FECYT co-organizes in Madrid two training workshops in support of researcher professional development.

Research in the 21st century has changed radically and there is a pushing need for researchers to incorporate skills into their training skills that go beyond the traditional scientific knowledge. Transferable skills (leadership, fund raising, team and project management, etc.) are vital to ensuring first line research, as well as sectorial mobility.

Research in the 21st century With this aim, FECYT –national coordinator of the pan-European initiative EURAXESS in support of researchers and partner of the European project PIEPRS- has organized in collaboration with British Council, the university of Durham and the University of Sofia two training workshops, one for research staff and another one for science managers coming from organizations of both the Spanish and Portuguese national R&D systems.

The workshop for researchers took place on the 15^th and 16^th of February at the premises of the Fundación para el Conocimiento madri+d had the target of early stage researchers with an interest in intersectoral mobility and in public-private cooperation in R&D activities. The aim of the workshop was to provide additional skills to the traditional scientific training of the researchers on topics like entrepreneurship, public engagement and information literacy, including the exploitation of Industrial Property Rights.

The workshop for science managers took place on the 17^th and 18^th of February also at the premises of the Fundación para el Conocimiento madri+d and had the aim of providing tools and resources that would allow for the cascading of training initiatives for researchers across different organizations of the national R&D systems, with a particular emphasis on those organizations that are already members of the Spanish and Portuguese EURAXESS national networks.

On top of the specific aims of each of the workshop, both events have been organized with the ultimate goal of testing, generating and disseminating training resources for researchers across the 40 national networks that are part of the EURAXESS initiative so the PIPERS project will contribute to reinforcing the role of EURAXESS in terms of providing support to the professional development of researchers.

The workshops have been organized in the framework of the project PIPERS (Policy into Practice: EURAXESS Researcher Skills for Career Development), an international project funded by the European Commission through the 7^th Framework Project that is coordinated by British Council.