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What shortlisting criteria will you be using?

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What shortlisting criteria will you be using?

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Yes - we'll be holding a drop-in session via Zoom on Wednesday the 15th May at 2pm - this session will be recorded and a link to the footage will be made available after the session.

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Please use this board to post any questions you have about the open call detailed here: https://www.britishscienceassociation.org/open-call-for-essays-on-community-engaged-research

Your questions will be answered by the team at the British Science Association and shared with others interested in participating in the project.

This page is moderated, so your question may not appear straight away - if that happens, please check back soon. The link you used to access the Padlet originally will bring you back.

To post a question, drag and drop directly from your desktop, or click anywhere on the board. If you're on a mobile device, double tap anywhere or select the plus (+) button. A simple text box will appear - click 'update' to post.

Thanks for your interest in this project - we look forward to hearing from you!

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Is there anywhere we can ask questions in person?

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Is there anywhere we can ask questions in person?

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What's the deadline for expressions of interest?

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What's the deadline for expressions of interest?

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The open call closes on Wednesday 29th April at 5pm - we can't promise that we'll be able to consider expressions of interest received after this date

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How are communities included in this project?

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How are communities included in this project?

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We're including communities at all stages of this project.

Our themes have been shaped based on our experience working alongside communities involved in our programmes and grants.

We're approaching our networks to encourage and support community members and organisations who want to share their personal accounts, experiences and narratives as part of this project. We'll work with all contributors to support equitable involvement, providing help with writing and financial support where this is needed.

At the short-listing and review stages, we'll enlist support from community organisations and those that advocate on their behalf to ensure a diversity of perspectives are included in this process.

We'll work with communities involved in the project to shape the final outputs.

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Can I get help with the writing process?

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Can I get help with the writing process?

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Do I have to submit a written idea or can I send you an audio / video file?

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Do I have to submit a written idea or can I send you an audio / video file?

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Are you able to provide financial support?

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Are you able to provide financial support?

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You don't need to be a confident writer to be part of this project. We'll provide online support sessions to those who want or need them. This could involve:

Interviewing you and ghost-writing elements to help you get started.

Running content planning sessions to help you structure your ideas.

Editing and providing feedback.

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We're happy to accept audio files or short videos - please contact Carolyn Bishop, Partnership and Advocacy Manager, carolyn.bishop@britishscienceassociation.org for details of how to submit an expression of interest in this format.

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We’re seeking contributions from anyone who might be involved in, or interested in exploring ways in which communities and researchers can work together, this might include:

Community members, organisers and leaders who have been involved in or are connected to research.

Community-based organisations, brokers and intermediaries working with and on behalf of community groups.

Researchers, academics and university leaders who collaborate closely with communities.

Funders, policymakers, infrastructure organisations and membership bodies who support and advocate for communities.

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We want to make sure people's contributions are valued fairly, therefore we have a flexible budget to offer financial support for people who depend on this to make participation possible – this might include those in freelance roles, people who are not currently in salaried employment, people who need to cover the cost of childcare or those in a role that would not support their involvement. We expect to be able to offer between £250 and £1500 dependent on the scope of your involvement and the extent of the support you require. We’ll discuss any requirements with you in more detail during the shortlisting process.

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Can we write a contribution on community research that goes beyond BSA-led and run community led research projects?

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Can we write a contribution on community research that goes beyond BSA-led and run community led research projects?

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Yes absolutely, this project extends beyond the work of the BSA. We’re seeking contributions from anyone who might be involved in, or interested in exploring ways in which communities and researchers can work together.

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I'm involved in a community research project but it's not science-based - is it still relevant to this call?

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I'm involved in a community research project but it's not science-based - is it still relevant to this call?

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Yes - we're interested in community-engaged research across all disciplines, particularly transdisciplinary projects or projects that address societal challenges, broaden opportunities for regional investment, and share skills.

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When is the deadline for the essays (if the EoI is successful)?

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When is the deadline for the essays (if the EoI is successful)?

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At present, we're aiming to have a first draft by the start of September, but we're willing to work with contributors on a flexible basis according to their availability

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Can people who work within the EU landscape also contribute? Or is it meant to be UK-focused?

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Can people who work within the EU landscape also contribute? Or is it meant to be UK-focused?

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We intend these essays to help set the direction for this work within the UK, therefore we anticipate the overall balance of the final essay series will be weighted towards UK-based projects. This said, we'd be really excited to hear examples of international practice that the UK can learn from and therefore we're happy to consider expressions of interest from outside the UK.

