In a world that is constantly evolving, the pursuit of knowledge is more dynamic than ever. At the forefront of this are Young Researchers and Innovators, whose curiosity, passion, and fresh perspectives help push the boundaries of science and technology. While their careers may be in the early stages, their contributions are already shaping the future, driving new breakthroughs, challenging existing paradigms, and offering solutions to some of the world’s most pressing issues.
To thrive in an ever changing environment it is important for Young Researchers and Innovators to broaden their scope and knowledge beyond their own scientific discipline, and acquire transferrable and transversal skills. Simultaneously, it is crucial to support our young talent pool by offering career perspectives that will enable them to develop and exploit their full potential.
Supporting Young Researchers and Innovators is not a new concept at COST. We have long been committed to empowering young talent in acquiring new skills and leadership experience whilst also increasing brain circulation:
- COST Actions gather researchers and innovators from all career levels, from PhD students to Nobel Prize winners. Young Researchers and Innovators can network and build contacts with experienced peers, benefitting from advice, mentorship, open exchange, and scientific collaboration;
- COST Actions provide valuable learning and training opportunities through initiatives such as Training Schools, conference grants, and the international events they organise that equip young talent with new knowledge and skills;
- COST Actions offer a safe space for Young Researchers and Innovators to develop self-confidence, hone communication and project skills, whilst gaining leadership experience;
- COST Actions promote balanced brain circulation within Europe with their Short-Term Scientific Missions (STSMs), limiting brain drain from peripheral regions to research-intense regions in Europe;
- COST connects to complementary funding schemes ranging from Erasmus+ to European Research Council grants, facilitating entry of promising young talents to these schemes.
42% of all COST Action participants are Young Researchers and Innovators
20% of COST Action leadership positions are adopted by Young Researchers and Innovators
44% of the Young Researchers who followed the COST Academy Leadership Programme adopted leadership positions
18% of COST Action Main Proposers in the last Open Call were Young Researchers and Innovators
COST is committed to improving Young Researcher and Innovator participation to 45% and increase the number of Young Researchers in Action leadership positions to 25%.
What’s new for Young Researchers at COST
As of 1 November 2024 COST is introducing yet further measures to support Young Researchers and Innovators*. A new Young Researcher and Innovator Conference Grant will be offered by COST Actions to facilitate attendance at beneficial international conferences that are not organised by the Action. All COST Actions will ensure that at least one leadership position within the network is reserved for a Young Researcher or Innovator to help develop leadership skills and gain experience in international projects. Finally, COST Academy will be launching a new series of trainings dedicated to Young Researchers and Innovators where they can develop soft and hard skills to broaden future career perspectives.
*COST defines a Young Researcher or Innovator as someone under the age of 40. You can still benefit from measures introduced for Young Researchers and Innovators during the duration of the year you turn 40.
Supporting Young Researchers: best practice examples from our COST Actions
There are already many great examples of COST Actions going above and beyond to support Young Researchers and Innovators. Here are six initiatives of special mention:
DIGI-net Young Researchers and Innovators Forum
In April 2024 ‘Work Inequalities in Later Life Redefined by Digitalization’ (DIGI-net) established a Young Researchers and Innovators (YRI) Forum within the Action to foster career development, enhance research skills, facilitate networking, and promote activities among Young Researchers and Innovators. This Forum is a dynamic networking platform, fostering valuable connections and collaborations among young members and facilitating mentorship between young and senior researchers.
The aim is to provide learning opportunities and allow young researchers to benefit from the professional and personal experiences of established researchers, fostering knowledge sharing and connections across different career levels and backgrounds. The Forum also plays a crucial role in increasing the visibility of Young Researchers and Innovators and their work within DIGI-net and other professional settings.
Going forward DIGI-net’s YRI Forum will hold at least two biannual general meetings for its network members.
Lavinia Andreea Bejan, leader of the DIGI-net YRI Forum explains: “Providing a space for connecting Young Researchers and Innovators with each other and with more experienced researchers is a fundamental achievement of DIGI-net. It reflects the significant impact of this COST Action on the professional and personal development of all researchers involved, and particularly of Young Researchers, who are being provided with wonderful opportunities for involvement and growth. It is my sincere belief that the Forum will effectively benefit both Young Researchers and Innovators, as well as the DIGI-net itself, in the process of fulfilling our mutual needs and expectations”.
