BETTER Life

Bringing Excellence to Transformative Engaged Research in Life Sciences through Integrated Digital Centres

Name of the project: Bringing Excellence to Transformative Engaged Research in Life Sciences through Integrated Digital Centres

Acronym: BETTER Life

Grant provider: European Commission

Programme: Horizon Europe

Duration: 2022 – 2025

The general objective of the project “Bringing Excellence to Transformative Engaged Research in Life Sciences through Integrated Digital Centres” — short BETTER Life — is to establish the EU Digital Centre of Excellence for Socially Engaged Research in Life Sciences (hereinafter EU BETTER Life Centre). The Centre will be an inter-institutional support structure for developing capacities of early career researchers (PhD students and researchers not yet fully independent) (hereinafter ECR) aiming to foster socially engaged research (SER) to tackle societal challenges in their surrounding ecosystems while consolidating the EU BETTER Life Centre as a world reference in planning, supporting, and implementing SER in life sciences.

EU BETTER Life Centre addresses the issue of research engagement and collaboration as a key element to generate wide impact in the surrounding ecosystems and diverse stakeholders. Recent studies agree that there is a growing need for collaborative and interdisciplinary research in addressing global challenges and that ECRs play a key role in challenging the existing academic barriers and consolidating the field. In Europe, this claim is supported by the MORE4 Report that shows that only 32% of researchers collaborate with non-academic sectors or receive any transferable skills training and only 24% of researchers have moved to other sectors during the research career (a decreasing number compared with previous reports). This phenomenon is similar in the universities that are a part of this consortium – there is a need to establish support structures for early carrier researcher to upgrade soft skills, developing tools, and find the connections with the surrounding ecosystem to socially engage their research. Our consortium is committed to address this challenge in life sciences, which is the key field of strength across the institutions, by engaging the partners in creating the support structures to build individual, intra-institutional, and inter-institutional capacities, engaging with the surrounding ecosystem, and constructing in international framing guidelines.

Latest updates

  • 35 Years of Democracy: A Debate on Social Engagement and Academic Freedom

    35 Years of Democracy: A Debate on Social Engagement and Academic Freedom

    On November 13, 2024, the Czech University of Life Sciences Prague hosted a debate to commemorate the 35th anniversary of the Velvet Revolution. Held in the university’s auditorium, the event brought together students, staff, and members of the public. It was organized in collaboration with student associations and the Post Bellum organization, including its international Memory of Nations project. The […]

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  • BETTER Life Project Showcased at the 2024 ACEEU Europe-Africa Forum

    BETTER Life Project Showcased at the 2024 ACEEU Europe-Africa Forum

    The BETTER Life project took center stage at the 2024 ACEEU Europe-Africa Forum, held from September 18-20, 2024. Representatives from key partners, including CZU, ACEEU, and HELIXCONNECT, participated as part of the BETTER Life consortium, contributing to discussions on advancing entrepreneurship and engagement in higher education. In addition to participating in the forum, BETTER Life organized a dedicated workshop titled “Synergies in Action […]

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  • Second Science Pub Fosters Dialogue on Municipal Cooperation and Environmental Issues

    Second Science Pub Fosters Dialogue on Municipal Cooperation and Environmental Issues

    The second Science Pub successfully took place on Thursday, September 26, continuing the positive momentum from the first meeting. The event was held at the premises of the Regional Authority in Hradec Králové and began with a greeting from Professor Michal Lošťák, the principal investigator of the project, which contributed to a relaxed and friendly atmosphere. Once […]

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  • BETTER Life Summer School: Final Destination🏰

    BETTER Life Summer School: Final Destination🏰

    The BETTER Life Summer School 2024 has come to a successful close after an inspiring week of learning, fieldwork, and collaboration. Starting with two days of interactive lectures and roundtable discussions at CZU in Prague, where participants were introduced to the key principles of Socially Engaged Research (SER), we followed by immersive three-day excursions to national parks, where participants applied […]

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  • The Fourth Issue of the BETTER Life Newsletter is here!

    The Fourth Issue of the BETTER Life Newsletter is here!

    Dive into the latest developments with the fourth volume of the BETTER Life project Newsletter! This edition showcases our commitment to transformative research in life sciences: Click here to explore the full newsletter.

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  • 🌲 BETTER Life Summer School: Revitalizing Bohemian Switzerland National Park After Devastating Fire 🌲

    🌲 BETTER Life Summer School: Revitalizing Bohemian Switzerland National Park After Devastating Fire 🌲

    The second group from the BETTER Life Summer School travelled to Bohemian Switzerland National Park to face the critical challenge of “Revitalizing Nature After a Major Fire”. The participants explored ways to reopen the park for tourism while balancing the need for environmental restoration. Engaging with a diverse group of six stakeholders, including mayors, local entrepreneurs, business owners, and representatives from both the Bohemian and Saxon Switzerland […]

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  • BETTER Life’s Contribution at the Czech Political Science Congress

    BETTER Life’s Contribution at the Czech Political Science Congress

    On September 12th and 13th, members of the BETTER Life team, Milan Školník and Michael Haman, attended the Congress of the Czech Political Science Association, held in Ústí nad Labem, Northern Bohemia. This is a prestigious professional association, as evidenced by the participation of representatives from various relevant institutions who presented their contributions at the […]

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  • 🌲 BETTER Life Summer School: Addressing Overtourism and Conservation in Krkonoše National Park 🌲

    🌲 BETTER Life Summer School: Addressing Overtourism and Conservation in Krkonoše National Park 🌲

    One of the two groups from the BETTER Life Summer School ventured to Krkonoše National Park (KRNAP) to tackle a pressing environmental and economic challenge: “Developing Ski-Resorts and New Ski-Slopes vs. Protecting Biodiversity and Nature.” This dilemma, intertwined with the broader issue of overtourism in KRNAP, was at the center of the group’s fieldwork. Participants engaged with key stakeholders, including representatives from […]

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  • 🌿 BETTER Life Summer School: A Journey from Classroom to National Parks 🌿

    🌿 BETTER Life Summer School: A Journey from Classroom to National Parks 🌿

    The BETTER Life Summer School kicked off with two days of interactive teaching at CZU in Prague, where participants dove into the world of Socially Engaged Research (SER). Senior researchers from the BETTER Life and other projects shared their insights and experiences, offering real-world examples of SER through various EU-funded projects that utilized transdisciplinary research methods. Lively round table discussions allowed participants to engage […]

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