The creation of the Global Research Council, announced yesterday by a group of research agencies leaders from nearly 50 countries, came after a three-day meeting at the National Science Foundation, reports the Nature News blog. Nature adds that Subra Suresh, NSF director, says the GRC is "the first step toward a more unified approach to the scientific process."
According to ScienceInsider, the GRC is a "voluntary … virtual organization," as Suresh put it, that will discuss "shared goals, aspirations, and principles, and provide a vehicle to unify science across the globe," he added.
As the Daily Scan noted, one aspect of the scientific process that the council has focused on is peer review, and it is working on global standards for peer review to better enable international collaborations among scientists. ScienceInsider adds that the GRC also plans to tackle research integrity and open access.
While hopes are high that the council will develop global scientific principles, the Nature News blog adds that "the GRC could just evolve into a useful but limited talking shop, where research agencies agree on broad-brush issues but do little to resolve practical differences."