Www.cost.esf.org European Cooperation in Science and Technology COST is supported by the EU RTD Framework Programme ESF provides the COST Office through.

www.cost.esf.org

European Cooperation in Science and Technology

COST is supported by the EU RTD Framework Programme

ESF provides the COST Office through an EC contract

ISCH

Individuals, Societies, Cultures and Health

By Dr Constantinos N PhellasDC Vice-Chair

STANDING COMMITTEE FOR THE SOCIAL SCIENCES (SCSS)

Autumn Plenary Meeting Copenhagen, Denmark, 9-10 November 2010



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Strengthen Europe in scientific and Strengthen Europe in scientific and technological research for peaceful purposes technological research for peaceful purposes

through the support of cooperation and through the support of cooperation and interaction between European researchersinteraction between European researchers

The COST programme, based on an inter-governmental The COST programme, based on an inter-governmental agreement, is a long-running, economical and highly agreement, is a long-running, economical and highly

successful way to spread awareness and build networks successful way to spread awareness and build networks between Europe’s researchers.between Europe’s researchers.

It reflects the human dimension of science, helping It reflects the human dimension of science, helping researchers to share not only the results of their work but also researchers to share not only the results of their work but also

their aims and methods.their aims and methods.

The COST missionThe COST mission



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COST main characteristicsCOST main characteristics

• Enabling agent – focus on Enabling agent – focus on Early Stage ResearchersEarly Stage Researchers

• Pan-European dimensionPan-European dimension

• Scientific scope incl. pre-Scientific scope incl. pre-normative and public utility normative and public utility research & technologies research & technologies

• Focus on multidisciplinary Focus on multidisciplinary cooperation cooperation fostering fostering innovationinnovation

• Equal access / Open CallEqual access / Open Call

• Transparent proceduresTransparent procedures

• ““Bottom-up” - no fixed Bottom-up” - no fixed programmes / prioritiesprogrammes / priorities

• À la carte participation -À la carte participation -Coordination of national efforts Coordination of national efforts through networkingthrough networking

• Networks based on funded Networks based on funded (research) projects (research) projects – national responsibility– national responsibility

• Open to global cooperation in Open to global cooperation in the mutual interestthe mutual interest

• Building bridges between Building bridges between research communitiesresearch communities



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The 27 EU Member StatesThe 27 EU Member States

EFTA Member StatesEFTA Member States IcelandIceland Norway Norway SwitzerlandSwitzerland

Acceding & Candidate CountriesAcceding & Candidate Countries Croatia Croatia

FYR of MacedoniaFYR of Macedonia TurkeyTurkey

Potential Candidate CountriesPotential Candidate Countries Bosnia and HerzegovinaBosnia and Herzegovina Republic of SerbiaRepublic of Serbia

COST Co-operating StatesCOST Co-operating States IsraelIsrael

36 COST Countries36 COST Countries



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COST Actions: global participationCOST Actions: global participation (status: November 2009)(status: November 2009)

COST countriesCOST countries

Neighbouring Neighbouring countriescountries

Reciprocal Reciprocal agreements agreements countriescountries



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• Exploratory/Strategic WorkshopsExploratory/Strategic Workshops: : to explore future scientific or societal needs, support policy developments or stimulate innovative activities

What is funded by COST?

• Science management / working group meetingsScience management / working group meetings• Scientific workshops and seminarsScientific workshops and seminars• Short Term Scientific Missions (STSMs)Short Term Scientific Missions (STSMs)• Training Schools and Research ConferencesTraining Schools and Research Conferences• Dissemination and PublicationsDissemination and Publications

• Average funding +/- 100 000 € per year per ActionAverage funding +/- 100 000 € per year per Action

• COST ActionsCOST Actions: A network of (nationally) funded projects: A network of (nationally) funded projects(min. 5 participating COST countries) receive a financial (min. 5 participating COST countries) receive a financial

contributioncontribution based on a based on a joint work programmejoint work programme (4 years) for: (4 years) for:



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COST Domains

1. Biomedicine and Molecular Biosciences (BMBS)2. Food and Agriculture (FA)3. Forests, their Products and Services (FPS)4. Materials, Physical & Nanosciences (MPNS) 5. Chemistry and Molecular Sciences & Technologies (CMST)6. Earth System Science & Environmental Management

(ESSEM)7. Information & Communication Technologies (ICT)8. Transport & Urban Development (TUD)9. Individuals, Societies, Cultures & Health (ISCH)



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COST Open Call Collection DatesCOST Open Call Collection Dates

Relative demand by Domain and Collection DateRelative demand by Domain and Collection Date

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

2006/1 2007/1 2007/2 2008/1 2008/2 2009/1 2009/2

BMBS

FA

FPS

CMST

ESSEM

MPNS

ICT

ISCH

TUD

TDP

28/09/2009

695695 406406 475475 386386 378378 464699

EligibleEligiblePreliminaryPreliminaryProposalsProposals

481481



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ISCH Domain Description

Scope:

Coordinating long-term research within Social Sciences and Humanities on:

• The development and behaviour of individuals and groups

• Social, economical, political, cultural, historical and technological structures and processes

• Cultural diversity and a common European future



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ISCH History

Brief history:

• 1971: COST

• 1989: Social Sciences

• 2003: Social Sciences & Humanities

• 2006: Individuals, Societies, Cultures & Health

Currently approx. 30 running Actions, gathering 1.000 institutions and 3.000 researchers



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ISCH Portfolio

Science, Economy

& Technology

History & Identity

Law, Politics & Policy

Education, Health & Individual

Development

ISCH



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IS0801 Cyberbullying: Coping with Negative and Enhancing Positive uses of New Technologies, in Relationships in Educational Settings (UK), 2008-2012

ISCH Actions – Some examples (1)

• Refers to bullying and haressment of others by means of new electronic technologies

• Share expertise on cyberbullying in educational settings, develop measurement techniques across researchers

• Also include expertise from outside the research community (legal experts, mobile phone companies, internet providers, etc.)

