A new database of Areas of Research Interest has been developed by the Government Office for Science and the Economic and Social Research Council. The new tool which brings together all Areas of Research Interest (ARI) documents from across government departments in a one-stop shop is now live.

ARIs are lists of research questions or topics which government departments and agencies would welcome more research on to inform their policies and help close the evidence policy gap.

This new database allows anyone accessing it to search for particular areas of research interest and find out what are the main research questions facing government departments.

If applicable, the database will also find research already funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) and connected to the searched topic, thereby making it easier to identify existing evidence and experts in the field.

This new tool improves accessibility, transparency, and openness around the knowledge priorities of departments, improving opportunities for collaboration and prioritisation. ARIs can be found in the database via keywords, year, government department, and via other basic metadata.

The tool has been developed and co-funded by the Government Office for Science and ESRC, as a response to widespread demand to improve both the awareness and accessibility of ARIs. To date, over 1,500 ARIs have been published and are publicly available in pdf or html format on GOV.UK.

The database was produced by Overton, a pioneering technology start-up whose mission is to support evidence-based decision-making across the world.

See: New one-stop shop to find the topics government is interested in researching – GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)