Research Security in International Scientific Collaborations

Global geopolitical changes have a strong influence on the design of international science collaborations. The JuHand project - Jülich Research Security in International Cooperations (“Jülicher Handlungssicherheit in internationalen Kooperationen”) - strives for a differentiated and coherent approach to create a more comprehensive research security in international cooperation. The project consists of four work packages:

• Work package A: Internal communication and sensitization (e.g. newsletter, topic platform and information offers).
• Work package B: Enabling culture (topic-led cooperation assessment and identification of areas of cooperation & areas of non-cooperation)
• Work package C: ISMS (Information Security Management System)
• Work package D: Regional competence and networking within  the Helmholtz Association

Good cooperation at eye level is facilitated while minimizing risks at the same time. Different dialog formats in the form of a continuous exchange are an important part of the project. When developing information and exchange formats, the needs of internationally active scientists are the main focus.

Contact: Christopher Ball c.ball@fz-juelich.de

With the RESIDE project ("Research Security in International cooperations at DESY"), DESY aims to establish and consolidate structures and processes that will ensure that both the research as well as the administrative side of the laboratory can develop and implement international cooperation with even greater confidence and responsibility.

RESIDE offers a coherent framework for research security across all cooperation phases in the central cooperation management, monitoring of international developments, training and awareness-raising measures for researchers, and in specific dialogue and coordination formats with international partners.

Complementary networking and coordination activities complete the planned implementation measures. The focus countries for RESIDE are the USA and China. Russia has dropped out as the third focal country after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Contact: Jana Wolfram, jana.wolfram@desy.de

"Awareness, Security and Knowledge in International Collaboration" (ASK) is an initiative of the German Research Centre for Geosciences Potsdam (GFZ). In the next three years (10/2022 - 09/2025), the project will focus on scientific cooperation with China. The aim is to transfer the results to other "sensitive" countries. Awareness means sensitization: scientists and administrative staff need  to become aware of the new “era” of international cooperation and its  associated challenges. To this end, competence and a sense of responsibility are strengthened. Security means the creation of standardized procedures that minimize risks and create opportunities for collaboration. Knowledge is the third pillar, which aims to strengthen intercultural competence as the basis for international cooperation, including trust and a sense of togetherness at the Center.

Contact: Dr Agota Revesz revesz@gfz-potsdam.de

In its mission to conduct cutting-edge research in the fields of Energy, Health and Matter, the HZDR maintains a wide range of contacts in the scientific community and strives to expand and deepen them. This includes strategic cooperation with partners from science and industry, the exchange of scientists and international talent management, as well as the joint use of technologies and/or large-scale research facilities.

The management of international scientific collaboration requires the establishment of an internal strategy that promotes scientific freedom while at the same time protecting it from abuses and legal violations. This further development will be carried out within the framework of the project "Research Security in International Scientific Cooperation at the HZDR".

To this end, the following core elements will be implemented or further developed:

• Establishment of a competence center as a central coordination point for foreign trade law issues
• Implementation of digital workflows
• Realignment of existing and implementation of new processes and test steps
• Increasing awareness in the scientific community
• Knowledge sharing with other Helmholtz Centers

Contact: Pedro Roldan-Vazquez p.roldan-vazquez@hzdr.de

The success of secure action in international cooperation depends on targeted and efficient cooperation management. This is based on processes and measures that enable Helmholtz Munich and its staff to act securely and independently within the legal, political and administrative framework.
The SeCoIn project ("Security and Compliance in International Cooperations") aims to develop the following in the four central fields of action
- Monitoring of cooperation and grants
- Export control and risk assessment
- IT security 
- Training and awareness  
to further develop and establish professional structures, processes and procedures.
The aim is to sustainably improve the security of all employees in science and administration and to implement compliance and IT security at the highest level in order to meet current requirements. In addition, the successfully implemented measures will also serve as a model for other centres in the Helmholtz Association, and joint expertise will be built up through close networking of projects and joint events.

Contact: Fabian Zarzitzky fabian.zarzitzky@helmholtz-munich.de

Environmental change is a global challenge with different impacts at local and international level.  Tackling this challenge can only be achieved through international scientific cooperation. However, these can be associated with risks that must be given appropriate consideration.

One of the aims of InHand@UFZ is to raise awareness of the risks of international cooperation. To this end, scientists at the UFZ are to be given practical tools and processes are to be developed to enable them to deal with these risks responsibly.

The existing administrative processes are to be improved and access to tools and processes bundled so that they are easy for scientists to access. The core tasks of InHand@UFZ include the establishment of an advisory service for scientists considering opportunities and potential risks, and to create a decision-making process.

As a result, the processes and risk-opportunity assessments necessary to ensure security of action will be successfully communicated and institutionalized at the UFZ so that they become part of the corporate culture.

Contact: Kai Fornahl kai.fornahl@ufz.de

Global infectious diseases pose a challenge that exceeds national borders. International cooperation is therefore a central component of the research activities of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research (HZI). In order to ensure research security for all those involved and to further raise awareness of potential risks, various organizational units and departments at all HZI sites are involved in the project "SPARK: security in international partnerships and collaborations". The aim of SPARK is to further optimize administrative support services in order to ensure research security in international scientific collaborations. The results of the project are to be made visible and accessible.

A special focus is on the following topics:

• Due diligence in science
• export control
• Nagoya Protocol
• Travel risk management
• Contract data management
• Financial implementation of projects
• Region-specific information services

The administrative support services are regularly updated by the organizational units involved. In addition to the existing offerings, demand-oriented standardized training courses on the developed topics are designed by the HR department in order to further raise awareness of potential risks in the scientific and administrative units. Exchange formats are also being developed to share the results with other Centers in the Helmholtz Association.

Contact: Dagmar Auerbach