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Can you explain what you mean by ‘research on communities as ‘subjects’ as you have stated that this is something that you won’t consider 

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Can you explain what you mean by ‘research on communities as ‘subjects’ as you have stated that this is something that you won’t consider 

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Is there any movement on the final submission date please? It’s just that your writing window spans the school holiday period which affects available writing time

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Is there any movement on the final submission date please? It’s just that your writing window spans the school holiday period which affects available writing time

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This essay series will not cover research on communities as ‘subjects’ – by this we mean we will not cover work that researches 'on' people, i.e. research that passively involves individuals in studies that prioritise obtaining knowledge to further research aims without any gain to the individual or community concerned (i.e. the ‘extraction model’), or research that can lead to a power differential between those conducting the research and those with whom the research is conducted. Rather we wish to focus on work that researches 'with' people, i.e. research that takes an inclusive, asset-based approach to community engagement, and respects community knowledge and cultures. This might include participatory research, research that is co-created with communities or community-led research.

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In response to feedback, we're pleased to say that we've changed the deadline for final essay submissions to the 19th October 2024. There will be a 3 month approx. writing window from Monday 15th July to Friday 19th October, followed by a period of review with the final outputs produced early 2025.

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Yes, we're happy to accept more than one idea from the same potential contributor

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If someone is shortlisted is there any flexibility for the dates of the follow-up meetings? The second one is in the school holidays and diaries may already be full - 17th June is quite soon!

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If someone is shortlisted is there any flexibility for the dates of the follow-up meetings? The second one is in the school holidays and diaries may already be full - 17th June is quite soon!

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We'll be as flexible as we can within the time constraints of the project. We've allocated a window for follow-up discussions between the 17th June and the 5th July which allows three weeks, so hopefully we can find 30 min to 1 hour within this time to meet.

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Are you able to post a link to the recorded Q and A session? 

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Are you able to post a link to the recorded Q and A session? 

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Community-engaged research: call for essays (drop in Zoom session)

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Where will the essays be published and how will they be accessed by the public?

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Where will the essays be published and how will they be accessed by the public?

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The essay series will be published both in print and online. There will be a launch event combined with a press release - details of the launch event are TBC. At a minimum, the final outputs will be published via the BSA website and shared with our networks via our social media channels and newsletters. The slide attached is taken from our Zoom drop-in session delivered Wed 15th May - full recording available here

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What level of referencing and acknowledgment of other academic sources do you expect?

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What level of referencing and acknowledgment of other academic sources do you expect?

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We're keen for all of the final essays to be accessibly written so a narrative / reflective piece is more in line with what we're looking for than an academic piece of writing. We're aware that a lot of people may not have the resources to allow them to follow up references to academic publications therefore we don't expect extensive academic referencing or inclusion of a theoretical section. We're happy to work with people to highlight / acknowledge other work that has really shaped the field or shaped their particular approach. Likewise, we're happy to take your lead with acknowledgement of co-authors and look into the possibility of obtaining a DOI for the final publication

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Are you open to contributions that are not in the form of an essay? For example, poetry?

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Are you open to contributions that are not in the form of an essay? For example, poetry?

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We're open to some variation in what the eventual output looks like and are happy to consider more creative elements or styles at this point, though we anticipate the final output will be predominantly essay-based.

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How many essays will you be including in the final publication?

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How many essays will you be including in the final publication?

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We anticipate between 8 and 10, but this is flexible according the the expressions of interest we receive.

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Could essays be translated into other UK languages?

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Could essays be translated into other UK languages?

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This is an excellent suggestion, thank you! We'll take this back to consider

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Can an essay idea submitted to this open call be included in other conference submissions?

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Can an essay idea submitted to this open call be included in other conference submissions?

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Yes

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If there's a group of authors from a range of different community groups or organisations, do all the authors need to apply separately?

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If there's a group of authors from a range of different community groups or organisations, do all the authors need to apply separately?

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No, we're happy to accept a join expression of interest from multiple authors - there's space on our online form to provide details of co-authors you'd like to work with.

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If EDI monitoring is administered entirely separately from submissions (understandably, for confidentiality), how do you monitor the demographics of who was selected?

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If EDI monitoring is administered entirely separately from submissions (understandably, for confidentiality), how do you monitor the demographics of who was selected?

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The shortlisting criteria are directly aligned with the information made available on the 'Open Call' webpage linked below:

What we are looking for at this stage, and who should submit

The topics and themes the essays should address

What kinds of approaches are we interested in?

In addition, we will adopt a portfolio approach to the final decision of which contributions to include, asking the following questions:

Is there are good balance of themes?

Is there a good balance of practice-based and systemic perspectives?

Are the essays inclusive of people, organisations and communities who are not often platformed in this space?

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The EDI data we're collecting is anonymous and gathered separately to the expressions of interest. We're collecting this data so that we can ensure we attract as diverse a pool of contributions as possible. We will not use the data to assess the submissions but will instead use it to adjust our promotion of the open call and proactively seek submissions from groups who are under represented. When we make our first-stage shortlisting decisions, we'll pay special attention to project descriptions and types of organisation to ensure that the essays include people, organisations and communities who are not often platformed in this space. This will be followed by informal conversations with potential contributors to gather further information before confirming our final decision. We won't undertake any further formal collection of data at this stage due to the small sample size and the risk around anonymity.

