Title: An overview of research ethics and integrity, and related matters at KAUST

Abstract:

The mandate of the Research Compliance Team is to promote responsible conduct of research in collaboration with research ethics and safety committees at KAUST.

This talk will cover three (3) topics:

1. The governance of research ethics and integrity at KAUST
2. Authorship
3. Collaboration in research

The session on research ethics and integrity aims at sharing information about the governance structure as well as review boards at KAUST. For the KSC context, the talk will look at research that requires KAUST approval or exemption.  In addition, the talk will reference the submission processes and institutional mechanisms for reporting non-compliance (e.g., allegations of research misconduct) and research-related grievances. As part of the talk, we will look at the classic concepts of research misconduct (fabrication, falsification and plagiarism), along with awareness on questionable research practices (QRPs).  

For authorship, the talk highlights norms and standards at KAUST based on international best practices, and clarify some of the issues, especially relating to potential ethical ways of allocating authorship credit, and highlight authors’ responsibilities in the research environment.

For collaborative research projects, the talk focusses on contractual requirements, and best practices to foster collaborative research in a responsible manner for all individuals and institutional partners.

Speakers:

Sidney Engelbrecht- is currently appointed as Senior Research Compliance Specialist at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in the Kingdom of Saudi-Arabia.

Sidney has been working in research administration and management for more than a decade with a specific focus on research ethics and integrity, and compliance. He is a seasoned research ethics administrator in human research, animal research and biosafety, and research integrity. Throughout his career, he offered research training and advice on those subjects at various universities and Research Ethics Committees in the Southern African Developing Community (SADC) countries and beyond. He was the Principal Investigator for a project “Gauging the need for research ethics training in SADC Countries”.

In 2019, he obtained professional recognition as a Research Management Professional accredited by the International Professional Recognition Council. Sidney is the recipient of the Award for Distinguished Contribution to the Research Management Profession from the South African Department of Science and Innovation and the Southern African Research Innovation Management Association (SARIMA). In 2020, he co-led the drafting of Research Ethics Guidelines and Toolkit for Access and Benefit-sharing in the context of The Nagoya Protocol for SADC. He authored two chapters in the student handbook on Jurisprudence for Laboratory Animal Technologists. He is a member of the Core Group of the European Research Integrity Officers Network, and UKRIO Advisory Community.

Sidney obtained qualifications in Law and Philosophy (Applied Ethics and Bioethics) from Stellenbosch University in South Africa. 

Ana Molina- She joined the RC Team with extensive experience in corporate governance and risk management, having worked and specialised in the British public and private healthcare sector.

Ana has been supporting the RC function in matters related to bioethics, animal welfare and care, scientific diving and radiation safety. She coordinates the administration of the Institutional Biosafety and Bioethics Committee (IBEC), the Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC), the Diving Control Board, and the Institutional Radiation Safety Committee (IRSC). She supports the KAUST research community in ensuring that the applications submitted to those Committees are in compliance with applicable regulatory frameworks and institutional policies and procedures, and in obtaining the appropriate committee approvals.

She is currently advocating the development of the Responsible Conduct of Research training course offered by the RC Team to raise awareness and understanding within KAUST on topics such as research ethics, research integrity, authorship and publication ethics.

Ana obtained her degree in Law and Business Management from the University of Granada Spain) in 2012. As part of her studies, she spent two years reading European and international law and politics at the University of Glasgow (United Kingdom) and the University of Leuven (Belgium).

Location:

Room 5209, Building 5

 

For further information, please email to: ksc@kaust.edu.sa