Trust, Transparency and Data Gathering

The UK is the host of this year’s G7. In recognition of this, the British Academy has convened a virtual forum of SSH7 – social science and humanities representative bodies of every country in the G7. Our world-leading humanities and social sciences sectors across the G7 are coming together to provide a global platform for this research excellence and for the vital contribution these disciplines can bring to major societal, behavioural and environmental challenges of today. We have agreed a series of statements on one of the greatest challenges we face, namely the COVID-19 pandemic and our recovery from its impacts.

This statement on trust, transparency and data gathering focuses on how COVID-19 has affected society’s relationships with information, government and private data, the media and the role of experts.

It outlines some of the key insights from the humanities and social sciences on how the response to the pandemic and its unfolding effects has shown that there is a need for better understanding, use and integration of knowledge in policymaking from different sources, evidence and types of data, in healthcare, climate change and more broadly.