Scientific integrity refers to all the rules and values that must govern research activity to guarantee its honesty and scientific rigor. Respect for these rules is key condition for maintaining society's trust in the research ecosystem.
To guarantee equal treatment for applicants and prevent conflicts of interest, the Agency adopted a code of ethics in 2009 and revised in 2018 to incorporate the principles and rules of scientific integrity. In 2018, the ANR also signed the French National Charter for Research Integrity ratified by several French research organisations, which sets out the criteria for an honest and rigorous scientific approach.
The ANR's code of ethics and scientific integrity expresses the general direction, principles and rules of action and behaviour that its internal, external employees and members of its Governing Board undertake to respect in the activities they carry out on behalf of the Agency. In particular, these principles relate to promoting gender equality, professional responsibility, impartiality, separation of functions, confidentiality, professional secrecy and the duty of privacy. The ANR undertakes to take appropriate actions if these rules are breached.
Training in ethical principles and the prevention and management of conflicts of interest is also offered to ANR employees and the members of Scientific Evaluation Panels, to support them and ensure these rules are respected.
Reflecting its commitment to its scientific integrity policy, the ANR has appointed an ethics and scientific integrity officer responsible for:
Laurence Guyard, the scientific communities relations manager, was appointed as ethics and scien-tific integrity officer on 1 May 2018.