Mapping out the needs of the family of the future
EU-funded researchers are encouraging family welfare associations, researchers, and policymakers to join an online platform and contribute their expertise on existing and future issues affecting European families. The website is a part of a broader study focused on the growing diversity of family structures, living arrangements and lifestyle patterns found in Europe today. Results from the research initiative will inform the EU's future social research agenda. The FAMILYPLATFORM ('Social platform on research for families and family policies') project is funded to the tune of EUR 1.4 million under the Socio-economic sciences and humanities Theme of the Seventh Framework Programme (FP7). The project is reviewing trends in family research in the EU and providing a critical analysis of existing research. Its ultimate aim is to build an understanding of the fundamental research and policy questions in the context of family life and well-being in Europe in eight specific areas: family structures and family forms; family development processes; state family policies; family and living environments; family management; social care and social services; social inequality and the diversity of families; and media and family education. These questions may relate to gender equality, parenthood and filiation, intergenerational collaboration, health and education, cultural patterns and preferences, and will cover future conditions and challenges. Led by the Technical University Dortmund in Germany, a total of 12 organisations are working together under FAMILYPLATFORM to deliver a clear understanding of these issues for inclusion in the European Social Science and Humanities Research Agenda 2012-2013. The website is one way of attracting the participation of a broad spectrum of professionals that the EU feels is necessary to harness the right information for its future research funding agenda. Pierre Valette, head of the Socio-Economic Research and Foresight Unit of the European Commission's Science, Economy and Society Directorate, explained: 'We are convinced that our socio-economic research will be better targeted and have a greater impact on society if its scope and objectives have been identified together with societal, policy and research stakeholders.' The website is managed by FAMILYPLATFORM partner, the Confederation of Family Organisations in the European Union (COFACE), and currently hosts a series of reports on the state of family research in Europe. As the key access point to the project, the website has been designed to encourage effective dialogue and discussion between stakeholders. Professor Uwe Uhlendorff of the Technical University Dortmund explained that family is an important subject for most Europeans, but it is also one of the most hotly debated. 'With FAMILYPLATFORM we are taking up the challenge of bringing together different voices and perspectives - and this website enables us to do this,' he commented. 'The expertise and input of stakeholders will have a real and lasting impact on future research in Europe.' To become involved in FAMILYPLATFORM, industry professionals are invited to register their interest through the project's website.
Countries
Germany