Assessment of benefits of the Czech memberships in international R&D organisations
In the 2nd half of 2021, the Ministry of Education, Youth and Sports (MEYS) will organise another round of evaluation of the benefits of the Czech Republic’s memberships in international R&D organisations (i.e. CERN, EMBC, EMBL, ESA, ESO, JINR and VKIFD). The main goal and objective of the assessment is to monitor the benefits resulting from the Czech participation in international research infrastructures that are legally established as international R&D organisations, founded under the public international law. The assessment of the benefits of the Czech memberships in international R&D organisations is arranged as a complementary monitoring exercise to the assessment of large research infrastructures of Czechia, organised by the MEYS in the 1st half of 2021. Both these evaluation procedures are based on the international peer-review, combining the assessment in the form of remote reviews with the evaluation performed by review panels composed of renowned international experts.
CERN –The ATLAS Experiment
Assessment methodology
In the first place, the evaluation will focus on the effectiveness of the Czech Republic’s involvement in the governance of international R&D organisations and the quality of the creation and implementation of the national strategies for involvement in activities developed by international R&D organisations. As for the benefits themselves, the benefits of the scientific nature (i.e. know-how and expertise arising from experiments carried out using the research infrastructures of international R&D organisations), and the benefits of the technological, industrial and innovation nature (i.e. knowledge transfer; Czech businesses’ participation in the procurements to supply technological equipment of international R&D organisations; creation of start-up and spin-off companies in Czechia, etc.) will be thoroughly assessed. Contributions to the HR development (i.e. involvement of Czech students/researchers in educational and training activities organised by international R&D organisations), and the employment of Czech managers, scientists, technicians, administrators and other high-skilled professionals in international R&D organisations will be monitored as well. Last but not least, the assessment will also focus on the communication strategy of the MEYS towards the professional and lay public (i.e. PR and marketing of the Czech memberships in international R&D organisations). All the evaluation criteria are determined in detail within the methodology for assessing the benefits of the Czech Republic’s memberships in international R&D organisations (pdf).
ESA – The Solar Orbiter Mission
Evaluation schedule
The assessment will be intensively prepared for most of the 1st half of 2021, when the MEYS, in a close cooperation with international R&D organisations and their user communities in Czechia, will compile extensive documentation (pdf), including all the relevant information and data. In parallel, the MEYS will set up an international evaluation committee, composed of leading international experts acquainted in detail with the international R&D organisations participated by the Czech Republic. In autumn 2021, a series of meetings of the international assessment committee will take place, including the hearings with representatives of the MEYS and Czech user communities of international R&D organisations. At the end of 2021, the final review report (pdf) will be prepared by the international evaluation committee to serve as the guidelines for the MEYS to adopt and execute measures to increase the efficacy of the Czech participation in international R&D organisations and maximize the benefits of the memberships in the coming years.
ESO – The ALMA Observatory