image: Participating institutions in the two awarded consortia.
Credit: TIER2
The Horizon Europe funded TIER2 project (enhancing Trust, Integrity and Efficiency in Research through next-level Reproducibility) has announced the two consortia which will receive a €5000 monetary award to hold a kick-off meeting for a national Reproducibility Network in their respective countries. The Georgian and Ukrainian awardees were selected among multiple applicants of the TIER2 Open Call which opened in July 2023 (read more here). After a round of reviews, carried out by Thomas Klebel (TIER2), Luka Ursic & Nansi Bralic (Croatian Reproducibility Network), and a fourth reviewer, the two consortia were unanimously elected. The open call was spearheaded by Alexandra Bannach-Brown and Friederike Kohrs from the QUEST Center for Responsible Research at Charité/BIH, a TIER2 project partner.
The Ukrainian consortium, from the Institute for Open Science and Innovation (INOSI), OPTIMA Project Consortium & Lviv Polytechnic National University, comprises researchers with a broad scientific background which already have experience working together in promoting Open Science in Ukraine, particularly within the OPTIMA project and within the Working Group on the National Plan for Open Science development in Ukraine. In response to what motivated them in participating in the open call, they state that: “Ukraine needs good science to make good decisions in all spheres. This is particularly relevant during the war and will be needed for the post-war recovery”. Regarding their future plans for the Ukrainian Reproducibility Network, they share: “In the short term, the ambition is to kickstart the network of experts, able to lead the discussion on reproducibility and become a role model on the national level. In the long term, the ambition is, of course, to make reproducibility in research a standard by default. This has to be supported by co-creation and sharing best practices, research on research, and making an impact on national policy. We hope that the network will be viable and ambitious enough to compete for international grant funding to achieve this”. With regard to the global state of reproducibility & scientific integrity, they say: “The progress on the global level is visible, but it's only the beginning of a long way forward. The key to achieving the goal is a strong research culture that is often missing in many academic communities. Openness and transparency in performing and communicating research are the basic things to be established.”
The consortium from Georgia, comprises three researchers from different institutions: the Department of Human Anatomy at Tbilisi State Medical University (TSMU), the Faculty of Medicine at Tbilisi State University (TSU), the Institute of Morphology, and the Scientific Department at Caucasus International University (CIU). Brought together as team members of a research group, a Horizon Europe grant coordinator alerted them about the TIER2 open call announcement. The team was immediately drawn to it, sharing that: “During our individual and collective research endeavors, we frequently encountered challenges in reproducing experiment results, a phenomenon that was not isolated to our work but across the global research landscape. [...] a consolidated effort was needed to elevate the state of research in our nation. [...] Moreover, the opportunity to foster a Reproducibility Network (RN) in Georgia provided a platform to unite our nation's fragmented research endeavors, drive standards in research methodologies, and integrate with the global scientific community”. Regarding their short-term plans after receiving the award, they list the following: “Organize the foundational meeting, bringing together stakeholders from various Georgian research institutions, to lay down the operational blueprint for the RN; Launch training sessions that cover core skills in reproducibility, data management, and research design; Conduct sessions in universities and community centers to educate and foster trust in scientific research: Set up an official RN website and leverage social media for real-time updates and engagements”. In the long term, the team envisions to “Establish partnerships with International Reproducibility Networks, facilitating knowledge exchange and joint research projects and collaborate with Georgian institutions to advocate for policies emphasizing reproducibility and transparency”. Their global vision for the state of reproducibility and scientific integrity “is one where every piece of research, irrespective of its domain or geography, stands the test of time and validation. We envision a scientific landscape where collaboration, transparency, and inclusivity aren't just ideals but are deeply integrated into research methodologies.”
When we asked the reviewers what they would say to the awardees, Luka advised them to “keep to their ideas/goals with the networks. People still don't understand it well and there is a significant resistance among researchers. While this is a barrier, it's also a goal for them - we're attempting to change a culture, and it's not an easy task in any context”, while Nansi “would like to congratulate them on their well-deserved success and wish[es] them the best of luck in their future reproducibility endeavors”.
The TIER2 team joins the reviewers in congratulating the awardees and expressing our commitment to support the motivated consortia in their Reproducibility Network kick-off and beyond.
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TIER2 receives funding from the European Union's Horizon Europe research and innovation programme under grant agreement No 101094817.
Views and opinions expressed are those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or the European Commission. Neither the EU nor the EC can be held responsible for them.