Achieving Societal Impact Through EU Research Grants

68% of Europeans believe scientists should intervene in political debates to ensure decisions are evidence-based (Eurobarometer 557). Yet, too often, the bridge between research results and policymaking remains underused. The European Research Executive Agency (REA) Agency has published a kit for EU-funded projects on how to share scientific evidence with policymakers. Its logic is simple but powerful: if research is publicly funded, it should not only advance knowledge but also inform policy choices. What this means The document outlines three principles for achieving policy impact: • Understand the policy context – track priorities, identify the right timing, and make results relevant. • Join forces with stakeholders – academics, industry, civil society, and other EU projects. • Plan for impact from the start – define audiences, key messages, and the right channels. It also lists the most effective formats to reach policymakers: policy briefs, consultations, workshops, and direct reporting. Interestingly, it stresses that researchers’ own social media accounts can also play a role in authenticity and engagement. Why this is interesting and for whom • For researchers: the kit provides 10 concrete steps and links to EU tools such as CORDIS, Horizon Dashboard, and the Horizon Results Platform, turning evidence into actionable insights. • For policymakers: it offers a structured way to receive scientific input in real time, aligned with the EU policy cycle. • For citizens: it strengthens the expectation that public policies are backed by evidence, not just political negotiation. The message is clear: EU-funded research is not complete until its results have reached the people shaping Europe’s future laws and strategies.

🔍 NGOs in Horizon Europe: Your Role in Dissemination, Communication & Exploitation (DCE) Are you an NGO looking to partner in Horizon Europe projects? Your impact goes far beyond participation — you can be a key driver of visibility, uptake, and sustainability of research results. Here’s a step-by-step DCE roadmap tailored for NGOs: ✅ Dissemination Identify key results with societal relevance. Map stakeholders: citizens, policymakers, media, other NGOs. Share through open-access platforms, community events, and policy briefs. Register results on platforms 📣 Communication Raise awareness using storytelling and public engagement. Use social media, newsletters, and science outreach events. Apply citizen engagement principles to boost relevance. 🚀 Exploitation Prioritize results with real-world impact. Explore licensing, spin-offs, policy integration, and educational use. Manage IP early with support from experts 📚 Knowledge Management & Capacity Building Organize and share results using FAIR principles. Train staff, build partnerships, and strengthen your organization’s innovation capacity. 🌍 NGOs bring unique value to Horizon projects — community trust, policy influence, and grassroots reach. Let’s make research matter!

If we want research to have societal impact, we need to think beyond communication and dissemination. In my conversations with researchers across public health, clinical practice, and related fields, a recurring issue is that we need fewer controlled trials and more implementation-focused research. Researchers know this. Practitioners and policy-makers definitely know this. And yet, implementation research is harder to get funded, harder to publish, and often seen as a career risk, despite being the type of research needed to drive societal change. When we talk about optimising societal impact, we often focus on the need for more and better dissemination and communication of research to non-academic audiences. And, while this is important, we know that the real issue starts much earlier in the research process. How research is generated shapes whether it can be translated into practice or policy. To close the research–practice–policy gap, we need to reward the use of designs and methods that are fit for purpose. We need to reward those that attend to complexity, context, and the realities of implementation. As someone who works at the intersection of research, policy and practice, I’ve seen the disconnect. Research designs with strong internal validity (like RCTs) are often prioritised, but they rarely tell us how or why something works, for whom, or under what conditions. To improve uptake and usefulness of research, we need to: ✔️ Balance internal and external validity ✔️ Use designs that make sense for complex, context-dependent challenges ✔️ Elevate methodologies that support both rigour and relevance It's also time for a shift in how we assess funding applications. What if review criteria explicitly considered: ✔️ Implementation feasibility ✔️ Scalability ✔️Relevance to practice and policy ✔️Appropriateness of the design to the research problem This would require: ✔️Review panels with diverse methodological expertise ✔️Quality indicators for translational potential ✔️Training for reviewers in knowledge translation assessment 💡 If we’re serious about societal impact, then it’s not just about what we do after the research is completed, it’s about how we design it in the first place. I would love to hear how others are navigating these tensions. How do you balance methodological rigour with relevance in your research? And what changes would you like to see in how research is funded and published? If you're working on, or interested in, developing quality indicators for the translational potential of research, I’d love to connect. It’s an area that needs more attention. Image designed using Chat GPT. #ResearchImpact #ImplementationScience #PublicHealth #ResearchFunding #KnowledgeTranslation #ComplexityInResearch #EvaluationDesign #ImpactMatters #HealthPromotion Aurélie Pankowiak (PhD)

