Third annual Training webinar for new SCAR Groups members 

The 3rd annual Training webinar for new SCAR Working Groups and Task Forces members has been held on 8 June 2026, following the two previous similar events, held on 8 July 2025 and on 18 September 2024, respectively.

The webinar was followed by nearly 40 people from a wide range of countries, with participation of experts who recently joined the SCAR groups, together with more experienced members and experts who also joined the event. SCAR’s objectives and structure were explained to the participants, with a short description of each group.  The updated 2026 version of the 'Induction Package', a user-friendly guide to familiarize with the SCAR environment first issued in 2024 and downloadable from the SCAR website was also introduced. The webinar also provided an opportunity for new Groups’ members to connect with other newcomers and more experienced SCAR members.

Contributions by the RefreSCAR coordinator, SCAR Secretariat (with DG RTD and DG Agri representatives), and by two SCAR Groups’ chairs (from ARCH and Animal Health and Welfare) enriched the discussion. The group chairs' presentations gave the possibility to familiarise in more detail with these two groups (every year different groups are presented in this series of webinars), and to discuss the contributions that group members are invited to make, together with the value and benefits they can obtain from their participation to the SCAR.

Three participatory sessions were also organised, the first one as "ice-breaker" and the others aimed at providing participants with the opportunity to share their expectations, seek clarification regarding their involvement in the SCAR, and jointly develop an ideal SCAR Group mandate, with the aim of collectively reflecting on the full range of activities that a SCAR Group may undertake. At the end of the event, a live evaluation survey was conducted, revealing overall positive feedback and identifying suggestions for the forthcoming fourth training webinar scheduled for 2027.