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We broadly define communities as members of the public who are brought together by a shared experience, shared interest, set of characteristics or shared location which means that they are interested in working together to share learning & experience or solve a common issue or problem. Within this, we take a particular focus on communities who are traditionally overlooked by science and research, such as young people, rural or minoritised ethnic communities.

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Are you looking purely for personal perspectives / insights or are you also interested in a synthesis of learning drawn from across several different projects?

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Are you looking purely for personal perspectives / insights or are you also interested in a synthesis of learning drawn from across several different projects?

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We're very keen to hear from people who can draw together insights across multiple programmes to present collective experiences and learning.

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If there are two co-authors for one contribution, can we submit twice the word count?

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If there are two co-authors for one contribution, can we submit twice the word count?

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No, the word count will remain the same regardless of the number of authors

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The word count is very low so I guess you don't want theoretical section, references etc - more a narrative, reflective piece?

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The word count is very low so I guess you don't want theoretical section, references etc - more a narrative, reflective piece?

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Is there space to examine community engaged research through curricula (co-created community based research based on community need and with students acting as researchers under academic supervision)? Focusing both on working to brief set by community orgs and building student skills?

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Is there space to examine community engaged research through curricula (co-created community based research based on community need and with students acting as researchers under academic supervision)? Focusing both on working to brief set by community orgs and building student skills?

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Yes, absolutely

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What is the printed publication that contributions will feature in? A standalone publication, part of an established journal, or something else?

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What is the printed publication that contributions will feature in? A standalone publication, part of an established journal, or something else?

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We're planning on producing a printed, stand-alone publication

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We’re looking to be as flexible and open as possible with both copyright. We’re hoping to assign a Creative Common licence to the work within the project, but we’ll confirm this in due course, once we’ve worked out the details.

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Can authors publish the essay elsewhere, i.e. in our own organisations, public creations and reports?

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Can authors publish the essay elsewhere, i.e. in our own organisations, public creations and reports?

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Once we've published the essay series, then we'd be very happy for contributions to be published as standalone pieces elsewhere, with some attribution back to the broader programme, UKRI and the British Science Association.

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I work at Northern Heartlands an arts charity and Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation bringing artists , farmers, philosophers, researchers together through creativity to explore the way they feel they feel about themselves and their place. Would it be appropriate/would we be eligible to submit?

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I work at Northern Heartlands an arts charity and Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation bringing artists , farmers, philosophers, researchers together through creativity to explore the way they feel they feel about themselves and their place. Would it be appropriate/would we be eligible to submit?

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This sounds like a really interesting approach. Within this project, we're really keen to make sure there's a strong link to the research and innovation system, so for example, how is the work within this project contributing to research or influencing the research and innovation system more widely in terms of research practice? If this work speaks to these questions, then we'd love to hear about it.

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How will you acknowledge co-authors? Will the final publication have a doi reference like an open access journal?

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How will you acknowledge co-authors? Will the final publication have a doi reference like an open access journal?

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We're a small group of parent carers of disabled children, researchers and health professionals working on a project with three different underserved communities. We'd prefer to submit EOI with the three communities in mind, not one, does that sound ok? 

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We're a small group of parent carers of disabled children, researchers and health professionals working on a project with three different underserved communities. We'd prefer to submit EOI with the three communities in mind, not one, does that sound ok? 

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Yes, we'd love to hear about your project and we'd be more than happy with this approach.

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How "diverse" are the people in charge/ involved  in this programme of reach out?  Is it representative of those you are seeking to bring in to the process? 

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How "diverse" are the people in charge/ involved  in this programme of reach out?  Is it representative of those you are seeking to bring in to the process? 

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We've been really mindful of this as we've been shaping our approach to this project. Our project team is made up of individuals who work closely with community organisations, intermediaries, funders and researchers.  In shaping the open call, we’ve reached out to our networks to consult with community leaders, organisations and intermediaries to shape our approach and determine how to make it as accessible as possible. We’ve employed an external consultant with specialist knowledge of diversity and inclusion, and of working with and supporting community organisations to ensure we provide everyone who wants to participate in this project an opportunity to do so. We’ve taken steps to ensure our shortlisting panel includes individuals from a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives. Once we have our contributors on board, we’ll work collaboratively with them to involve them in shaping the final output. We will also have a review stage, where community representatives can give feedback on the draft outputs. We’ll continue to monitor the steps we take throughout this project to ensure we’re taking an inclusive and collaborative approach to decision making

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Can community leaders from outside the UK apply? (i.e. where they have been involved in research funded by GCRF)

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Can community leaders from outside the UK apply? (i.e. where they have been involved in research funded by GCRF)

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What’s the eligibility criteria for submitting to this? When you say “encourage” those under 25, can those over 25 still apply? 

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What’s the eligibility criteria for submitting to this? When you say “encourage” those under 25, can those over 25 still apply? 

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Of course - the call is still open to anyone, and be able to see your age (or other characteristics) when shortlisting. We have seen from our anonymous diversity questionnaire that there is a gap in the 18 - 25 age group, which is why we have tried to highlight the opportunity to younger people.