A new European Partnership is to be established as part of the European Framework Programme for Research and Innovation, 'Horizon Europe': the 'European Partnership on Social Transformations and Resilience' (STR). To define this partnership's specific research and innovation priorities, the DLR Project Management Agency conducted four strategic foresight cycles on Supporting the modernisation of social protection systems; Shaping the future of work; Fostering education and skills development; Contributing to a fair transition towards climate neutrality. On this basis, the DLR-PT team elaborated a first draft of the Partnership's strategy for 2027-2033. 

As part of the project, the DLR-PT convened around 40 European experts for a backcasting workshop in Bonn on 28 and 29 January 2026. This two-day event, held under the title of "Towards a Strategic Research & Innovation Agenda for the STR Partnership", aimed to translate four best-case scenarios from previous foresight cycles into concrete research and innovation priorities for the future STR partnership's Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda (SRIA). In the workshop, the DLR-PT's strategic foresight team worked with the Humanities and Cultural Heritage Unit to use the backcasting method. Starting from a desirable target vision for 2040, participants identified key milestones (including those for 2033 and 2037), as well as necessary framework conditions, potential obstacles, and action steps, thinking backwards from the future to the present. Specifically, the participants first developed priority measures and then used these to define research and innovation priorities for the strategy. By the end of the workshop, the experts had developed up to six thematic priorities for each of the impact areas in the future Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda.

The European Partnership on Social Transformations and Resilience is currently being prepared and is expected to start in 2027. The Strategic Research and Innovation Agenda, with its implementation-oriented research priorities, will serve members of the partnership as a basis for future calls for proposals.

The future of the European science system fundamentally depends on its researchers, and it is therefore essential to continue fostering attractive and sustainable research careers. Yet, a wide range of challenges is currently shaping both researchers’ professional trajectories and the broader EU research and innovation ecosystem.

Against this backdrop, DG Research & Innovation commissioned the Foresight On Demand team to conduct a study with the following objectives:

• Identify long term trends and disruptions affecting researchers’ careers in Europe.
• Develop plausible scenarios (to 2040) for the evolution of the EU’s researcher workforce.
• Propose policy pathways and identify challenges. The study will outline potential EU level policy approaches and governance reforms that could generate added value through coordinated action.

By informing policymaking, the study’s findings will aim to support greater coordination among Member States and strengthen the effectiveness of governance structures, funding mechanisms, and frameworks for research career development across Europe.