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At the two major European research locations outside the EU, people worry about prestige, money and career opportunities.
Since the failure of the framework agreement, Switzerland has no longer been a member of “Horizon Europe” – the EU’s research and innovation program. This has consequences: In a recent federal study, a majority of the researchers surveyed stated that they had perceived a “deterioration” in their work since the exclusion.
The situation is similar in Great Britain. According to expert statements, the country is in danger of losing its top international position in research.
The research community complains (almost) unanimously
Almost 900 researchers and innovators from universities, companies and other institutions took part in a survey conducted by the State Secretariat for Education, Research and Innovation (SERI) in February. They wanted to know how Switzerland’s status as a so-called “non-associated third country” would affect their work.
The results were sobering but not surprising, as media spokeswoman Simone Keller from SERI explained when asked. Above all, she emphasizes the aspect of networking. A particularly large number of researchers said that their international networks had become smaller.
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consequences for the economy
In Switzerland, a particularly large number of start-ups are created around the university landscape. In the future, however, young talents could increasingly decide against Switzerland.
key stone
In addition to personal career opportunities, this also has an impact on the research itself. Because local scientists may continue to participate in so-called joint projects of Horizon Europe, but are not allowed to lead them, in the worst case there would even be terminations. “A lot of time, money and prestige can be lost that way,” says Keller.
The “superpower” Great Britain is also suffering
The situation in Great Britain is similar. After Brexit, the home of the two elite universities, Cambridge and Oxford, is no longer part of European research cooperation. Martin Smith from the educational think tank “Wellcome” regrets this and sees parallels between Switzerland and the United Kingdom.
Politics stands in the way of science.
“We hope that the UK will soon become a member of Horizon again,” he said when asked. However, an agreement is not in sight at the moment.
Great Britain is trying to maintain the status of an “education superpower” internationally. From Smith’s point of view, however, this should be doomed to failure in the long term if you remain excluded from Horizon. The radiance of the program is simply too great. “In the future, countries like South Africa or Canada could also get involved. It is questionable whether Great Britain can keep up.”
National programs help – but little
For this reason, “Wellcome” is putting pressure on the EU and national governments. The institute is one of the signatories to the “Stick to Science” initiative, which also includes several Swiss universities. «We believe – like our Swiss colleagues – that research knows no national borders. Especially in view of pandemics and climate change, it must be in everyone’s interest to conduct research in the largest possible ecosystem.”
Meanwhile, both Switzerland and the United Kingdom are trying to compensate for the loss of the “Horizon network” with replacement programs. Last but not least, the results of the SERI survey show that researchers do not see these as a complete replacement for the European network that is no longer being used.