Guidelines on Science-Policy Engagement
In a nutshell
- The ETH Zurich guidelines on science-policy engagement have been in effect as of 1 February 2024.
- They provide guidance based on best practices for members of ETH Zurich who are engaged or plan to engage at the interface between science with policy.
- The guidelines affirm that science-policy engagement is supported at ETH Zurich and offer an overview of guiding principles, potential roles and risks, as well as relevant support units at ETH Zurich.
Article from the ETH newsletter«internal news» about the guidelines on science-policy engagement (12.03.2024)
The guidelines aim to provide guidance through best practices for members of ETH Zurich who are engaged or plan to engage at the interface between science with policy. For this purpose, the guidelines
- declare explicit support for science-policy engagement at ETH Zurich;
- define guiding principles;
- highlight different roles in science-policy engagement;
- raise awareness of potential risks associated with this engagement;
- list relevant support units at ETH Zurich.
«Policy»: Refers to public policy. It is the content dimension of politics, which is expressed through laws, programmes, plans, regulations, or guidelines (potentially) adopted by a legislative body, a government, a public institution, or an international organization in order to reach a certain goal.
«Policymaker»: Refers to a person in charge of political decision-making who is responsible for or involved in formulating, amending, or enacting policies. Thus, policymakers can be employees, advisors, or elected members of the executive or legislative branches, of an international organization, or of a political party.
«Partisan/politically clearly positioned actor»: Organizations and their members who are clearly linked to a political line or current. These are usually parties and political interest groups. While government agencies are policymakers, they are generally not partisan actors. Industrial enterprises essentially do not belong in this category either.
The dialogue between science and policy encompasses two types of activities that should be separated to the extent possible:
- «Science-Policy-Engagement» (also known as «science for policy»): Activities in which researchers apply their scientific expertise to support or influence policymaking. This includes science-based policy advice. These activities are the focus of the guidelines.
- «Political relations»/«Public Affairs» (also known as «policy for science»): Institutional activities to achieve favourable framework conditions to fulfil the activities of ETH Zurich, including conducting scientific research. These activities are not covered by the guidelines.
Strategic context
ETH Zurich serves society through its teaching, research, and knowledge transfer. Science-policy engagement, as an important part of knowledge transfer, is strategically and operationally supported by ETH Zurich through the Vice Presidency for Knowledge Transfer and Corporate Relations.
Political demand
Since the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, politicians and administrators have taken steps to better utilize scientific insights. Effective collaboration between politics, public administration and science requires mutual understanding and guidance about the different roles of researchers and policymakers.
Practical benefits
The guidelines provide support and guidance to members of ETH Zurich who are involved or plan to engage at the interface between science and policy. They also offer an overview of the units available at ETH Zurich that can assist researchers with questions or concerns related to science-policy engagement.
To make the guidelines more tangible, the following subpage presents selected articles alongside examples.
- Schweizerischer Wissenschaftsrat. (2022). Wissenschaftliche Politikberatung in Krisenzeiten. external pagehttps://www.wissenschaftsrat.ch/images/stories/pdf/de/SWR_2022_Wissenschaftliche_Politikberatung.pdf
- Gluckman, P. (2014). Policy: The art of science advice to government. Nature, 507, 163-165. external pagehttps://doi.org/10.1038/507163a.
- Pielke, R. A. (2007). Honest Broker: Making Sense of Science in Policy and Politics. Cambridge University Press.
- Ammann O., Farman D., Grüninger S., Maier S., Wyss R. (2023). Wer wird gehört? Wis- senschafter:innen in den Anhörungen der parlamentarischen Sachbereichskommissionen. Swiss Academies Communications, 18 (3). external pagehttps://api.swiss-academies.ch/site/assets/files/119266/de_whogetsheard_fur_web.pdf
- Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force (2022). Abschlussbericht der Swiss National COVID-19 Science Task Force (ncs-tf). external pagehttps://sciencetaskforce.ch/wp-content/uploads/2022/04/AbschlussberichtSTF29Mar2022-DE.pdf
Focal point for questions
For questions about the guidelines or about science-policy engagement in general, you can contact the Science-Policy Interface team of ETH Zurich.