🚨 Want to influence policy with your research? Read this before you write another paper. Far too often, researchers treat Brussels like the prize at the end of the research rainbow: ✅ Write the proposal ✅ Win the grant ✅ Publish the paper ✅ Give the talk … and then hope someone turns it into policy. But that’s not how impact works. That’s not how it ever worked. In today’s fast-moving and fragile world, Europe doesn’t just need more research. It needs relevant, timely research—the kind that speaks directly to political agendas, public need, and the reality of policymaking. 🎯 If you’re serious about policy impact, ask yourself: 👉 Are you just publishing papers… or are you joining the conversation? It’s time for research institutions—and researchers at every career stage—to treat engaging with policymakers as a professional skill, not a PR afterthought. Here’s how to get started: 🔹 Understand the system – Learn how policy gets made, at EU and national levels. 🔹 Mind the timing – Align your input with political windows, not just funding deadlines. 🔹 Speak clearly – Drop the jargon. Tell a story. Offer solutions. 🔹 Build trust – Policymakers engage when researchers show up prepared and credible. 💡 Before your next proposal or policy pitch, run it through these three filters: 1️⃣ Context – Does your work fit within current EU or national priorities (climate, cost of living, health)? 2️⃣ Citizen – Who benefits, and how soon? 3️⃣ Clarity – Can you explain it without a PowerPoint? 🧭 Europe doesn't just fund research. It needs it—urgently. But only if that research shows up ready to engage. 👉 Policy is a conversation. It’s time we started speaking up. #EUresearch #PolicyImpact #HorizonEurope #ResearchMatters #PublicPolicy #ScienceForPolicy #ScienceForParliament #ScienceForPolitics #ScienceForSociety

Of interest to the #Science4Policy #Science4Innovation and #SciComm community: While science is about the advancement of knowledge, researchers may also be interested for their knowledge to help tackle the multiple challenges contemporary societies in Europe face. Many EU citizens value scientists engaging in public debates, and want them to explain their work better (https://lnkd.in/dJfQ7AEX). Policymakers in Europe converge around recognizing the benefits of evidence-informed policymaking (https://lnkd.in/ehk3N6im) and plan to put R&I into the heart of the EU economy (https://lnkd.in/e3AhJDbu). To support the research communities in supporting these interests and pursuits, the European Research Executive Agency (REA) has been developing four brief helpful documents in recent months: 1) Starter kit for sharing evidence with policymakers https://lnkd.in/dUr9KPRg 2) Guide on how to write a policy brief with impact https://lnkd.in/erBg3XJg 3) Starter kit on "disseminating and exploiting project results", with a view to market and other societal uptake https://lnkd.in/eicZeme4 4) Checklist with useful tips on how you communicate your project's results better on Social Media https://lnkd.in/eBgE7ZcS These advisory documents offer check lists, do's and don't, templates, links to tools, and other relevant insights aimed at the research community, in particular to beneficiaries of EU funding. Thanks to the REA colleagues behind these publications for their excellent work. Of interest to: Estelle Barrillon International Network for Governmental Science Advice (INGSA) Scientific Advice Mechanism Zsanett Gréta PAPP Rokia B. David Mair Minna Wilkki Marc Tachelet Marc Bellens Paul Webb Lorenzo Melchor Alessandro Allegra Kathryn Oliver Mario Scharfbillig Anastasia Deligkiaouri David Budtz Pedersen PhD Rosie ter Beek Tony Lockett Paul Ferdinand Schlag Jacques (Jaap) Verraes Karen Fabbri Eleni Zika, PhD Álvaro Riaza Pérez Konstantinos Gkoumas Valentina Pierantozzi Pamela Pięch Athina Manta Kjartan Björnsson Koen Jonkers

Good policy listens. Great policy listens to science.  In a complex world, policies that learn from evidence remain credible, resilient and trusted. That’s why it’s so important for EU-funded researchers and innovators to engage more closely with policymakers. My colleagues at the European Research Executive Agency (REA) produced a series of practical guides to help projects communicate, disseminate and exploit their scientific results more effectively - and ensure that their work reaches those who shape policy and support their uptake in the economy.  1️⃣ Starter kit with step-by-step advice on sharing results with policymakers, an overview of key resources and tips to amplify the impact of scientific evidence:  https://lnkd.in/duXKbFap  2️⃣ Guide on writing policy briefs, including drafting steps, dos and don’ts and a handy template with examples:  https://lnkd.in/d46ERqPy  3️⃣ ️ To engage a broader range of stakeholders beyond policymakers - such as academia and industry - a special starter kit for disseminating and exploiting scientific results was created. It offers practical tools, resources and hands-on guidance: https://lnkd.in/d_yiqTPy  The goal is simple: help good science travel further, faster and turn evidence into action.