Global Research Council Seeking Hosts for the 2027 Annual Meeting

Information & Requirements

GRC participating organisations are invited to submit bids to host the 15^th Annual Meeting of the Global Research Council, scheduled to take place in late May/early June 2027.

The Annual Meeting should last approximately 2.5 days; an additional 1-2 days are suggested prior to the Meeting for pre-events and side meetings, as appropriate.

Deadline to submit bids to the Executive Secretariat (grc@ukri.org): 05 February 2025

The co-hosts will be announced during the 13^th Annual Meeting in Riyadh, 18–22 May 2025.

Application

Applications should include:

1. Application form
2. A short narrative (max. 5 pages), including:
   • Background information about host and co-host(s) (brief introduction and previous engagement with the GRC)
   • Strategic advantage of the partnership, roles of host and co-host(s)
   • Vision and aim of the event / Motivation of the applicants to host the meeting
   • Optional: Proposal of topic(s) for the GRC cycle leading to the 2027 Annual Meeting, expanding on:
     • The relevance of the topic(s) for GRC participating organisations and the wider scientific community
     • Potential pre- or side-events
     • Potential linkages to other scientific activities

Requirements

Eligiblity

The co-hosts of the Annual Meeting should:

• be selected to reflect, over the years, the diversity of research councils worldwide.
• come from different regions of the world.
• be active participants in the past GRC Annual and Regional Meetings.

Costs

• Co-hosts are expected to cover the full local costs associated with hosting and arranging the Annual Meeting.
• It is expected that meeting participants will cover their own costs to attend the meeting.

Thematic focus

• Applicants are invited to propose a topic(s) for the GRC cycle leading to the 2027 Annual Meeting.
• Selected co-hosts will work together with the Programme Committee to develop the topics to be discussed within the GRC.
• Co-hosting organisations are responsible for developing the selected Annual Meeting topics. This includes:
  • Drafting the discussion papers for the 2026 Regional Meetings.
  • Drafting the Statement(s) of Principles.
• Co-hosting organisations will each nominate one individual to serve on the GRC International Steering Committee (ISC) for the 2026–2027 term. The ISC is responsible for developing the programme and wider strategic elements for the meeting.

Additional GRC involvement

Co-hosting organisations:

• are supported by the GRC Executive Support Group (ESG) and Executive Secretariat.
• will each nominate one individual to serve on the ESG (ex-officio) and chairs of the research councils to serve on the Governing Board (ex-officio) for the 2026-2027 term.

Further information

• Application form
• Previous Annual Meeting hosts and locations
• GRC Foundational Document
• GRC Website

Organisations interested in submitting a bid are invited to contact the Executive Secretariat at grc@ukri.org for further details.