Vertrouwen in de wetenschap(per)

Three Flemish academies: the ‘Jonge Academie’ (JA), the ‘Koninklijke Academie voor Geneeskunde van België’ (KAGB) and the ‘Koninklijke Vlaamse Academie van België voor Wetenschappen en Kunsten’ (KVAB) have joined forces to take stock of the state of trust in science and the scientist in Flanders. This is an initiative of their permanent reflection group Responsible Research & Innovation and Science Ethics and it is aimed at the wider public, the educational world, the media and the various policy bodies. It was written by a multidisciplinary group of leading researchers from these three academies.
Since it is believed to have value outside Flanders, an English version is published.
In recent years, there have been several events and evolutions that may have affected trust in science and scientists. The pandemic, fraud cases, fake news, social media, climate change and world politics are just a few examples. In-depth insights, concrete experiences from the authors, survey results and a historical context show that our trust is quite good, but at the same time the analysis also shows that the academies, the media, the research institutions, education still have an important role to play, with items of attention and recommendations.
It is recommended that the policy continues to support societies such as the KVAB, KAGB, and JA, which promote transdisciplinary dialogue and engage in communication with the general public.
The policymakers from the universities and the research institutes and funding institutions such as the FWO are encouraged to reward the researchers and research practices that promote trust in science.
Education providers are requested to carefully teach scientific thinking and trust in science with concrete arguments and examples such as 'What is science and how does science work?', 'What is the distinction between facts and opinions?', 'What is a good debate?'.
When it comes to science communication, the media are requested to provide correct and attractive stories about science and scientists, that also provide the scientific basis of arguments in the societal debate. The methods of fact-checking deserve more attention and support, also from the government.
All those involved in science are encouraged to apply best practices for quality and trust in research.