Eidos

Description

Developing and promoting innovative and cross-sector projects and bids for funding, in particular for projects of national significance

Eidos + Congress is an annual event bringing together researchers, policy-makers, practitioners and politicians to share knowledge, aspirations and concerns. The Congress also invites participation from internationally-recognised organisations. The event is modelled on the successful "Science Meets Parliament" project.

The Congress involves workshops for participants to develop strategies for communicating with parliamentarians, government agencies and the media. It also involves face-to-face meetings amongst researchers, parliamentarians, the educational media, international guests and senior departmental officers.

Benefits

Contribution towards Eidos goals and targets
Eidos + Congress makes a significant contribution to achieving Goal 2 targets, particularly in focusing educational research on important political concerns and helping to provide opportunities for State-level funding to be directed at research. The event also contributes to Goal 1 targets by facilitating opportunities for collaboration across agencies.

Benefits for partners
University-based researchers gain opportunities to directly promote their capabilities to government members and international agencies. They also develop skills in marketing their capabilities to decision-makers. It is expected that the Congress will lead directly to the establishment of important collaborative projects.

What Eidos will do

Eidos provides the organisation, hosting and facilitation for the Congress including:

Venue and event management

Marketing

Lobbying for support directly to Cabinet members and parliamentarians

Developing a database of researchers interests, aligning these with those of government members and facilitating introductions

Providing training for researchers in lobbying with Government

What partners will contribute

Partners are expected to:

Identify researchers from all levels for attendance at the Congress

Provide briefings for participants about the organisation's expectations of the event

Support debriefing and feedback to Eidos as part of the event's evaluation.

Evaluation

Congress is evaluated in terms of:

It's contribution to the Strategic Plan targets

Level of support from partners and members of government

Number and value of collaborative projects

Media analysis of the event’s performance.

Welcome from

Professor Colin Power

Evidence-based education and social policy and practice are necessary conditions for preparing global learners, workers and citizens to participate and continue to learn throughout life in a constantly changing and complex world. Thus, a world-class education and social science research program that informs policy and its implementation is needed if we are to perform well in the knowledge economy and to tackle the social, cultural and environmental issues that threaten our individual and collective well-being.

In a context of intense competition for the limited funds available, education and social research is largely confined to small groups working within a particular discipline in a single institution: its contribution to improving policy and practice has fallen far short of its potential. The Queensland government sees its schools, colleges and universities as playing a critical role in contributing to the realisation of its vision of becoming the Smart State. In the consultations leading to its education strategy for 2010, Premier Beattie insisted: If we in Queensland want access to the benefits of the knowledge economy of the future, we have to ensure that the education levels and skills of our people are up with the best in the world. A cornerstone of the strategy is to ensure that policy and practice are based on evidence.

The Interim Board, and more recently the Executive Committee and its Secretariat, have built a foundation from which Eidos has launched confidently into these uncharted waters as together we seek to develop a collaborative culture of rigorous inquiry informing evidence-based policy and practice.

It gives me great pleasure therefore, to welcome you to the Second Annual Research Congress as the key and emerging stakeholders in education and social research and policy-making in Queensland.