More than 10,000 questions for the National Science Agenda

More than 10,000 questions have been submitted to the National Science Agenda in time for its 1 May deadline. 'Ecology' and 'biodiversity' are in the top 50 of most popular keywords. So are many other ecology-related topics. Together, they will help to shape the future of scientific research in the Netherlands.

The National Science Agenda was commissioned by the Dutch government, with the aim of increasing the societal relevance of scientific research in the Netherlands and promoting partnerships between scientists, businesses and social organisations. It was developed by Dutch universities, research institutes and academic medical centres together with other organisations and businesses.

The idea behind the Agenda is that questions submitted by Dutch citizens will 'inspire' actual research projects, i.e. form the basis for their funding and planning. Although the organisers stress that there is no 'financial clause' as such, themes and topics that are high on the agenda will be certain to feature prominently over the next number of years.

Ecological themes

In total, 11,656 science questions have been submitted. They have all been published on the National Science Agenda website, together with a 'wordcloud' of the top 50 keywords. 'Energy' is the topic featured in the highest number of individual questions: 342. 'How can the economy grow without the need to produce more energy?" and "why isn't the Netherlands advancing more rapidly towards a circular economy?" are two of these questions.

Questions specifically about ecology range from "what is the role of bacteria in human and animal life?" to "why does ecological research in the Netherlands focus on particular species?" Together, keywords and topics linked to biodiversity, sustainability and other ecological themes account for more than one tenth of the overall number of science questions.

The next step

Five scientific juries coordinated by the Royal Netherlands Academy of Arts and Sciences (KNAW) will now make a selection from all these initial entries. Their selection will be presented and streamlined during a series of public debates, and finally submitted to the government in November.
 

• National Science Agenda (website in Dutch)