COREnet masters thesis award
‘Connecting Theory and Practical Issues of Migration and Religious Diversity’ (COREnet) have developed a masters thesis award. The network offered an exciting opportunity for Young Researchers to submit their masters theses for a chance to be selected to join the ISORECEA (International Study of Religious and Eastern and Central Europe Association) conference in Tirana, Albania, and present their research. All Master theses written from the period of 2020-2023 in the field of practice-based research on religious diversity and migration were eligible.
“There are a lot of master thesis projects going on all over Europe that could be described as small, often empirical research projects in the field of migration and religious diversity. These master theses conclude often with interesting results, which are relevant for the practice. But many times, these projects and their results are not known beyond the university unit where they have been written.” explains Annette Leis-Peters, COREnet Vice-Chair.
“Master thesis are an important step in academic career paths and important contributions to develop (local) practices and research. Many small important research projects are conducted on master’s level that deserve more attention beyond their very context, so we developed the idea to highlight master theses by awarding a prize for the best master thesis in this field.” concludes Leis-Peters.
Following evaluation, Ahmed Deniz from Tilburg University was selected as the winner. Ahmed’s master’s thesis ‘Our Places versus Their Places. Turkish-Dutch Adolescents’ Perceived Social Identity and Perception of the Converted Amsterdam Faith Mosque’ delved into the social and religious identity of male Turkish Dutch Adolescents (TDA) through their connection to the Fatih Mosque, employing qualitative methods, in-depth interviews and fieldwork within an ethno-case study framework.
COREnet are planning to award this prize next year as well.
Career development within the geothermal sector
Deciding on a career path can be challenging for Young Researchers. Should you stay in academia or explore opportunities in the non-academic sector? This is exactly the questions raised and discussed by ‘Research network for including geothermal technologies into decarbonized heating and cooling grids’ (Geothermal-DHC) in their career workshop for Young Researchers and Innovators. This participatory workshop was designed help participants understand their own preferences, skills, and strengths, and investigate how these personal attributes can guide career choices.
Before concluding its networking activities in Spring 2024 Geothermal-DHC went on to collaborate with sister geothermal COST Action FOLIAGE to co-host the first virtual meet and greet event for young careers in geothermal energy, an industry that cased a shortage of skilled processionals. “Given the potential of geothermal energy for Europe’s decarbonization efforts, we see this as a key area where fostering new talent is essential. The event offered an platform to introduce young researchers to industry professionals, providing them with a opportunity to network and explore career options in this growing field.” explains Prof. Hussein Mroueh, Chair of FOLIAGE. 60 participants, mostly PhD students and early-career postdocs, joined numerous engaging sessions touching on soft and technical skills necessary for career success in the geothermal industry.
“Given the success of this first event, we are planning to organise more initiatives in the future. These will include a stronger focus on industry outreach and possibly more interactive sessions that help both researchers and industry representatives connect. We aim to continue supporting Young Researchers through follow-up career development events, webinars, and workshops to address the skills gap in our geothermal sector.” highlights Mroueh.
GenE-HumDi webinar series by Young Researchers for Young Researchers
Early on in the formation of their network GenE-HumDi identified Young Researchers as a key stakeholder for their mission to accelerate the translation of Genome Editing technologies to the treatment of human diseases. The Action set clear capacity building objectives to support their career development and provide a forum where this group could express themselves and actively take part. In this regard GenE-HumDi member Laura Torella, a young researcher herself, was nominated as the networks ‘Young Researchers Coordinator’. “Being entrusted by COST to lead the youth in our Action fills me with immense pride and excitement. It’s a testament to the trust they have in our potential to make meaningful contributions to the scientific community, especially in areas like gene editing. I strongly believe that our Young Researchers community is growing in such an exciting scientific season. Gene editing is a current reality, and us as young researchers can’t do any better than stay up to date with its innovation and be involved, from bench to bedside.”
Dedicated to Young Researchers looking to expand their knowledge and network, Laura launched a Young Researcher Seminar Series. Each session features an invited speaker sharing insights on cutting-edge topics in science and career development. It is followed up with a one-one-one ‘Meet the expert’ session for those wishing to delve deeper into science and career development.
“Our goal in starting this series is to nurture the next generation of genome editing experts and contribute to its growth by giving them a forum where they can express themselves and drive the conversations about therapeutic genome editing.” explains Dr Fco. Javier Molina Estevez, GenE-HumDi’s Science Communication Coordinator.
In May leading Professor Marc Güell joined the first event in this series to discuss ‘Strategies and tools for ex vivo and in vivo genome editing’. “We invite renowned science and field leaders to our seminar series. These figures inspire many of us, yet they are hard to reach because of their complicated schedules. With this initiative we pursue to provide an opportunity for young investigators and early career members to be able to reach these leaders and provide the space for personal interaction. We hope this can be an encouraging or even transformative experience for many young members and a great way to strengthen our network and promote colligability.” adds Molina Estevez.
