COVID-19 has affected our daily lives in an unprecedented range of ways. It is a human, economic and social crisis that has potentially changed the way we live, work and interact with each other forever. Researchers have not been spared from this, facing numerous challenges since the start of the outbreak, both personal and professional. This session will focus on a couple of these challenges in detail and discuss the lessons that we can learn to strengthen the scientific community and research in the future.

The first challenge that this session will address is the impact COVID-19 has had on research activities directly. Since the introduction of lockdowns in Europe, many researchers have had to reduce their research activities due to additional responsibilities at home while others have been locked out of laboratories and libraries, of all kinds, or been unable to undertake fieldwork to collect primary data. This has not only impacted the careers of many scientists but also led to project goals becoming unachievable, issues with funding and PhD candidates unable to complete their research. In this short course we will look at what can be done on an individual level to improve the current situation that many researchers find themselves in.

In addition to the financial, structural difficulties, many researchers are starting to view the way that they do science as more flexible than they might have considered possible before the coronavirus outbreak. This short course will also make space for discussions about how the practicalities of doing research (be it infrastructure, work patterns or styles of employment) could change in the light of what we have learned during this challenging time. We will also ask the question ‘how can large organisations and institutions attempt to better prepare in case another global crisis arises in the future?’

Public information:
Moderator: Chloe Hill, EGU Policy Officer

Speakers
- Janet Metcalfe, Head of Vitae
- Florence Bullough, Head of Policy and Engagement, The Geological Society of London