BNA sticks to science: Join the campaign for EU funding

8th Feb 2022

The British Neuroscience Association (BNA) is supporting a new pan-European campaign, Stick to Science, aimed at securing UK membership of the EU's world-leading research and innovation programme, Horizon Europe. 

The Stick to Science campaign, launched today, asks EU leaders to place science collaboration before politics, as UK participation in Horizon Europe hangs in the balance. 

What is the campaign calling for?

Stick to Science is calling for an open and collaborative research and innovation landscape in Europe that is free from political barriers. It has been launched at a time when UK and Swiss participation in the EU’s research and innovation programme continues to be stalled by politics. The UK’s final association to Horizon Europe, the EU’s €95.5 billion (£79.4 bn) research and innovation programme, remains tangled up in post-Brexit trade arrangements, while Switzerland also remains locked out of parts of the programme, pending government talks. In both cases, political disputes have been placed ahead of science collaboration.

Why has the BNA signed up?

Neuroscience research has been one of the main beneficiaries of past EU funding. Should UK researchers be unable to access these funds in the future, this risks creating further shortfalls in funding for neuroscience research. 

Who is the Stick to Science campaign organised by?

The campaign is being led by Universities UK, Wellcome and The Royal Society from the UK, in addition to EPFL, ETH Zurich, and the ETH Board from Switzerland. 

How can BNA members help?

We're encouraging BNA members to join the rest of the European scientific community in signing the Stick to Science initiative through the campaign's website: www.stick-to-science.eu

How is the BNA remaining connected to neuroscience research in Europe?

The BNA is a founding member of the Federation of European Neuroscience Societies (FENS), playing a key role in its establishment and helping to build a strong European neuroscience community.

Being a member of the BNA still comes with an automatic membership with FENS. That means our BNA members continue to get access to the European neuroscience community via FENS and remain well connected and united with all our European colleagues. It also means our members continue to have the opportunity to access a wider range of funding and bursaries.