Science for Policy 2.0 - we need YOU!

At the beginning of 2023, the Ministry of Education, Culture, and Science launched a project called Science for Policy. The project's goal is to explore innovative ways to enhance the interaction between policy and science. To achieve this, a dedicated team was formed through a collaboration between the Ministry, the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences, NWO, and Universities of the Netherlands. Our objective is to create structural yet dynamic connections between science and policy, ensuring that top civil servants and politicians have access to cutting-edge, multidisciplinary scientific insights. The Science for Policy team works not only within the domains of education, culture, and science but across the entire spectrum of the civil service.

One promising approach we're exploring to strengthen the ties between policy and science is the concept of science fellows. These fellows are researchers who spend a period working within the civil service as part of their academic careers. We've already seen significant interest from Dutch ministries in such fellowships as a way to incorporate scientific expertise into policymaking.

In the coming months, we'll be gathering feedback from the scientific community. We are keen to hear your thoughts on the advantages and challenges of science fellowships through this survey. We want to understand whether and under what conditions a fellowship would be attractive to you. We greatly appreciate your participation and look forward to discussing the results later this fall.

On behalf of the team,

Janet Veldstra en Rien Rouw (m.a.rouw@minocw.nl)