For more information read our COST Action blog on how GenE-HumDi supports Young Researchers.
COSY ‘Listen To My Presentation’ workshops
‘Confined Molecular Systems: From a new Generation of Materials to the Stars’ (COSY) organises an interactive workshop to improve the research presentation skills of the youngest members of their network. The overall goal is to equip Young Researchers with practical skills, communication abilities, and the confidence to engage actively in the fields covered COSY.
“The original idea was to organise the group ‘Read My Proposal’ in order to improve writing skills of Young Researchers. However after attending the COST Academy training on how to present your COST Action to journalists we thought it would be much more effective to organise a ‘Listen To My Presentation’ workshop. We have noticed that Young Researchers can be less self-confident with their presentations and we just wanted to create a safe space where they can feel comfortable and receive feedback.” highlights María Pilar de Lara-Castells, Chair of COSY.
This opportunity gives physicists the chance to present complex research concepts to an audience with varying degrees of familiarity with their fields. Experienced researchers and colleagues within the COSY network then provide valuable feedback on the presentations and help refine communication strategies.
“COST Actions provide a greater benefit to young scientists than I think many people realise. Many Young Researchers are able to give their first talk at an international meeting thanks to the funding provided by Actions such as COSY. Through the Action they and can also take their first steps in networking at meetings on in collaborating with other researchers by means of STSMs. In COSY we are doing what we can to help early career researchers make the most of the possibilities provided by the Action, be it through workshops such as this one, Training Schools for young scientists, or initiatives such as FemCOSY where we shine a light on challenges face by women in physics and chemistry.” concludes COSY’s Science Communication Coordinator Michael Gatchell.
EpiLipidNET Young Researchers and Innovators Committee
‘The Pan-European Network in Lipidomics and EpiLipidomics’ (EpiLipidNET) established a Young Researchers and Innovators Committee at the beginning of it’s Action to promote the visibility, engagement, and participation of its Young Researcher and Innovator members whilst also supporting career development and acquisition of soft skills. The committee is led by a coordinator, Young Researcher Patricia Prabutzki, and co-chaired by a team of eight other members, all Young Researchers and several from COST’s Inclusiveness Target Countries.
The committee has organised a diverse range of activities for Young Researcher and Innovators from directing the production of a video, launching a call for collaborative project proposals, hosting an online workshops with tips and tools for effective scientific presentations, establishing the EpiLipidNET Discord server for virtual networking and streamlined communication, and most recently a running a call for poster presentations ‘Spotlight on EpiLipidNET YRIs’ for social media.
EpiLipidNET’s commitment to supporting and involving Young Researcher and Innovators extends also to its events, ensuring that there is always a dedicated space for them to learn, grow, share, and adopt roles of responsibility to hone their skills. Recently Young Researcher and Innovator presenters got the opportunity to highlight their research topic in a ‘1 minute – 1 slide’ presentation to draw special attention to their work in front of the wider EpiLipidNET community. Other notable events include a panel on ‘Where do we go next? Career paths, chances and obstacles in the lipidomics field’ featuring representatives from academia and industry (and moderated by a YRI); a talk on mental health with invited speaker Olga Vvedenskaya from the Dragonfly Mental Health program on the “imposter phenomenon”; and a workshop on improving your presentation skills by invited speaker Helena Jambor from the institute for data analysis, artificial intelligence, visualization and simulation (DAViS) on ‘How to not lie with charts’.
EpiLipidNET is not alone in creating dedicated Action leadership positions to represent the interests of Young Researchers within their networks. To name but a few, DepolarisingEU have a dedicated role ‘Young Researcher and Innovator Manager’, GRADE has nominated a ‘Inclusivity Coordinator’, TREASURE has created the ‘Gender-Balance and Young Researchers Coordinator’ post, CLILNetLE appointed a ‘YRI Coordinator’, and PAAR-net have 2 dedicated positions, one for older co-creators and one for Young Researchers and Innovators.
Next steps for Young Researchers
Are you a Young Researcher or Innovator? Inspired to join a COST Action to grow both your network and skills? Browse our 260+ ongoing Actions to see if there is a research network of interest to you and apply to join.
Many announcement of upcoming COST Action Training Schools, grants to attend conferences sponsored by an Action, or calls for for Short-Term Scientific Missions are advertised on the COST Action event page. COST Actions will begin to roll out the new conference grant for Young Researchers and Innovators as of 1 November 2024.