INGENIO is pleased to announce the fifth edition of its PhD Days Conference, scheduled to take place in person between February 8-10, 2023 in Valencia (Spain). The three-day event is organized by doctoral students for doctoral students. PhD Days provides early career researchers with a welcoming setting in which to develop and refine research presentation and communication skills, receive constructive comments on their work from other students and established researchers, as well as building vital career networks.

The main motivation of INGENIO PhD Days 2023 is re-orienting science and research policies toward new directions based on actions that bring the academia closer to other spheres such as civil society, private sector, institutions, governments and other relevant stakeholders. This calls upon new forms of dialogue, network generation and knowledge creation that, in turn, require ever more frontier theories, methodologies and empirical approaches. The goal of this conference is to openly debate the implications, challenges, outputs and reflections resulting from expanding participation in science.

In times of unprecedented societal challenges and wicked problems, sticking to the “business-as-usual” approaches entails significant social and economic risks. PhD Days 2023 seeks to call attention to emerging alternatives, namely: recognizing the potential of co-creation and multi-stakeholder engagement; the value of open science and citizen participation; reaffirming that participatory processes best serve society if they are inclusive and sustainable; challenging the established socio-technical systems and transforming the lessons learned into actionable mission-oriented policies. These processes are hardly straight-forward, and multiple pathways to implementation exist. PhD Days 2023 is an open call to debate the way forward in a constructive and collaborative fashion.