As participatory engagement practices are increasingly recognized as a valid and often necessary dimension of research and innovation (R&I) – and specifically the work of research funding organizations (RFOs) – the need to establish strong ethical parameters and guidance for the implementation of such approaches is more important than ever. The work of PRO-Ethics has shown that established ethics review procedures are often unable to grasp the complexity of participatory processes, while the focus on compliance with existing legal and ethical regulatory frameworks fails to address the nuances and tensions of evolving multi-stakeholder processes³. As a result, decades of participatory research have emphasized the importance of understanding the concrete context of implementation when setting up and realizing a participatory process.

The ethics framework consists of tools and guidelines that support the ethical organization of stakeholder participation by respecting each processes’ specificities. In the context of R&I funding, this document aims to operate as a standard for organizing participatory processes and addressing ethical issues and risks before and while they arise. This entails both research ethics in the broadest sense, and the ethics in and of participation more specifically. The framework addresses the diversity of views on ethics and participation, the specific practices of RFOs, and important contextual questions, such as: How is participation justified? What are the expected goals and outcomes? And what are the underlying ethical issues?Over four years, the PRO-Ethics project encountered a diversity of practices and understandings among actors in how to approach the ethics of participation. This framework aims to combine these different approaches into a comprehensive step-by-step guide for ethical participation in the activities of RFOs. As such, it may also prove valuable for other organizations interested in ethical participatory processes, such as research performing organizations, research ethics committees and research integrity bodies. It provides questions to address in each stage of a participatory process – from its preparation and implementation to its evaluation. It also covers different contexts of implementation and guides the user to meet their differing requirements. Furthermore, it is compatible with, and complementary to, other frameworks, standards, and codes of conduct used in the context of R&I.

This document consists of two parts:

• A general description (theoretical introduction) of the framework’s scope, objectives, and positioning, and how it should be applied. This part also includes experiences of RFOs using the framework.
• Tools, guidelines, and a glossary. The tools and guidelines offer “actions” to be considered for ethical stakeholder participation before, during, and after the implementation of participatory processes. Although they were developed for RFOs, they are relevant for broader audiences within R&I.