On 14 April, President of Latvia Egils Levits had an online meeting with Chair of the Association of Latvian Young Scientists (ALYS), Miķelis Grīviņš, and board members Eduards Baķis, Kārlis Pleiko, Laura Bužinska and Ilze Elbere. Topics of the meeting included governance and funding of scientific sector, and professional development of young scientists.
President Levits asked ALYS to comment the existing research funding policy. According to Egils Levits, the share of national budget allocated for science does not match the ambition to develop Latvia into a modern and mature 21st-century state. Mr Grīviņš pointed out that ALYS has been strongly advocating for increased funding for science. He underlined that Latvian researchers have successfully increased their productivity despite the existing financial constraints, with funding being very scarce, and additional state support is an absolute must for researchers to be able to achieve more substantial quality increase.
Increased and stable research funding would promote interest in doctoral studies. Leaders of ALYS also said that Latvia currently has four times less doctoral students than other European countries. At the same time, Chair Grīviņš also mentioned the new doctoral studies model that is being developed right now. It will improve a number of areas, including bringing scholarships to a more competitive level. That is why it is crucial to get the model on the ground according to the plan. ALYS is confident that Latvia should also support researchers from other countries who are looking to build their careers here in Latvia, as that would have a deeply positive impact on the development of the Latvian scientific sector.
On the researcher selection procedures in scope of scientific calls for proposals, President Levits underlined that any formalism in this regard would not be acceptable and quality of research and scientific achievements should be the main selection criteria.
On the governance of the scientific sector, Egils Levits said that along with project-based funding, Latvia should also focus on other funding sources. It must raise baseline funding level because it is one of the key factors affecting the research quality. According to President, without guaranteed and sustainable funding, as long as their pay depends on how many of their project applications get funded, excellence and time of exceptional scientific minds goes to waste. Moreover, many important scientific areas crucial for Latvian State remain underdeveloped due to that.
Meeting then moved on to discussing scientific communication and its role in promoting critical thinking in the society. ALYS representatives suggested that Latvia should develop a scientific public relations network and urge mass media to cover scientific activities in Latvia, and notable achievements, more extensively. President of Latvia underlined the significant role played by ALYS in strengthening scientific communication and raising public awareness about the importance of science and work done by researchers. ‘Scientific communication can influence public opinions and should be used to counter disinformation,’ said Egils Levits.
President also enquired about ALYS’s views on Latvian language as the ‘language of research’ and how to strengthen its positions and integrate it into international framework, thus ensuring that it continues to move forward, while also strengthening the presence of Latvian language in the scientific domain.
Other topics of the meeting included research and scientific ethics, as well as cooperation with diaspora researchers.