Recently, Sarah Vahed (Research fellow) from our Center had the privilege of participating in the enlightening Science Meets Region event hosted by the European Commission's Joint Research Centre (JRC) in Brussels. As staunch advocates for evidence-based policymaking, this two-day conference offered invaluable insights into the significance of basing policies on scientific evidence across the European Union.
Day one provided an opportunity to reflect on the outcomes of previous initiatives aimed at promoting evidence-based regional policymaking across the EU. Meanwhile, day two focused on the JRC's related efforts to support policymaking at the regional, national, and EU levels. With notable speakers like JRC Director-General Stephen Quest and Teresa Riesgo of the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation, the event highlighted the growing emphasis on evidence-based decision-making in policy circles.
As awardees of the JRC's Science Meets Regions Pairing Scheme, our Center also had the chance to showcase our work on decision science and its application in policy environments. We shared our exciting collaboration with the City of Nijmegen, which has included hosting a symposium to provide municipal policy makers with insights from decision neuroscience that can inform their problem-solving. This represents just the beginning of our efforts to showcase our expertise to policy professionals and foster collaboration between the Center’s researchers and policymakers.
With its diverse group of stakeholders, policymakers, and experts, the Science Meets Region event emphasized the need for humility and openness from both researchers and policymakers in pursuit of evidence-based policies that truly serve society. We look forward to continuing our work in this arena and collaborating with policy partners to drive positive change through research-informed decision-making.
Have a look at our poster attached below.
