Austerity in European Research – a special issue of “Euroscientist”

Austerity has taken its toll on European research and has disturbed its cycles. Particularly affected are scientists from Southern Europe.

The Euroscientist magazine–the first pan-European magazine for scientists and by scientists published by Euroscience — brings citizen journalism to the science community. In its latest Special Issue, the Euroscientist shares testimonies from scientists in Greece, Spain, Italy and Portugal confronted to austerity.

The Euroscientist brings an analysis of the impact of such conditions on scientists who stayed and on those who were forced to emigrate. This issue also presents testimonies of researchers sharing their experience of navigating the troubled waters of recession, when it comes to maintaining a seemingly steady research career path.

Problems identified in Spain, Italy, Portugal and Greece underlined the vital need to develop a public debate, beyond Southern European borders.
This is the goal of this special issue: to focus the wider European science community’s attention on how to solve research issues across Europe.

Here is the Table of contents:

• Editorial
  •  An evolutionary tale of short versus long-term research vision, by Sabine Louët and Gilles Mirambeau

• Analysis
  • Southern European scientists become activists as recession bites, by Michele Catanzaro

• Spain
  • Myths and misadventures of Spanish science, by Emilio Muñoz
  • The Government needs to show the world it believes in science, by Carlos Andradas
  • Uninformed wishful thinking as R&D policy shunts public research support, by Amaya Moro-Martín

• Italy
  • Pervasive meritocracy, a must for Italian research, an exclusive interview of Ilaria Capua, Italian MP
  • Italian scientists highly valued, but only abroad, by Enrico Predazzi
  • Reengineering Italian research, by Maria Cristina Pedicchio

• Portugal
  • Science friendly despite relative research immaturity, by António Coutinho
  • Filling up a glass that is already half-full, by Maria Carmo-Fonseca
  • The knowledge capital of an entire generation in the balance, by Maria Mota

• Greece
  • Against adversity, give Greek research breathing space, by Costas Fotakis
  • Academics hired, but not appointed: a new Greek tragedy in the making, by Varvara Trachana
  • Innovation born from austerity, by Nikolaos Nanas