• Increase awareness of the issue and move towards a common set of guidelines applicable in Europehttp://www.gold.ac.uk/is0801/



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IS0802 The Transformation of Global Environmental Governance (DE), 2008-2012


• Governance for sustainability is one of the great current challenges for political decision-makers all over the world

• The Action focuses on the causes and consequences of the transformation of global environmental governance as well as on its effectiveness, legitimacy and robustness

• Increase the ability of policy-makers, business representatives and civil society to understand and influence current environmental governance



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IS0807 Living in Surveillance Societies (UK), 2009-2013


• Deepen knowledge about living and working in surveillance societies, to better understand the consequences of technologically enhanced surveillance for social questions, such as equity, cohesion and trust

• Raise awareness of surveillance in society• Help improved surveillance policy and practice• Make recommendations about its future

governance and practice

http://www.liss-cost.eu



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IS0902 Systemic Risks, Financial Crises and Credit: the roots, dynamics and consequences of the Subprime Crisis (DE), 2010-2014


• Provide comprehensive documentation and state-of-the-art analysis of the current Subprime Crisis and its consequences

• Reach a better understanding of financial crisis in general

• Develop a completely new approach to financial stability

• Formulate specific policy goals to make financial markets more secure



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Knowledge Management in Contemporary Europe (30 May - 1 June 2010)

Strategic activities – Example

• Set up an agenda of the current and strategic solutions in the field of knowledge management

• Allow for fundamental discussion along four major issues: the role of knowledge creation in a networked society; knowledge infrastructures; knowledge dissemination and transfer; the future of higher education institutions

• Affect policy development at European, national and local level and achieve conclusions and recommendations for action of use to policy-makers as well as for researchers and the management and leadership of universities and in the educational policy and for the population at large



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Cost Open Call for proposals (1/4)

• Collection Date 2009-2. – CSO, at its meeting in May 2010 had approved 3 new Actions :

• IS1001 :”Bio-objects and their boundaries: governing matters at the intersection of society, politics and science”

• IS1002: “Modernet – a network for development of new techniques of discovering trends in occupational and work-related diseases and tracing new and emerging risks”

• IS1003: “International law between consitutionalisation and fragmentation: the

role of law in the post-national constellation”

.



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• COST Open Call: 2010-1• Mar 26,2010

– 132 eligible preliminary proposals were assessed by DC-ISCH, out of 583 in all COST Domains

• May, 2010 – Invitation of 11 Full Proposals in ISCH

• Sept 6-7,2010– The ISCH External Expert Panel (EEP) recommends 6 of the 11 Full

Proposals

• Sept 13-14,2010– The DC ISCH Executive Group (EG) interviews representatives of the

6 proposals. The EG’s report on the assessment and ranking of the proposals was circulated to the full DC on 21 September.



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• Sept 29,2010– Science in Society Cluster Chairs Consensus Meeting (ICT, ISCH and TUD)

• 4 ISCH proposals and one TD proposal are recommended:– # 6399: WEBDATANET: web-based data-collection – methodological

challenges, solutions and implementations (proposing country: ES)– # 6726: Medieval Europe – Medieval Cultures and Technological

Resource (proposing country: IT)– # 7402: Investigating Cultural Sustainability (proposing country: FI)– # 7047: Unravelling the grammars of European sign languages:

pathways to full citizenship of deaf signers and to the protection of their linguistic heritage (proposing country: ES)

– # TD7139: Pain Assessment in Patients with Impaired Cognition, especially Dementia TDP (BMBS ISCH) (proposing country: DE



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• COST Open Call: 2010-2

• DC-ISCH received 99 eligible preliminary proposals to be assessed

• In total 480 proposals were received across the nine COST domains



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Final Reports to be approved in Nov:•A28: Human Rights, Peace & Security in EU Foreign Policy•A33: Cross-Linguistically Robust Stages of Children’s Linguistic Performance•A35: Programme for the Study of European Rural Societies

Evaluation of completed Actions



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Update on strategic initiatives

•COST/ESF Synergy Initiative “Cultural Literacy in Contemporary Europe”•COST/ESF High-Level Conference “Future Internet and Society: A complex systems perspective” (October 2010)•COST/ESF High-Level Conference “Digital Humanities: Art History and Web”: (October 2010) •COST Exploratory Workshop “Knowledge Management in Contemporary Europe” (30th May and 1st) June in Brussels



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New ideas for strategic activities

•COST Exploratory Workshop on “The Ethics of Developing Robots for Battlefield Operations”

•The Academia Europaea – “Reason and Unreason in 21st Century Science” which

will be held in April 2011 in Cambridge– “The Role of Trust in Higher Education – Ethical and

Quality Standards in Research and Teaching” which will take place in November 2010 in Stockholm.



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• 10th MEETING OF THE ISCH DC WILL BE HELD IN LIMASSOL, CYPRUS

• 15TH NOV 2010



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ISCH contacts

ISCH DC-Chair:

Dr Marc Caball

[email protected]

ISCH DC Vice-Chair:

Dr Constantinos N Phellas

[email protected]

ISCH Science Officer:

Dr Julia Stamm

[email protected]



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Thank you for your attention

Contact Details

Dr Constantinos N Phellas

DC ISCH Vice-Chair

[email protected]

Www.cost.esf.org European Cooperation in Science and Technology COST is supported by the EU RTD Framework Programme ESF provides the COST Office through.

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