The Democracy and Expertise Collaboratory (DECo) is pleased to announce the launch of its Short-Term Scientific Missions (STSMs). Inspired by the Action Networking Tools of the EU-funded COST Actions (see here ), STSMs offer researchers the opportunity to undertake collaborative research visits between the ‘Padova Science, Technology and Innovation Studies Research Unit’ – PaSTIS (University of Padova, UNIPD, Italy) and the ‘Science and Technology Studies Laboratory’ – STS Lab (University of Lausanne, UNIL, Switzerland). STSMs are primarily open to any early-stage researcher (e.g., PhD with an approved research project, or post-docs within five years of their PhD award) in the host institutions (UNIL and UNIPD) with a clearcut scientific interest in STS research and in the exchange with the other institution – provided that such mission is relevant also to DECo’s core themes. Senior researchers or other research staff members who are willing to engage in joint research efforts may also apply under specific conditions (see tabs below).
Short-Term Scientific Missions (STSMs)
The Democracy and Expertise Collaboratory (DECo) is an instrument to facilitate academic collaboration and knowledge exchange between the University of Lausanne (UNIL) and the University of Padua (UNIPD). It focuses on the themes of expertise, democracy and citizenship within science, technology, biomedicine and healthcare. All social sciences and humanities researchers working on these themes and areas at UNIL and UNIPD are welcome to participate in its activities.
Based on exchanges previously supported by the UNIL-UNIPD privileged partnership, DECo aims to promote collaboration by funding scientific workshops, short-term research visits, and public events that address issues – inclusively and participatively – around the multiple relations between science, technology and society. Chiefly, the project aims to provide valuable opportunities for early-career researchers, enriching their academic and professional development through active involvement in a vibrant international collaboration.
The “Democracy and Expertise Collaboratory (DECo). A joint UNIL-UNIPD laboratory fostering the study of science in/with/for society” is a Consolidation Grant funded through the privileged partnership of the University of Padua and the University of Lausanne.
DECo’s Transversal Themes
1) Making expertise work
We are interested in following how knowledge and authority get made in different social arenas: from care to communication, from education to computation, in clinics using decision-support, in labs running multi-omics pipelines, in public agencies or private companies weaving together evidence, information, tools, computation and decision-making. We support inquiries into “who” or “what” counts as an expert. We seek investigations that trace how judgment stems from the idiosyncratic coordinations of actors (e.g. clinicians, data scientists, engineers, patient advocates, regulators, etc.) that are frequently questioned, tools that are often opaque, infrastructures that are chronically patchy and fragile. How is authority (and its accountability) produced, stabilized, shared and questioned through a multi-faceted mundane craft – which involves produing evidence infrastructures, dictating tempos of individual/collective decision-making, and redistributing labor across humans and technologies?
2) Democratic accountability & engagement (beyond “participation-by-design”)
Engagement has become a discursive policy reflex, yet publics still meet uneven opportunities to shape science, medicine, technology and innovation. DECo supports research that studies how “participation” is assembled in practice: who convenes whom, with what material relations, and to what end, as well as examples when non-participation, contestation, or protest are rational responses of the concerned actors. We are interested in comparing how democratic accountability is distributed through forms of engagement that vary across context, practices and institutions. We seek STS-minded researchers at UNIL and UNIPD who ask: what makes (or not) decisions inspectable, contestable, shared and adjustable by those affected?
3) Public imaginaries & representations
Publics meet science and innovation through stories, narratives and promises across a wide range of media: press releases, influential explainers, professional communication, platform feeds, etc. DECo supports UNIL-UNIPD exchanges on the study of how the media landscape assembles expectations about facts and technologies, steers public attention, and builds up authority. We wish to compare notes across UNIPD-UNIL exchanges that map how controversies are cooled or heated; how hype cycles unfold; and how story-work from – for instance – patients’ associations, expert collectives, social and traditional media reframe what counts as relevant problem definitions and solving. How do platforms, communication teams and data infrastructures establish whose expertise and what knowledge or innovation gets seen and heard?
STSMs are research exchange visits, typically lasting up to 4 weeks. The goals of these visits include:
- Collaboration on a shared research output (e.g., publications, grant applications, or project proposals);
- Supervision and mentoring by senior colleagues from UNIL and UNIPD (including but not limited to PaSTIS and STS Lab);
- Production and/or comparison of research findings (e.g., fieldwork), discussion of methodologies, and development of common analytical frameworks.
STSMs are essential in achieving the objective of DECo. They will create a vibrant collaborative environment for researchers, with a clear commitment to producing concrete STS-related scholarly exchanges and outcomes.
All social science and humanities researchers working on questions of expertise, democracy and citizenship within science, technology, biomedicine and/or healthcare are eligible to apply. You can consult DECo’s transversal themes for further details. Priority will be given to early-stage researchers – typically, PhD students and post-docs – over senior researcher.
To apply, candidates should submit the following:
- A title of the STSM.
- A detailed work plan (500 words maximum) outlining the context, activities and expected outcomes of the mission (maximum 4 weeks).
- Proof of the agreement on the STSM (e.g. an email exchange) between the home institution (e.g. thesis supervisor) and the host institution (e.g. colleague at destination willing to collaborate on and supervise the STSM).
- A detailed budget request (not exceeding 2000 CHF/EUR). We encourage the use of extra funding (e.g. institutional or third-party project) to support and/or extend the stay.
- A copy of the full CV (including a list of scientific outputs). Alternatively, the link to a personal website containing all relevant information.
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. There is no unique deadline for submission. The program is continuously open and will be renewed annually.
Applications will be evaluated by the DECo Steering Group, composed of members from PaSTIS and STS Lab. The criteria for selection include:
- The potential for tangible scholarly contributions resulting from the visit.
- The relevance of the proposed activities to DECo’s core themes and objectives.
- The feasibility and clarity of the work plan, with clearly defined objectives and timelines for tangible outputs.
- Collaborative engagement between researchers, with a focus on developing research perspectives that could be sustained beyond the STSM.
- Relevance for personal research of the applicant.
The STSMs aim at a high level scientific impact through the internationalization of STS-related collaborations between UNIPD and UNIL actively involving early-career scholars. Expected outcomes include:
- Expanding research networks and developing joint projects at national and European levels.
- Disseminating results through publications in high-impact journals and presentations at international conferences.
- Fostering the development of a collaborative research ecosystem across European STS units.
By participating in STSMs, researchers will not only benefit from the opportunity to collaborate closely with peers but also contribute to the growth and visibility of the UNIL-UNIPD partnership and the broader STS research community.
Grantees of DECo’s STSMs have then 60 calendar days from the end date of their visit to submit a scientific report to the DECo Steering Group.
For further details, please contact the DECo Steering Group at deco_unipd@unil.ch.