Building trust, openness and responsibility in international research
International collaboration is a cornerstone of excellent research and innovation. For EU-LIFE institutes, openness to the world is essential to scientific progress, talent circulation and societal impact. At the same time, today’s complex geopolitical context requires research organisations to engage globally in ways that are responsible, trustworthy and aligned with European values.
Responsible collaboration enables researchers and institutions to collaborate with confidence, supported by clear principles, shared understanding and proportionate safeguards. EU-LIFE promotes an approach to international cooperation that remains as open as possible, as closed as necessary, strengthening both scientific excellence and institutional resilience.
Policy work on Research Security
EU-LIFE actively contributes to European policy discussions on research security and responsible international cooperation, bringing the perspective of independent, excellence-driven life science research institutes into European Research Area (ERA)-level debates.
Research security has been addressed through ERA Action 9. Promote International Cooperation in the ERA Policy Agenda 2022–2024 and will be further strengthened in the ERA Policy Agenda 2025–2027 through a dedicated ERA Action on Enhancing Research Security, closely linked to the long-term ERA structural policy on the Global Approach to Research & Innovation.
EU-LIFE participates in the ERA Forum Subgroup on the Global Approach, provides feedback on policy proposals, and engages with the European Commission on initiatives such as the Council Recommendation on Research Security and supporting measures at EU level.
As part of this policy engagement, EU-LIFE was a co-organiser of the first European Flagship Conference on Research Security (Brussels, October 2025), jointly with the European Commission and other major European R&I stakeholder organisations, contributing to high-level discussions on how to foster openness while managing risks responsibly. In addition, EU-LIFE hosted the session “Research security in practice: making space for an honest conversation.”
Community
EU-LIFE supports its community by fostering dialogue, peer exchange and shared understanding on research security and responsible international collaboration.
A key focus is creating trusted spaces where researchers, research managers and institutional leaders can openly discuss practical challenges, uncertainties and institutional approaches, and reflect on how policy developments translate into day-to-day research practice.
To inform and engage its members, EU-LIFE connects European policy developments to institutional realities, encourages proportionate and integrated approaches to research security, and promotes learning across institutes and roles.
This approach is reflected in the EU-LIFE Better Together session on Research Security (September 2024), which provided an open forum for discussion within the EU-LIFE community.
Latest events
- First European Flagship Conference on Research Security (Brussels, October 2025)
- Research security in practice: making space for an honest conversation (Brussels, October 2025)
- EU-LIFE Better Together Session: Research Security (online, September 2024)