The ENLIGHT RISE project, the R&I component of ENLIGHT which started in 2021, officially closed on 31 August 2024. This October, the RISE partners met one last time in Bordeaux to put the finishing touches on their final report and prepare for their Final Review with the European Commission. With the RISE report submitted at the end of October, the RISE team came together to participate in their successful Final Review with in November, with the European Commission commending the team for its deliverables and the management of the project.
Many tools and resources developed over the course of RISE will remain available for ENLIGHT as the alliance moves forward. These include interactive resources such as the R&I Observatory and the Impact Repository of Good Practices. Other online resources can still be found via the ENLIGHT website, including toolkits for R&I support, Impact Self-Assessment, and Open Science, as well as an online repository for ECR Training Support. Likewise, knowledge sharing tools, namely recordings of the webinars, workshops, and lectures will remain available on the website, continuing to provide access to helpful materials to support ENLIGHT researchers and our future joint research projects. RISE’s public case studies and reports, such as those summing up our highly successful Matchmaking Event and AIM Days, will also continue to be publicly available online via Zenodo.
Many of the collaborative R&I networks which were developed over the course of the project will continue to have an impact within ENLIGHT. Networks formed from the RISE Focus Groups have already submitted successful project proposals together, ensuring that the quality research and collaboration within RISE can continue for the alliance after the project ends. Additionally, the R&I ENLIGHT Expert Networks (or “EEN”) stemming from the RISE workpackages will continue to meet, collaborate, and be part of our alliance, able to consult and contribute their R&I expertise and strengthen synergies between the education and research dimensions of ENLIGHT.
Some lasting transformational impact coming out of RISE includes recognition for ENLIGHT’s expertise in various fields. This has been demonstrated by published reports from the European Commission, including the Report on Research Assessment published in 2024 which highlighted RISE’s work in the fields of research assessment, open science, and research impact. Also in 2024, the European Commission published the Report on Good practices from European University Alliances Projects (PILOT II), underlining RISE’s outstanding work in Public Engagement.
ENLIGHT expertise and leadership within Research Impact will continue to be a guiding force at the European level. ENLIGHT has led the thematic group for Impact within FOREU2, fostering a community of impact with other European University alliances, and will continue in to do so in the FOREU4ALL project with 64 other EUA’s. ENLIGHT R&I Impact has also actively been part of the Impact core group of EARMA, who are now interested in establishing their own impact repository, seeking out ENLIGHT’s expertise to do so. EARMA representatives have also attended ENLIGHT Impact events as observers, further demonstrating ENLIGHT’s leadership in the field of impact and our broad reach across EUA’s.
And finally, one of the proudest examples of transformational impact stemming from the RISE project was the signing of the Open Science principles by all 10 ENLIGHT rectors in 2023, marking a strong foundation for future cooperation and common values as our alliance steps into its future.
The RISE team has so much to be proud of as we reflect on our past achievements and look ahead to a bright, successful future for the ENLIGHT alliance!