Research impact refers to the influence that research has within and beyond academia, such as enhancing scientific quality and building critical expertise, and societal impact, which is about the contribution research has to society and the economy, and its benefits to individuals, organisations, or nations. Perhaps even influence on policy making to provide a sound evidence-based reference frame.
The NordForsk Impact Report 2023 can be read in full text here.
– Measuring and communicating impact created by NordForsk funded research is one of our most important tasks. When we are documenting results and effects, we are also ensuring transparency and maintaining trust in Nordic research cooperation, says Arne Flåøyen, director of NordForsk.
– The “reason to be” for NordForsk is our ability to fund projects of high international quality which also create Nordic added value. This provides good insight and enables us to better assess what our research funding contributes back to society. This will be intensified in the coming years, Flåøyen continues.
A primary goal of NordForsk is to promote collaboration in Nordic research, emphasizing scientific excellence, effectiveness, and mutual confidence. Moreover, this collaboration is anticipated to yield additional value specific to the Nordic region – Nordic added value, which is also measured and reported.
This year’s report relies on data reported by the research groups during our 2023 submission period, where the projects report data from their funding periods so far. This represents a cross-sectional view of NordForsk funded research.
– The results of our activities and associated research are measured and reported with relative ease, while demonstrating causal relationships between any variables with certainty is not possible, says Simon Granroth, analytics officer at NordForsk.
– However, we ask the researchers to report on factors that we consider to be justifiable indicators of impact, such as how the research has been utilised, communicated, and what significant outcomes these activities have contributed to. So, we consider the report to be a fair and comprehensive representation of the results and impact of the research activities we facilitate, Granroth concludes.
The central data presented in this report were gathered in March-June 2023 via the reporting system Researchfish. Data concerning NordForsk research by geography and regional mobility are from our own portfolio analyses.
