Mainstreaming Arts and Humanities in Horizon Professor Shearer West University of Oxford

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1 Mainstreaming Arts and Humanities in Horizon 2020 Professor Shearer West University of Oxford

2 THE RESEARCHERS, THE FUNDERS: TWO CULTURES?

3 The Researchers: Jeremiads We re the parasites, who don t bring in large outside grants that help to cross-fund other departments and disciplines. We re the pedants, who don t produce anything that can help society solve its pressing problems. We re the superfluous men and women, whom hard-pressed university administrators have to support even though our politicized scholarship and teaching has led to a calamitous loss of student enrolments. Anthony Grafton, History under Attack, Perspectives on History, January 2011

4 The Funders: Common Complaints Focusing on process and instruments rather than outcomes Only interested in science and lacking understanding of the arts and humanities Lacking flexibility, risk averse Instrumentalist, serving government agendas for growth rather than the research community

5 ARTS AND HUMANITIES WITHIN THE RESEARCH UNIVERSITIES OF EUROPE

6 What the humanities are Humanities comprises those disciplines that are concerned largely with interpretation of language, literature, creative output, material culture, ideas and beliefs of individuals within their historical, intellectual and cultural contexts. This includes such subjects as history, philosophy, classics, ancient and modern languages, literature, theology and religion. Practice-based disciplines such as art, drama and music are often part of humanities faculties, but in research-intensive universities, art history, dramaturgy and musicology tend to take precedence over creative practice and performance.

7 Characteristics of European Research Universities Focus on investigator-led and basic research as priority Comprehensive disciplinary spread including a large proportion of humanities academics and students (only a very small number of European Research Universities are primarily science and technology focused HEIs) Celebration of success of individual academic stars Global outlook Publicising indicators of excellence as league table position and diversity and amount of external research funding Significant number of interdisciplinary research centres Focus on addressing global challenges Research publicity prioritising discoveries in science and technology Reinforcement of research integrity Development of next generation of researchers, often through doctoral training centres Advocating research-led teaching Increasing attention to social and economic impact of research as a secondary, rather than primary, outcome

8 European Research Landscape Examples of Humanities in current research landscape Collaborative HERA Addressing Global Challenges HORIZON 2020 Impact and Innovation Need for quick dissemination/open access Infrastructure, 'big kit' Capacity building REF2014 Impact Pilots OAPEN project CLARIN, DARIAH, digital humanities AHRC Collaborative Doctoral Awards, Doctoral Training Centress

9 HUMANITIES IN HORIZON 2020

10 Horizon 2020 focal points Excellent research Capacity Building Infrastructure Global Challenge Innovation and impact Let s not reinvent the wheel.

11 GLOBAL CHALLENGES: RESEARCH ADDRESSING THE WORLD S WICKED PROBLEMS

12 Benefit: what arts and humanities research provides Policy makers, military, police and diplomats who: have a grasp of religious and ethnic diversity; understand the beliefs and practices of different groups past and present; have a global perspective on language, communication and cultural difference.

13 Benefit: what arts and humanities research provides A deeper understanding of the values, beliefs and dynamics of communities. A nuanced engagement with civic values, such as trust, responsibility, civility.

14 Benefit: what arts and humanities research provides A grasp of the lessons learned from history. Methods for preserving and interpreting archives of national heritage and experience which would otherwise be lost.

15 Benefit: what arts and humanities research An engagement with the ethical dimensions of scientific discovery. provides Greater understanding of the contribution of culture to health and well being.

16 Benefit: what arts and humanities research provides Engagement with the ways in which the digital economy is transforming how knowledge is collected, transmitted and used.

17 Horizon 2020 Global Challenges Health, Demographic Change and Wellbeing Food Security Secure, Clean and Efficient Energy Smart, Green and Integrated Transport Climate Action Europe in a Changing World: Inclusive, Innovative and Reflective Societies

18 Horizon 2020 Global Challenges Climate Action (raw materials): Anthropology, geography, history, language studies: all these disciplines are needed to understand the geopolitical issues at stake and to develop collaboration in in a responsible and sustainable manner with the countries that produce raw materials. Horizon 2020 Climate Action Advisory Group draft consultation response.

19 Horizon 2020 Global challenges Health, Demographic Change and Wellbeing The ethical dimensions of genome diagnoses. How does the experience of music, pictorial art and literature interact with cognitive and affective function of patients with chronic diseases or mental health problems? What do the practices of past and foreign civilisations tell us about pain and ways of reducing human suffering and anxiety? Source: The Future of the Social Sciences and Humanities in Europe (LERU, Sept 2013)

20 ARTS, HUMANITIES AND INNOVATION: AN OPPORTUNITY?

21 Benefit: what arts and humanities research provides Capacity for innovation and creativity at a time of enormous change. Ability to capitalise on a global position in creative and cultural industries to stimulate the economy.

22 Humanities Graduate Employment Quantitative study of 11,000 humanities graduates at Oxford between 1960 and 1989] Humanities achieved remarkable balance and growth in its contribution to principal employment sectors which were part of economic growth in 1970s and 1980s (law, finance, management, media) while retaining core contributions to education and public services

23 Human capital: what music graduates do

24 Innovation Research into 500 digital media businesses in Brighton found that the companies that gave equal weight to the role of arts graduates and technology graduates were growing three times faster than the ones that didn t We are educating kids for jobs that haven t been invented yet. John Newbigin, Guardian, 24 June 2014

25 Characteristics of Creative Industries: Innovation Characterised by highly innovative, non-linear, high risk, process-led approach, incorporating users, consumers, researchers and creative practitioners Represents developed world s move away from predominantly agricultural and commodity economy to predominantly information and knowledge economy

26 Pathways to Impact: Knowledge Exchange partners in the Arts and Humanities Commercial companies Cultural, heritage and tourism organisations Performance organisations Broadcasting, film, games and media NGOs and charities Public policymakers Faith groups Professional practitioners in law, healthcare etc Geneaological societies Power & Taboo: Sacred Objects from the Pacific at the British Museum (September 06 January 07),

27 UK evidence of arts and humanities contribution to growth The largest creative sector in Europe, one of the world s largest music industries and one of its most advanced digital and tv markets much of this work underpinned by research (CBI) Creative and cultural sector is 6% of GDP, employs over 2 million people and brings in export income of 16bn annually (CBI)

28 CONCLUSION

29 Obstacles Research communities themselves are stuck in disciplinary structures, promotion systems, attitudes of mind and comfort zones The complex instruments of research funding can inhibit novel approaches and risk taking Arts and Humanities suffer from implicit bias that is equivalent to gender bias Mainstreaming of SSH in Horizon 2020 is so far just words

30 Way forward? Funders: Incentives are needed in the H2020 programme to nudge researchers to work across boundaries (see the effect of RAE/REF on quality of UK research over time; Athena Swan on gender in the academy) Researchers: Universities and researchers need to find new ways to talk across boundaries this will require brokerage, commitment and experimentation