Our global, national and local societies are at a crossroads. In the past few months, the COVID-19 pandemic has been making evident the vulnerabilities of our societies. Almost the whole world has been suddenly and simultaneously questioning – probably for the very first time in recent history – the capacity of our healthcare, food, housing, production, education, mobility, care and solidarity systems (among others) to meet people's needs.

Therefore, we live in times urging deep structural transformations towards new ways of structuring our economies and production systems, new social dynamics and more sustainable and inclusive forms of development.

Within an inevitable revamping of attention on the need for public action and government intervention, the importance of Research and Innovation (R&I) policies to simultaneously deal with economic competitiveness as well as with public health, social inclusion and environmental protection is undeniable.

In recent times and already before COVID-19, it was argued that R&I policy plays a pivotal role for the pursuit of – and transition towards – sustainable development, whose integrated notion balances the three dimensions of sustainability – i.e. the economic, social and environmental. Within the global debate on sustainable development as an integrated and indivisible concept, a new framing on R&I for transformative change has been gaining momentum. This offers the opportunity to reconcile productivity enhancement and value-generation with inclusiveness, public health and environmental protection, in order to pursue shared prosperity and human flourishing.

This webinar discusses to what extent and how R&I policy in the post-COVID scenario can represent a leverage for transformative change by empowering individuals and communities to meet social needs and address the issues of sustainable and inclusive societies.

In particular, it provides theoretical arguments and policy recommendations to design a roadmap for a new approach on R&I policies at European level, in order to contribute to transforming the EU into a fair and prosperous society and put its economy on a more sustainable and inclusive path.

SPEAKERS

Heiko Prange-Gstoehl – European Commission DG Research and Innovation

Michele Capriati – University of Bari

Andrea Ferrannini – ARCO (Action Research for Co-Development)

CHAIR

Mario Biggeri – University of Florence, ARCO (Action Research for Co-Development) and HDCA Co-European Regional Network Coordinator

CONVENOR

Caroline Hart – University of Sheffield, HDCA Co-Education Officer, and HDCA Co-European Regional Network Coordinator

Organized by the HDCA European Regional Network in collaboration with ARCO (Action Research for CO-development).