When: 10th April 2026; 12:00 – 17:00

Where: VU Amsterdam – Atrium room

The NRIN Half-day Research Symposium on Fostering a Positive Research Culture aims to bring together researchers, policy advisors, HR, and other academic and non-academic staff to critically reflect on the opportunities, challenges, and concrete actions to foster a positive research culture within universities.

The day will include a reflection on the outcomes and steps ahead on the National Recognition & Rewards Program. We will also showcase examples of ongoing initiatives at some Dutch institutions aimed at improving the current research climate.

The day will finish with an interactive theatre play on fostering a positive research culture.

This is a free event (registration is mandatory!). Lunch will be provided!

Six years ago, a motivated coalition of knowledge institutions and research funders embarked on an ambitious movement to fundamentally renew the system for recognising and rewarding academics. With one clear ambition: talent in academia is diverse and deserves broader recognition. This systemic change is motivated and contributes to a global transformation in the organisation of academic research that is still ongoing.

I will use the Drift X-curve model, a tool for making sense of system transitions, to examine the development over the past years driven by the national programme and to anticipate possible future scenarios for the responsible research movement.

This presentation will offer insights into the transition of Erasmus University Rotterdam (EUR) into an engaged university by describing the institution’s previous and current strategy. Additionally, it will elucidate the way the Recognition & Rewards and the Impact & Engagement programs contribute to this transition and will demonstrate the way the teams working on these programs contributed to enabling a more positive research culture. By presenting concrete examples of our approach and highlighting some of our open access R&R and impact tools, we aim to motivate others to build upon our efforts and to advance the worldwide culture change.

Universities rely on academic assessment for high‑stakes decisions on hiring, promotion, and recognition, making it a powerful yet underused lever for a positive research culture. Despite its importance, assessment remains under‑studied, policies are unevenly implemented, and committee members often lack preparation for the ethical, psychological, and organisational challenges involved.

We present a co‑funded initiative supported by Open Science NL, with Eindhoven University of Technology (TU/e) as the embedding university, to strengthen assessment in line with Recognition & Rewards. The project integrates three pillars: (1) a review of good academic practices, (2) evidence‑informed interventions and tools for assessment committees, and (3) fostering a vibrant internal-external community of practice. Our approach combines policy alignment, empirical inquiry, and design grounded in social psychology, ethics, and research integrity.

We will share research results, design logic, rollout at TU/e, and early lessons, and discuss opportunities and challenges for adaptation across institutions. By connecting policy to everyday committee practice and lived experience, the project aims to reduce strain on wellbeing and bias in assessment, improve procedural fairness, and increase transparency, advancing a healthier, more inclusive research culture.