Reflecting on Roles of Scientists in Society

Researchers take on a variety of roles: they uncover new facts, engage with the public, and contribute their knowledge to social and political processes. Some are aware of this diversity and switch competently between these roles. However, many do not realise that their research does not always take place in isolation from societal developments. With this project, SCNAT aims to provide guidance to universities and researchers and to contribute to the reflection on and further development of these roles.

Researchers and scientists are exposed to different expectations regarding their roles. They not only produce knowledge, but also act as communicators of this knowledge and serve as expert advisors to a wide range of groups. This results in demands and expectations, as well as challenges concerning the relationships between science, activism, politics, and society.

Building on a publication on the diverse roles of researchers in sustainability transformation, the Science and Policy Platform (SAP) of the Swiss Academy of Sciences (SCNAT) would like to promote a reflective understanding of roles among members of the natural sciences at Swiss universities, research institutions, and the academies.

The objectives of the project are to:

• encourage universities and research institutions to strengthen their competencies regarding role-related issues and to network existing offerings from these institutions
• foster an interdisciplinary and public engagement with questions of roles, thereby strengthening spaces for a value-oriented discourse on science, its functions, and responsibilities

These objectives are to be achieved through events and by providing existing materials and resources.

The project runs until the end of 2026 and is externally accompanied by Viktoria Cologna (Eawag), Benjamin Hofmann (ETH Zurich), and Augustin Fragnière (University of Lausanne). All three are experts on role conflicts at the interface between research and society.