Why seek international partnerships?

Successful researchers have been working in partnership for years. Collaboration helps them draw on specialized knowledge in diverse fields to address the most complex challenges. Such partnerships can involve a wide range of activities: refining research questions; comparing methodologies; coordinating plans; sharing data, materials or equipment; teaching students; organizing conferences; writing papers; editing books and more. In each case, researchers come together because they believe they are more likely to achieve results in partnership than alone.

Successful collaborations start when researchers:

1. Define a research question, issue or problem – and ways to address it.

2. Find the partners and shape the relationships they need to achieve results.

3. Define their research plan and structure their collaboration for resilience.

4. Find funding - the last step.

ERA-Can can help with steps 2 and 4. The partner search facilities on our website can help researchers find partners in Canada and Europe. Funding opportunities for international research activities and collaborations are also available on the website.