The Swedish Research Council's strategy for science communication

One of the Swedish Research Council's mandates is to coordinate communication about research and research results. We work to achieve more and better communication and increased collaboration between researchers and other societal actors.

Ensuring that everyone has access to scientifically based knowledge contributes to a free and democratic society and a wiser world. Therefore, one of the overall objectives in the Swedish Research Council's strategic action plan for 2025–2028 is to contribute to the dissemination and use of scientific knowledge.

Excerpt from the Swedish Research Council's strategic action plan for 2025–2028:

The Swedish Research Council shall contribute to the dissemination and use of scientific knowledge

The work is guided by a vision of making research accessible and useful to everyone who needs it, in order to strengthen democratic societies in the long term and enable a wiser world. Researchers, communicators and journalists are key actors in the interaction between research and other parts of society.

The Swedish Research Council shall continue to work towards open science, which includes science communication, open access to research data and open access to publications. The trend towards open sources and publishing platforms affects both traditional indicators of scientific production and the financial conditions in the research system. The agency intends to closely monitor this transition.

The Swedish Research Council shall continue to coordinate and streamline national efforts in science communication to expand research impact. The focus is primarily on strengthening the conditions and abilities for researchers, research communicators and journalists to communicate about research through access to knowledge infrastructures (channels, arenas, publications), resources and capacity building (conferences, workshops, lectures and digital material). A key part is the development of forskning.se into a national platform for news and communication about research.

The Swedish Research Council will also continue to hold its own annual events to disseminate and communicate scientific knowledge, including the Forum for Science Communication and seminars such as Offentliga samtal - forskare möter praktiker om humanistisk och samhällsvetenskapliga frågor (Public conversations – researchers meet practitioners on humanities and social science issues), as well as symposia on artistic research and educational science. Regular reports on the results of approved projects shall be compiled, initially from the initiatives on clinical therapy research.

The Swedish Research Council shall continue and develop its involvement as a stakeholder in the foundation that publishes the popular science magazine Forskning & Framsteg (Research & Progress) and as a main stakeholder in the association Vetenskap & Allmänhet (Public & Science & Sweden).

The Swedish Research Council shall contribute to the international development of policies and practices through participation in networks and organisations for developing and valuing science communication and co-creation with the public, such as CoARA (the Coalition for Advancing Research Assessment), Science Europe and the European Science Engagement Association.

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