Initiating a European community of practice on trust in science

Trust in science remains high across Europe, but it cannot be taken for granted. The 2025 Eurobarometer survey shows that most citizens continue to have confidence in scientific research, yet public debates increasingly reveal questioning of scientific advice. The survey also indicates that citizens expect research and innovation to be inclusive and socially responsive, and that scientists should devote more time to explaining their work to the public.

To address these challenges and support greater public engagement, work has recently kicked off to implement the European Research Area (ERA) Policy Agenda Structural Policy on Enhancing trust in science through citizen participation, engagement and science communication.

The first meeting bringing together many representatives from ERA governments and research and innovation stakeholder organisations took place in December 2025, initiating the work to establish a European-wide community of practice on trust in science. Representatives were nominated by the ERA Forum.

The European Commission, together with Germany, Sweden and ALLEA (the European Federation of Academies of Sciences and Humanities) as co-sponsors, is facilitating the implementation of the Structural Policy, supporting coordination and policy learning among participants.

Horizon Europe continues its long tradition of funding projects in public engagement, citizen science, and science communication. The 2026 calls under the WIDERA work programme are currently open, focusing on priorities such as enhancing democratic governance through citizen science and developing guidelines for inclusive public engagement in R&I. The 2027 calls will support projects engaging young people in science and promoting scientific literacy, and scaling up successful science engagement initiatives.