Principles of Ethical and
Professional Conduct
The ethical and regulatory challenges in science and
research policy have been gaining momentum alongside the quickening pace of
discovery and increasing social concerns about the use and abuse of science.
Reflecting these concerns, a proliferation of European and
international regulatory and advisory bodies and associated guides and
protocols now address ethical issues. Significant among these is the European Charter for
Researchers, which sets out the basic principles of ethical and
professional conduct. These include principles of research freedom,
integrity, accountability, social responsibility, public engagement, and the
dissemination and exploitation of results, as well as compliance with discipline-specific protocols and principles of intellectual property and joint data
ownership. The University of Crete endorsed the Charter and associated Code
for researchers in 2009 and is also taking practical steps to ensure that
these ethical and professional principles are observed.
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The University Code of Ethics
& Research Ethics Committee
In 2012 the University of Crete
Senate adopted an institution-wide Code of Ethics and established the
University’s Research Ethics Committee
(REC). The codification of research ethics principles and procedures
together with the establishment of a single university-wide body to replace
previous discipline-based committees was a major step forward. Since then,
the composition and remits of the University’s REC have undergone a number of
changes in accordance with new regulations [Law 4521/2018 articles21-27]
designed to make the establishment of
a REC mandatory for all Greek Higher Education Institutions and to
standardize existing practices.
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