will enable faculty and researchers to apply these principles in their research. With this initiative, the University is promoting an approach in which science and society address future challenges together.

One way it hopes to achieve this is with the online course “Responsible Research and Innovation (RRI) for Researchers - An Introduction”, which will be launched on 21 February. Available through the Doctoral School, it will enable researchers to relate the concept of responsible research with their daily practice. This course is part of the UOC's strategy to foster open, responsible science. “Universities must respond to the global challenges we face as a society. The UOC is committed to performing open, responsible research and innovation, precisely with the intention of addressing these challenges while taking into account the needs and expectations of the different stakeholders. We are convinced that, by this means, we are contributing to enhancing the integrity, consistency and legitimacy of the research performed”, Pastora Martínez Samper, Vice President for Globalization and Cooperation, explains.

At a later date, the training programme will include another two courses with the goal of offering an comprehensive approach to RRI: one of these courses will explore the gender perspective while the other will focus on the development of skills related with community-based participatory research.

This first course will be given twice a year, in February and September, and will target researchers both at the UOC and from other institutions. It will also target agents who work in the RDI system (funding agencies, public administration, industry and the third sector) and wish to understand RRI and apply it to their own research. The ultimate goal is to close the gap between theory and practice in RRI.

The “Responsible Research and Innovation for Researchers” course has been developed by an interdisciplinary group of experts from the UOC, the Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona and the University of Bristol. The content's creation and structure has been based on the results of different European projects focused on RRI, such as PERFORM and Genport (both coordinated by researchers from the UOC's Internet Interdisciplinary Institute), HEIRRI and RRI Tools.

You can register now at the Doctoral School website.